Hi Reader! I've been thinking a lot about the fact that fall is when most of the speaking opportunities for spring open up, and how often I see people bookmark places to pitch, start the application, get stuck on their pitch, and abandon all hope. So I had an idea...two, actually. I want you to be ready to pitch when opportunities arise. To help you with the pitch, I have put together a Pitch Fundamentals Workshop designed to help you draft pitches that ditch the "pick me" energy and really...
26 days ago • 2 min read
Happy Saturday, Reader It’s been one of those weeks where I was struggling to decide what to write about, despite having a long list of ideas that I go to each week. And then, we found out that Sam Neill passed away and naturally, I had to switch on Jurassic Park. I remember watching this movie in the theater, and I tell you, over 30 years later, I still love it as much as I did the first time (and I still get the jump scares in all the right places). And while Jurassic Park is remembered for...
about 2 months ago • 2 min read
Hello Reader! It seems fitting that my latest TV obsession is the talk of the town this week. Garnering a total of 19 Emmy nominations, Widow’s Bay is taking the world by storm, and rightfully so. This is a show that I would not have chosen for myself because I’m not terribly into anything that has a jump scare in it, but when my friend described it as “satirical horror,” I thought I’d give it a go. And hooboy, was I hooked from the get-go. I just finished watching Season 1 and I’m already...
about 2 months ago • 4 min read
Hello Reader! With the World Cup in full swing, I’ve been thinking a lot about sports stories and why they make for such great storytelling lessons. You don’t have to be a sports person to be able to appreciate a good sports story. In real life, I understand the basics of football (soccer), but I don’t follow closely enough to know who's favored or which matches I should be watching. I recently learned at a PowerPoint party the importance of the number 10 and I will be tucking this little bit...
2 months ago • 2 min read
Hello Reader! When my daughter texted to ask if I wanted to go see The Princess Bride at Red Rocks a few months back, it was an immediate “HELL YES!!” The Princess Bride is a favorite film in our family (isn’t it everybody’s?), although not for the reasons you might think. My teenage celebrity crush was Tom Cruise (ick, I know…it was before the couch jumping), but my sister’s was Cary Elwes. My memory is fuzzy, but I’m almost certain that the whole reason we saw this movie in the first place...
3 months ago • 3 min read
Happy Saturday, Storytellers! We’re back, after an unexpected hiatus the past couple of months. I’ve missed writing these, and I hope you’ve missed reading them! And if you haven’t, that’s okay too. I'm not keeping score. Last month, I took an impromptu trip to visit my friend Shelly of Creative Camp, who lives in London. Time with Shelly is always delightful because we have fun creative adventures together. While I was there, we took an afternoon to check out the Wes Anderson exhibit at the...
3 months ago • 3 min read
Well hello again Reader, As Alysa Liu skated her authentic heart to gold this week, Xennials like me felt healed from the scandal that rocked the 1994 Olympics: the coordinated attack on Nancy Kerrigan, that was an attempt to knock her out of contention. It quickly became a “good vs. evil” storyline and the villain was Tonya Harding. I, Tonya is an attempt to bring Harding out of the flattened villain arc that pop culture handed her and give her dimension. When this movie first came out, I...
7 months ago • 2 min read
Well hello again Reader, I know it's been a minute, and several of you have told me the void in the inbox is obvious. I appreciate the compliment! I've missed being here. And now you know that I write these on the fly, for the most part. I had a bit of a technical snag when the "super safe" power grid in Thailand fried my whole laptop following a power outage. I can't see what might be the problem at all... Now that I'm back stateside, all systems are go again. Thank you for your patience....
7 months ago • 2 min read
Happy Saturday, Reader! I’m getting toward the tail end of my travels, which means the trip that started it all is here. I’ve picked out a couple of movies for this week and next that might give you a hint as to where in the world I am now (if you don’t already know from my Instagram stories—@eunicebrownlee if you don't already follow me). Thank you so much for all your kind responses to my emails each week. It brings me joy that you love these as much as I do. And when our world is crashing...
8 months ago • 2 min read