Long Story Short

This week Skye and Amanda read Real Life, Real Love by one of the most transparent and vulnerable couples in the industry, DJ Envy and Gia Casey. Listen in to hear what the ladies appreciate most about the couple and book, and what they took from their lessons on love and parenting. Books mentioned in this week’s episode are linked to our Bookshop.org shop Real Life, Real Love: Life Lessons on Joy...

To wrap up their three part series on self esteem, Skye and Amanda get inspired by their recent fiction read, 30 Things I Love About Myself, to make a self love list of their own.  Listen in and join the love fest, as the ladies big themselves and each other up by focusing on their best attributes.  Books mentioned in this week’s episode are linked to our Bookshop.org shop 30 Things I Love About M...

As a part two to last week’s discussion on self esteem, Skye and Amanda read The Alter Ego Effect by Todd Herman and discuss what it means to use our imagination to unleash new, confident versions of ourselves.  The two define what an alter ego is and how it can take us from operating from our trapped self who lives in fear and self doubt to living within our heroic self, the self who knows who th...

This week Skye & Amanda talk about what it takes to build and sustain a healthy level of self esteem. The two break down the 6 pillars of self-esteem, a concept championed by Dr Nathaniel Branden, a psychotherapist and author known for his work on the psychology of self-esteem.  Hear why the ladies wanted to learn more about self esteem, how they relate to each of Branden’s six practices, wher...

This week Skye & Amanda read Listen Like You Mean It by Ximena Vengoechea and discuss the author’s ultimate guide to becoming an empathetic listener. The two discuss Vengoechea’s tips for cultivating a listening mindset, staying present in conversation, observing and taking cues from your conversation partner and deepening our understanding of others.  The ladies break down the different defau...

This week Skye & Amanda read a book that was made just for them, The Eldest Daughter by Wies Enthoven and Lisette Schuitemaker. The two talk about what it has been like for them being the first born and eldest daughter in their family.  After taking a look at the five characteristics that Enthoven & Schuitemaker believe to be shared amongst all eldest daughters, the ladies discuss the pres...

This week Skye & Amanda shoot the shit. No set topics and no book talk. Listen to them talk about what they’ve been loving and watching this week.  This week’s ‘Bout That Action! highlight is: Quinta Brunson & the team at Abbott Elementary  Learn more about their partnership with Scholastics and tune into the sitcom on ABC Support Long Story Short and Local Bookstores:  Libro. FM - get two...

This week Skye & Amanda listen to the audiobook of Will Smith’s self-titled memoir, WILL. The two rave about his innate ability to portray his life story, while leaving us with endless gems along the way.  The ladies give teasers of some of their favorite moments throughout Will’s inception to superstardom and share insight into the life lessons that they took from the book. From changing our...

As a continuation to last week’s episode on pleasure, Skye and Amanda read Come As You are by Emily Nagowski and further explore the ways that we can better understand and embrace our sexuality. The two break down Nagowski’s take on the dual control model of sexual response, which further explains what each of us would deem our “breaks” and “accelorators” and just how sensitive we each might be to...

This week’s episode Skye and Amanda discuss the area of the bodies that doesn’t get the most shine with their latest read, Pussy Prayers: Sacred and Sensual Rituals for Wild Women of Color by Black Girl Bliss. The two give their thoughts on connecting with their divine rite of pleasure and what it means to reclaim the part of themselves that might have been neglected.  They each share details on t...

This week Skye and Amanda start love month with their favorite author on the topic, bell hooks. The two discuss hooks’ third book from the love trilogy, Communion: The Female Search for Love. Listen in to hear hooks’ ideas on the female search for love, the purpose of community in our love lives and sexist views that are holding us back.  They each share details about whether they felt the pressur...

This week Skye and Amanda are inspired by the soon to be released book, The Nineties by Chuck Klosterman. The two head down memory lane and reminisce about what the 90’s were like for them as young girls. They each share details about their personality as children, the things they were into, what they were wearing, what they were watching and of course what they were reading.  Books mentioned in t...

