Shaping the Narrative

In this short but sweet season finale, we reflect on season four and the many ways that stories are all around us. Instagram  @shapingthenarrative Join our newsletter or book club on  Substack Check out Leanna's  event planning services Buy us a coffee

Can you tell a story through your events? Leanna, the co-host of Shaping the Narrative (and a professional Event Producer by day) answers that question in this episode. This season we've been discussing the concept that stories are everywhere! let us know your thoughts and send us a dm on Instagram. Instagram @shapingthenarrative Join our newsletter or book club on Substack Check out Leanna&#3...

This season we’ve been determining that stories are EVERYWHERE but can stories even be found within stories? In this episode we dive into the inception of it all as we discuss our latest book club pick Homebodies by Tembe Denton-Hurst. Join our Newsletter and Book Club over on Substack Buy us a coffee

In this solo episode, co-host Ashley (a graphic designer by day) breaks down her branding process and how storytelling is used to tell a brand's story. Instagram  @shapingthenarrative Join our newsletter or book club on  Substack Check out Leanna's  event planning services Buy us a coffee

Welcome to season 4 of Shaping the Narrative! In this episode, we introduce the topic of our season "Stories are Everywhere" what constitutes a story? and can we truly find stories in anything?

In the season finale episode, we break down the concept of Own Voices storytelling that started as a hashtag by Corinne Duyvis  to identify diverse books that are written by members of that same group. We also reflect on the past season,  ideas to encourage the concept of Own Voices in other types of storytelling, and some complications and risks of this concept. Interested in joining Book Club? J...

In this special episode we were guests on the " But What Do I Know ?" podcast with host Chid Suzan where we discuss the the Black female friendships in the Amazon Prime Video series Harlem , a comedy that follows the lives of four best girlfriends living in, you guessed it Harlem. We breakdown our thoughts on each of the women and how they've evolved throughout seasons one and two a...

Are you on Substack yet?! Substack is THE platform for writers, readers, and digital publishers. We've been using this platform for over 6 months now and we're loving the possibilities and flexibility.  In this episode we chat about how Substack is breaking barriers for women of color, how it compares to other platforms and the future of digital publishing.  Interested in joining Book Cl...

In this episode, we chat with author Elaine Chou about her book Disorientation. Elaine shares the process of adapting her novel into a screenplay as well as the inspiration behind her book and writing about personal experience and identity. Check out Elaine's website and book here . Jenny Zhang's Buzzfeed article mentioned. Trigger warning this episode contains mention of sexual assault....

In this episode, we chat with Makayla Couture, a public figure, Drag Queen, actress, and producer. We learn about her experience on Canada's Drag Race, how she uses drag and acting as a form of storytelling, and her upcoming projects. Add Makayla on Instagram @makayla.couture Interested in joining Book Club? Join us on Substack *Workshop booking requests are now through email only Support the...

This episode is all about Film and TV quiz questions, testing our knowledge on BIPOC pop culture. We thought we’d close this season in a fun and new way with a free movie quiz. We will test each other and our audience with film and tv questions specific to BIPOC pop culture. Get your popcorn ready and keep your hand hovered over the buzzer! CONTEST Leave us a review on Apple podcasts or share the...

This episode is all about the meaning of Black love in storytelling. The portrayal of Black love in storytelling and Hollywood in particular has evolved over the years. We discuss how we view Black love and relationships, why Black love is important, the power of Black love on the screen and our favourite Black love stories. Interested in joining Book Club? Join us on Substack *Workshop booking re...

This episode is all about reimagining the Sex in the City reboot. Sex in the City was one of the biggest tv shows of the late 90s-early 200s, whether you loved it or hated it you knew about it. In this episode, we chat about what the show got right and what it might’ve gotten wrong as well as how we’d reimagine the original and the new Sex in the City. Interested in joining Book Club? Join us on S...

This episode is all about book adaptations and diversifying white books for film and TV. You probably don’t realize how many of the movies and tv shows you watch actually started off as books or screenplays! We chat through some of our favourite book adaptations, the best movie adaptations of books and book to tv adaptations.  Interested in joining Book Club? Join us on Substack *Workshop booking...

This episode is all about TV shows with Black female leads. We answer who was the first Black female lead on TV? And how does Hollywood portray the single Black female? We also chat about how other diverse women are portrayed on TV and whether or not we are seeing a shift.  Interested in joining Book Club? Join us on Substack *Workshop booking requests are now through email only Support the show &...

The New York Times Best Sellers List is the pinnacle of best selling book lists in North America. How did this iconic best sellers list begin and how do they figure out what books make it onto the list? In our season 1 finale, we dive into the history of the NYT best sellers list, their trade secret of compiling the list and ways some authors play the system. Interested in joining Book Club? Join...

Nekesa Afia is a local Toronto author who is currently working on her mystery novel series. We recently read the first book in her series "Dead Dead Girls" in the Cove Collective Book Club , in this episode we give you a sneak peek at what these book club discussions look like. Authors Twitter @nekesaafia Authors IG @nekesawritesbooks In this episode the author mentioned she wrote her fi...

Horror movies have alway been very white with any BIPOC characters usually killed off within the first few minutes. In this episode we chat about how this genre in general could be more diverse, why Jordan Peele and the movie Get Out are so brilliant, and how the true crime genre can be problematic and harm the BIPOC community. Interested in joining Book Club? Join us on Substack *Workshop booking...

It seems like every week, a different celebrity announces that they've started a book club. In this episode we chat about their relevance, which celebrity book clubs we follow (looking at you Oprah) and how celebrities have more power to bring books to the big screen. Interested in joining Book Club? Join us on Substack *Workshop booking requests are now through email only Support the show &a...

THE PODCAST IS BACK!! and we are here to chat about all things storytelling. Listen to learn about why we took a break and where we're headed.  Interested in joining Book Club? Join us on Substack *Workshop booking requests are now through email only Support the show & buy us a virtual coffee Share your feedback This Podcast is produced by Cove Collective, a community that celebrates the...

We live in a capitalist society that tells us we are not valuable unless we are consistently producing, but this is not sustainable. Rest is part of productivity, we can't keep going without taking care of ourselves first. Rest is also a form of resistance! we talk through this concept in this episode. Check out The Nap Ministry Interested in booking our Diversify Your Bookshelf workshop for...

Reality TV! you either love it or hate but either way, you've watched it... why is that? in this episode we attempt to answer this question and share our fave and least fave series, and what we'd like to see more of in terms of diversity. Interested in booking our Diversify Your Bookshelf workshop for your place of work or for a private group? check out the workshop page on our website ....

How can you tap into your confidence? What tools can you use to create and maintain self-confidence? These are some of the questions we ask Coach Carey who is a 3x Certified Life Coach and motivational speaker and life coach in this episode. Find Coach Carey on IG @coach.carey Check out her website careycoach.com Interested in booking our Diversify Your Bookshelf workshop for your place of work or...

We both kicked off our 2022 by reading Nedra Glover Tawwab's book "Set Boundaries, Find Peace a guide to reclaiming yourself". We gained so much clarity around the way we were navigating boundaries in different areas of our lives that we knew we had to discuss this book with ya'll! We chat about the different areas we have boundaries, the levels of relationship to our boundarie...

What does Trans advocacy and allyship look like? In this episode we discuss these topics with Moka Dawkins who is a Black and Indigenous, 2-Spirit, trans woman, former sex worker and prisoners’ rights advocate. We also discuss the importance finding joy in the everyday and why it's important to advocate for yourself and your community. tw: this episode has mentions of transphobia and police b...