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PODCAST

Firestarters with Shannon Watts

Firestarters is a podcast filled with inspiring interviews of women living audacious lives and encouraging others to do the same. shannonwatts.substack.com shannonwatts.substack.com

society & culture personal journals

All Episodes

38:09

[Replay] How Gretchen Carlson kept her spark alive

Firestarters with Shannon Watts ·

2025/06/02

“So I am silenced. I do not own my own truth. I do not own my own reality. I've had movies and miniseries made about me. I couldn't participate. I can't even tell you if they're accurate. I may never own my own voice, but I am going to make sure that other people do.”Gretchen Carlson is a renowned journalist, a bestselling author, and now an internationally recognized advocate for women's rights in the workplace. Gretchen's life has taken so many twists and turns—from youth violinist to Miss America

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21:52

Shannon Watts and Gretchen Rubin on the secrets of...

Firestarters with Shannon Watts ·

2025/05/30

Watch the replay of my conversation with Gretchen Rubin, author of “Secrets of Adulthood: Simple Truths for Our Complex Lives,” for her inaugural Substack Live! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shannonwatts.substack.com/subscribe

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42:42

25: Anna Malaika Tubbs on how mothers shape the world

Firestarters with Shannon Watts ·

2025/05/26

"Motherhood is the ultimate experience of caring for others. Beyond biological motherhood, as a mother, you create something new in this world, you care for our interconnectedness with each other, you are thinking about others just as much as you're thinking about yourself, if not more so."Anna Malaika Tubbs is a powerhouse voice in the world of storytelling and social justice. She's a New York Times bestselling author with a focus on addressing gender and race issues in the United States,

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32:29

Shannon Watts and Amanda Haas on why it's important...

Firestarters with Shannon Watts ·

2025/05/21

Watch the replay of my conversation with amanda haas. We discuss her journey from stay-at-home mom to single-mother entrepreneur, how she got (and is still getting) through the messy middle of her divorce and dealing with a chronic illness, and why it’s important for your kids to see you follow your desires, not just fulfill your obligations. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shannonwatts.substack.com/subscribe

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44:53

24: Jamia Wilson on breaking barriers

Firestarters with Shannon Watts ·

2025/05/19

"I am a very heart-driven person. And as a woman you feel like you need to suppress that in certain spaces, or it can be belittled. I'm working on embracing and celebrating that that is exactly the kind of medicine I bring to this life—that curiosity, thinking, and expressing, but also a deep empathy that is powerful and not weak."Jamia Wilson was born in America, the child of civil rights activists, but spent her formative years growing up in Saudi Arabia. Later, she returned to America, believing

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30:06

Shannon Watts and Joy Sullivan on the powerful...

Firestarters with Shannon Watts ·

2025/05/14

Check out my Substack Live conversation with Joy Sullivan. Joy is a poet, teacher, and author of the national bestseller, Instructions for Traveling West. She’s led international writing retreats, served as the poet-in-residence for the Wexner Center for the Arts, and is the founder of writing community, Sustenance.Joy and I discuss finding the spark that made each of us come alive, why women should embrace emotions like rage and desire, and what community means to us. Be sure you’re following Joy’s

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32:02

Shannon Watts and Olivia Julianna on how to get...

Firestarters with Shannon Watts ·

2025/05/13

Check out my Substack Live conversation with Olivia Julianna, an abortion rights activist, democracy organizer, and political influencer who lives in Texas. Her massive following across social media platforms is changing the political landscape and ensuring that Gen Z voices are front and center.Olivia and I discuss how she got involved in activism, what it’s like to fight back against the trolls (including the one who showed up in our Live comment section!), and what she envisions for the future of

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30:30

23: Sarah Ruhl on how to show gratitude

Firestarters with Shannon Watts ·

2025/05/12

"You don't know when you're pollinating the world with your attempts how they'll come back to you. It might be completely nonlinear. You knock on the same door 20 times and then it's actually a door to the left, down the hall, across the country that opens for you."As a two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist, a Tony Award nominee, and the recipient of the MacArthur Genius Fellowship, playwright Sarah Ruhl is no stranger to accolades. After writing about the passage of time during the pandemic, her

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32:01

Shannon Watts and Jess Piper on being a blue dot in a...

Firestarters with Shannon Watts ·

2025/05/07

Check out my Substack Live conversation with Jess Piper, a mother and grandmother who lives on a small farm on the Missouri/Iowa border, about why it’s so important that the Democratic Party start focusing on organizing voters in the rural areas of red states—not just before an election, but all year long: “It's just mind blowing because we can win. We don't have to flip a district. We don't have to flip a seat. We have to turn out enough voters to make a difference at the top of the ticket. Every

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39:21

22: Jocelyn Benson on how to be a warrior

Firestarters with Shannon Watts ·

2025/05/05

"Bravery is a muscle and by overcoming fear, by being courageous, we build that muscle so that the next time around we can access that bravery muscle even quicker and with even more temerity and strength."Since 2019, Jocelyn Benson, a former law professor, has served as Michigan's Secretary of State, and she’s been a tireless advocate for voting rights, election integrity, and government transparency. Jocelyn is now also an author, and her new book, The Purposeful Warrior: Standing Up for What’s

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40:17

Shannon Watts and Liz Minnella on the state of play...

