Women Writing

Welcome to the Women Writing podcast. In this episode, I’m taking a coffee break with my colleague, author and book coach, Alex Van Tol.Alex Van Tol is the bestselling author of 15 books and an Author Accelerator-certified book coach. She works with writers across genres and at all levels of craft, with particular skill in dialogue and character development. She is also a somatic coach, helping people release stuck patterns and regulate their nervous systems. Learn more about Alex’s work at www.alexvantol.com.📚Women Writing CircleTransform your writing journey in 2025! Join our dynamic community of writers twice monthly as we gather to spark creativity, share breakthroughs, and accomplish real progress together. The Women Writing Circle meets on the second and fourth Mondays, 6:30-8:00 PM EST—a dedicated time to prioritize your craft alongside supportive peers who understand the writing life.Exclusive to paid subscribers who are serious about their writing practice. Break through blocks, celebrate milestones, and watch your pages multiply in our encouraging community. Ready to make 2025 your most productive writing year yet? Subscribe now and step into the circle where magic happens and words flow! Enjoy rereleases starting in June and get caught up with all our past episodes. Stay tuned for Season 2 of the Women Writing Podcast coming in September. Thanks for taking your coffee break with Women Writing! Get full access to Women Writing at liisakovalawomenwriting.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome to the Women Writing podcast. In this episode, I’m taking a coffee break with Andi Cumbo, also known as ACF Bookens, the author of the A St. Marins Cozy Mystery Series, Stitches in Crime Series, and several other series, and we chat about pen names, writing series, creativity, and how she gets all the things done.Andi Cumbo lives at the edge of Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains with her young son and three rescue cats, who are - of course - nocturnal. When she’s not writing, she watches a lot of boys play baseball, cross-stitches intermittently, and obsesses over her container garden.* Facebook -https://www.facebook.com/BookensCozyMysteries* Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/andicumbo/* ACF Bookens - ACFBookens.com* AndiLit - andilit.com* Andrea Cumbo - Andreacumbo.com📚Rekindle Creativity Women’s Writing Retreat: Spring Weekend GetawayOnly 2 spaces left! Join us for a weekend getaway at The Lodge at Pine Cove in beautiful French River, Ontario to reconnect with yourself and your writing, and make connections with a small group of fellow writers. What a wonderful way to celebrate the spring by rekindling your personal creativity and sparking your ideas. Dinah and I can’t wait to welcome you. Learn more and register here. Get full access to Women Writing at liisakovalawomenwriting.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome to the Women Writing podcast. In this episode, I’m chatting with multi-disciplinary artist and book coach Katie Curtin. A multi-disciplinary artist, Author Accelerator Certified Book Coach, and lifelong activist with a passion for holistic health and healing, Katie Curtin helps creative change makers bring their visions to life. Her writing journey began at 24 with Women In China (Pathfinder Press)—which saw three printings, translations into French and Swedish, and adoption into high school curriculum—and continues with her Amazon bestseller The Happy Well-Fed Artist: How to Get Your Creative Projects Off the Ground and Into the World.Drawing from her diverse background as a mask maker, theatre artist, life coach, and advocate for social change and wellness, she brings a unique perspective to her work with writers and creatives. She's dedicated to fostering creative expression that nourishes both the individual and community, helping others develop books and creative projects that reflect their deepest values and visions for a better world.Visit Katie at her websites: changemakerbooks.com and katiecurtin.comRekindle Creativity Women’s Writing Retreat: Spring GetawayOnly 2 spaces left! Join us for a weekend getaway at The Lodge at Pine Cove in beautiful French River, Ontario to reconnect with yourself and your writing, and make connections with a small group of fellow writers. What a wonderful way to celebrate the spring by rekindling your personal creativity and sparking your ideas. Dinah and I can’t wait to welcome you. Learn more and register here. Get full access to Women Writing at liisakovalawomenwriting.substack.com/subscribe

Get full access to Women Writing at liisakovalawomenwriting.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome to the Women Writing podcast. In this episode, I’m chatting with author, screenwriter, and teacher Kathryn Mockler.Kathryn Mockler is a writer, screenwriter, experimental filmmaker, editor, and publisher and the author of the story collection Anecdotes (Book*hug Press, 2023), which won the 2024 Victoria Butler Book Prize and was a finalist for the 2024 Trillium Book Award, 2023 Danuta Gleed Literary Award, 2024 Fred Kerner Award, and 2024 VMI Besty Warland Between Genres Award. She co-edited the print anthology Watch Your Head: Writers and Artists Respond to the Climate Crisis (Coach House Books, 2020). Her films have screened at TIFF, EMFA, the Palm Springs Film Festival and most recently at the Arizona Underground Film Festival and REELPoetry/HoustonTX. She runs the literary newsletter Send My Love to Anyone and teaches screenwriting and fiction in the Writing Department at the University of Victoria.Visit Kathryn’s website kathrynmockler.com and follow her on Substack at Send My Love to Anyone.Rekindle Creativity Women’s Writing Retreat: Spring GetawayOnly 2 spots left! Join us for a weekend getaway at The Lodge at Pine Cove in beautiful French River, Ontario to reconnect with yourself and your writing, and make connections with a small group of fellow writers. What a wonderful way to celebrate the spring by rekindling your personal creativity and sparking your ideas. Dinah and I can’t wait to welcome you. Learn more and register here.Women Writing CircleThe Women Writing Circle meets on the second and last Monday of the month from 6:30-8:00 PM EST. This offering is for paid subscribers ($8 USD/month). You can learn more about the benefits of subscribing here. I’m looking forward to creating a magical writing community with you, and getting some pages written in 2025. Get full access to Women Writing at liisakovalawomenwriting.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome to the Women Writing podcast. In this episode, I’m taking a coffee break with author, editor, and podcaster Kerry Clare.KERRY CLARE is the author of Asking for a Friend, Waiting for a Star to Fall, and Mitzi Bytes. Her fourth novel will be published in March 2026. A National Magazine Award-nominated essayist and editor of The M Word: Conversations About Motherhood, Kerry also edits the Canadian books website 49thShelf.com, is host of the BOOKSPO podcast, and writes about books and reading at her longtime blog, Pickle Me This. She lives in Toronto with her family.Rekindle Creativity Women’s Writing Retreat: Spring GetawayJoin us for a weekend getaway at The Lodge at Pine Cove in beautiful French River, Ontario to reconnect with yourself and your writing, and make connections with a small group of fellow writers. What a wonderful way to celebrate the spring by rekindling your personal creativity and sparking your ideas. Dinah and I can’t wait to welcome you. Learn more and register here. Get full access to Women Writing at liisakovalawomenwriting.substack.com/subscribe