This week Skye and Amanda read The Five Archetypes and discuss how the five elements of Traditional Chinese Medicine aren’t only associated with nature but also our personalities. The two break down Davidson’s self-guided archetype system that was created to lead us all to self awareness, self regulation and empathy.  After taking the assessment and learning more about where they land with each el...

This week Skye and Amanda break down the idolization of hustle culture. Using articles, the two talk about the effects of toxic hustle culture and how it can essentially become counterproductive. Listen in as the two discuss how they have been managing societal pressures, dealing with competition, and how they are learning to be guilt-free with their leisure time.  Learn who is struggling with fee...

Skye and Amanda ease into the new year with a check in. The two talk about what they’ve been up to during the break and share their intentions for 2022. Listen in to find out what they each want the year to look and feel like and how they plan to make that happen.  They each discuss their upcoming reading goals and share their top tips on how to carve out more time for books.  Books mentioned in t...

Skye and Amanda are ending the year with a steamy holiday romance, Merry Kiss Me by Louise Lennox. The two give their thoughts on how reading their first Christmas novel compared to the many Christmas movies that they’ve watched over the years. Find out why they hope Lennox turns this one into a Netflix movie.  The ladies talk about their favorite Christmas movies - from the unconventional classic...

Skye and Amanda couldn’t let one of their favorite shows come to an end without giving it a dedicated tv/book moment. The two share their thoughts on this latest season of Insecure and give their predictions for the last three episodes of the series.  It wouldn’t be a Long Story Short episode without book talk. Listen in to hear which books the ladies recommend for each of the main characters - Is...

This week Skye and Amanda read Carefree Black Girls: A Celebration of Black Women in Pop Culture by Zeba Blay and discuss how negative stereotypes and identities continue to follow us women through everyday life, pop culture, and beyond. Listen in as the two discuss what they consider their definition of a carefree girl by using examples of Black women in pop culture who have shown them what it me...

This week Skye and Amanda read How We Show Up by Mia Birdsong and discuss what it looks and feels like to dismantle the so-called American Dream, a system that for many of us has caused toxic individualism. The two discuss Birdsong’s suggestion that we create the family, friendship and community dynamics that best serve us and our well being, rather than having a focus on nuclear households or doi...

This week Skye and Amanda go down memory lane after reading the short story collection, On Girlhood by author and founder of Well Read Black Girl, Glory Edim. The ladies use the themes in this curated anthology - Innocence, Belonging, Love, and Self-Discovery  - to talk through some of the parts of the Black girlhood experience that shape who they’ve become.  Listen in as the two discuss “rules” t...

This week Skye and Amanda read How to Fail at Flirting by Denise Williams, a romance novel about how a daring to-do list and a crash course in flirtation turns a Type A overachiever’s world upside down. The book leads to a conversation about that first stage of dating and the two talk about what type of flirt they each are (or aren’t). Hear what the ladies consider to be good flirting and what the...

This week Skye & Amanda read Solving the Procrastination Puzzle: A Concise Guide to Strategies for Change by Timothy Pychyl and discuss what it looks like to avoid tasks for the sake of avoiding negative emotions. From sending emails at work, to writing essays for school, to washing dishes, to having difficult conversations and spending money, the ladies admit to the ways that they each find t...

In honor of Spooky Season, Skye & Amanda read the horror anthology, Black Magic Women: Terrifying Tales by Scary Sisters. From magical dolls to flesh eating bees to birth control with abnormal side effects to witches and vampires, the two discuss some of their favorite stories from the book and think about what they would do if faced with horror-like situations. Hear their thoughts on Black Ma...

Skye & Amanda read Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted Word by author and professor, Cal Newport and discuss what productivity can look like when we go into a state of distraction-free concentration that pushes our cognitive capabilities to their limit.  The two break down Newport’s theory on deep work vs shallow work and how much of our time is taken away from the focus we ne...

This week Skye & Amanda read a Psychology Today article by Juliana Breines, “Self-Compassion vs. Letting Yourself Off the Hook”. The two define self compassion and discuss where they were with it prior to reading. They open up about what areas they see that they can make improvements with how much grace they give themselves.  Together the ladies run through the four questions that Breines sugg...