Firestarters with Shannon Watts ·

2025/05/02

Check out my Substack Live conversation with Liz Minnella on how things are going post-election, her new initiative Connect Forward, and her new podcast Demfluenced. You can connect with Liz on Instagram for more information on her projects. And don’t forget to check out my other Substack Live conversations by clicking here.My new book Fired Up: How to Turn Your Spark Into a Flame and Come Alive at Any Age, is available for preorder! Out in June 2025, Fired Up will give you the formula for finding

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25:13

Shannon Watts and Mallory McMorrow on running for office

Firestarters with Shannon Watts ·

2025/04/28

Check out my conversation with Mallory McMorrow about how she ended up running for office and winning, why she wrote her new book, “Hate Won’t Win: Find Your Power and Leave This Place Better Than You Found It,” and what’s next for her as she runs for a seat in the US Senate.My new book Fired Up: How to Turn Your Spark Into a Flame and Come Alive at Any Age, is available for preorder! Out in June 2025, Fired Up will give you the formula for finding your unique spark and show you how to use it to

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47:53

21: Daria Burke on how to rise from the ashes

Firestarters with Shannon Watts ·

2025/04/21

"If we can inherit the trauma from our ancestors, then that means we can also inherit their wisdom, their goodness, their fortitude, their strength."Daria Burke would have had a very different life if she’d chosen to accept what seemed like her fate, but she knew innately that the addiction her parents struggled with and the neglect she endured didn’t have to shape her future, too. In Daria's new book, Of My Own Making, she writes about the incredible path she carved for herself, from a life of

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41:34

20: Mallory Weggemann on how to survive trauma

Firestarters with Shannon Watts ·

2025/04/07

"No matter what we navigate, adversities or joys alike, there are elements of who we are that are innate. I don't think they change just because circumstances change. I actually don't think we change at all. We just evolve."Mallory Weggemann was just 18 years old when a series of routine epidural injections for back pain left her with no movement from the waist down. Now, 17 years later, Mallory is a gold medal paralympian; an author, filmmaker and motivational speaker; and a fierce advocate for the

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28:19

Shannon Watts and Zerlina Maxwell on embracing change

Firestarters with Shannon Watts ·

2025/03/31

Check out my Substack Live conversation with Zerlina on how she knew it was time to make a big change in her life, the signs that lead her there (and continue to show up), and what’s next in her adventure (spoiler alert: she wants to stay in Italy forever).I interviewed Zerlina for my upcoming book, Fired Up: How to Turn Your Spark Into a Flame and Come Alive at Any Age. Pre-order now to read more about Zerlina’s journey and dozens of other women who have followed my formula for embracing their

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33:44

19: Amanda Zurawski on how to fight for your rights

Firestarters with Shannon Watts ·

2025/03/24

"I hope I've helped to create a framework where people find a way and feel like their voice can make a difference because I have seen how just one voice can make a difference."In 2022, after 18 months of fertility treatment, Texan Amanda Zurawski and her husband learned she was pregnant. However, at 18 weeks, doctors told Amanda she had miscarried. And then, because of Texas's abortion ban, those same doctors denied Amanda the healthcare she urgently needed and she nearly died from septic

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28:58

Building Community with Shannon Watts and Katherine...

Firestarters with Shannon Watts ·

2025/03/17

Check out my Substack Live conversation with Katherine Goldstein, author of How to Find Your People: A Guide to the Transformative Power of Community about the importance of finding or creating community.After watching the replay above, make sure you’re following Katherine on Substack at The Double Shift.My upcoming book, Fired Up: How to Turn Your Spark Into a Flame and Come Alive at Any Age, is now available for preorder! This book is my guide to figuring out what lights you up and will show you

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39:03

18: Alencia Johnson on how to be a disruptor for good

Firestarters with Shannon Watts ·

2025/03/10

“For women, people of color, and anyone on the margins, there’s a culture and society that wants to dominate us; to keep us oppressed and in line. The more that we fight through it, the better off we are and the more fires we can start to disrupt the world around us.”Alencia Johnson is an award-winning commentator, political advisor, leader and now an author who is teaching people how to be everyday disruptors. After working on presidential campaigns of President Obama, Senator Warren, and President

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44:18

17: Luvvie Ajayi Jones on how to be a professional...

Firestarters with Shannon Watts ·

2025/02/24

"For those of us not in immediate danger of losing our livelihoods, our lives, our ability to move through the world, this is the moment we need to step up. Right now, more than anything, we all have to be firestarters. Light the match."Luvvie Ajayi Jones is an author, speaker, and mentor who tells stories that inspire and dare people to live more boldly. She started her career as a blogger and in 2016, published her first book, I'm Judging You: The Do-Better Manual, which debuted on the New York

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26:46

Shannon Watts and Brooke Baldwin discuss SEX

Firestarters with Shannon Watts ·

2025/02/17

Regardless of who you’re having sex with — yourself or someone else — research shows that women over age 50 are having the best sex of their lives. Watch my live conversation with former CNN anchor and fellow Gen Xer Brooke Baldwin, and read my piece about all of the treatments and technology available to make sex even better, from hormones to the MonaLisa Touch laser to pelvic floor trainers. And be sure you’re following Unraveling, with Brooke Baldwin. This is a public episode. If you'd like to

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60 results

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