Get full access to Women Writing at liisakovalawomenwriting.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome to the Women Writing podcast. In this episode, I’m taking a coffee break with children’s author Laurie Elmquist. We chat all things board books, picture books, and chapter books and how you might get started writing for children.Laurie Elmquist is the author of several books for children including her most recent board book, Country Baby (Orca Book Publishers, 2024) and upcoming picture book, Dr. Lila Frankenstein (Orca Book Publishers, Oct. 2026). Her book for young readers, Where’s Burgess (Orca Book Publishers 2018) was nominated for a Silver Birch Express Award. The second book in the series, Ruckus, made the Best Books for Kids and Teens List, 2020. Laurie earned her MA from the University of Windsor in English Literature and Creative Writing. She is an active SCBWI and CWILL member who writes picture books, chapter books and middle grade. She is grateful to work and live in Victoria, BC on the traditional, unceded (never surrendered) territories of the Lkwungen (Songhees) peoples. She can be found at her website and on Substack.Rekindle Creativity Women’s Writing Retreat: Spring GetawayJoin us for a weekend getaway at The Lodge at Pine Cove in beautiful French River, Ontario to reconnect with yourself and your writing, and make connections with a small group of fellow writers. What a wonderful way to celebrate the spring by rekindling your personal creativity and sparking your ideas. Dinah and I can’t wait to welcome you. Learn more and register here.Women Writing CircleAre you looking for support, accountability, and community to reach your writing goals this year? The Women Writing Circle meets on the second and fourth Mondays of the month from 6:30-8:00 PM EST. This offering is for paid subscribers ($8USD/month). You can learn more about the benefits of subscribing here. I’m looking forward to creating a magical writing community with you, and getting pages written in 2025.Interested in joining the Women Writing Mentorship Program? Learn more here. Get full access to Women Writing at liisakovalawomenwriting.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome to the Women Writing podcast. In this episode, I’m taking a coffee break with my book coaching client, Holly Gutwillinger. Holly shares her experiences finding joy in her writing life.Holly B. Gutwillinger is a heartfelt writer from a small town in Northern Ontario. In the evenings, after her day job, she devotes her time to writing and attending the Creative Writing program at the University of Toronto’s School of Continuing Studies. She is working on her debut novel, which explores a woman’s complex relationship with her rescue dogs. Living in remote parts of Canada with her family has enriched her experience as a Canadian. When she's not writing in her favorite coffee shop, she enjoys reading, running, and spending quality time with her husband, two adult sons, and beloved dogs.Find Holly on Substack at Ramblings from the Little Shed.Rekindle Creativity Women’s Writing Retreat: Spring GetawayJoin us for a weekend getaway at The Lodge at Pine Cove in beautiful French River, Ontario to reconnect with yourself and your writing, and make connections with a small group of fellow writers. What a wonderful way to celebrate the spring by rekindling your personal creativity and sparking your ideas. Dinah and I can’t wait to welcome you. Learn more and register here.Women Writing CircleAre you looking for support, accountability, and community to reach your writing goals this year? The Women Writing Circle meets on the second and fourth Mondays of the month from 6:30-8:00 PM EST. This offering is for paid subscribers ($8USD/month). You can learn more about the benefits of subscribing here. I’m looking forward to creating a magical writing community with you, and getting pages written in 2025. Get full access to Women Writing at liisakovalawomenwriting.substack.com/subscribe

Thank you Liisa Kovala, Maddeline Elizabeth, Foreman Josh, and many others for tuning into my live video with Dinah Laprairie! Join me for my next live video in the app on WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16 at 1:00 PM EST with Caroline Topperman.Find us online:* Dinah Laprairie at dinahlaprairie.com* Liisa Kovala at liisakovalabookcoach.com* Rekindle Creativity Women’s Writing RetreatsFind out more about our weekend getaway Rekindle Creativity Women’s Writing Retreat at rekindlecreativity.com Get full access to Women Writing at liisakovalawomenwriting.substack.com/subscribe