Episode 490 – The Stories We Tell: Building Unstoppable Connections Through Life with Ellen Weeren
What if the story you think is too ordinary to share could change someone else’s life? Writer, writing coach, and entrepreneur Ellen Weeren believes everyone has a story worth telling. From growing up in a military family and living in Germany and India to rebuilding her life after the end of a 30-year marriage, Ellen has learned how storytelling can help us understand ourselves, connect with others, and find strength during difficult times. I enjoyed hearing how she turned her love of writing into a new career through fiction, writing retreats, and helping students tell their stories in college essays. We also explore how personal stories build empathy, why entrepreneurs need storytelling to connect with people, and how small moments can hold powerful lessons. Ellen reminds us that we don’t need extraordinary lives to have meaningful stories. Sometimes, recognizing the value of our own experiences is what helps us move forward.
Highlights:
2:24 How childhood experiences sparked a lifelong love of storytelling.
12:42 Why writing helps us process emotions and find meaning.
19:24 How finding common ground helps us connect with others.
28:16 Why staying open to possibilities can change our lives.
42:10 How to rebuild after betrayal and move forward.
55:46 Why personal stories create stronger connections in business.
About the Guest:
Ellen Weeren is a writer, writing coach, and community builder whose work explores who we are and who we might become. Her short story collection, Love and Other Failures, is forthcoming from Cornerstone Press. Her fiction has appeared in the Saturday Evening Post, the Kenyon Review, Fractured Lit, and others.
Raised by a single working mother and moving frequently, Ellen learned early on that stories matter for survival and connection. After earning a degree in English from George Mason University, she became a stay-at-home mom and raised three amazing humans. During those years, Ellen never stopped creating: she ran a handmade stationery business, transformed a high school haunted house fundraiser, and served as the writer and editor for her neighborhood newsletter.
Living in Delhi, India for two years unlocked her writing voice. TripBase twice recognized her blog about expat life as one of the top ten travel blogs in the world. After returning to the U.S., she earned her MFA in Fiction from George Mason University and graduated as Outstanding Graduate Student of the Year (Fiction). She’s received fellowships and awards from the Kenyon Review, the Porches, WV Writers, and others.
Now that her children have successfully launched, Ellen channels her creative energy into her writing and the community she’s built. She helps students craft college application essays through Make My Essay Better, teaches entrepreneurs how to incorporate personal stories into their pitch decks, and hosts a thriving Facebook community of nearly 800 writers called A Reason to Write. She has opened her home as a writers’ retreat (also called A Reason to Write), hosts and coordinates workshops, serves on the Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, and is applying to PhD programs.
Ellen believes everyone has a story that matters and loves helping people find theirs. She lives in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia with a reasonable number of cats and is working on a novel.
Ways to connect with Ellen**:**
https://www.facebook.com/ellen.weeren/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ellen-weeren-b14a2029/
https://www.instagram.com/ellenweeren1/
Bluesky
https://bsky.app/profile/ellenweeren.bsky.social
Threads
https://www.threads.com/@ellenweeren1
About the Host:
Michael Hingson is a New York Times best-selling author, international lecturer, and Chief Vision Officer for accessiBe. Michael, blind since birth, survived the 9/11 attacks with the help of his guide dog Roselle. This story is the subject of his best-selling book, Thunder Dog.
Michael gives over 100 presentations around the world each year speaking to influential groups such as Exxon Mobile, AT&T, Federal Express, Scripps College, Rutgers University, Children’s Hospital, and the American Red Cross just to name a few. He is Ambassador for the National Braille Literacy Campaign for the National Federation of the Blind and also serves as Ambassador for the American Humane Association’s 2012 Hero Dog Awards.
https://www.facebook.com/michael.hingson.author.speaker/
https://www.youtube.com/user/mhingson
https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelhingson/
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Transcription Notes:
