Last week,
and I launched the first season of This American Ex Wife The Podcast. In that newsletter, I wrote that we recorded a 10-episode season, but we wanted to do a second season because there were topics, ideas, and stories we didn’t have time or space to tell. But to do that, we needed your support.Well, I am so excited to announce that we got that support and we have a sponsor for season two!
Funny Girls is a program run by The Harnisch Foundation that uses improv to teach leadership skills to girls and non-binary kids in grade three through eight. You can learn more about its work here.
I am so excited for them to be a partner, because doing stand-up comedy at open mics around Cedar Rapids, helped me develop confidence and my voice after my divorce. So often, we expect men to be the jokesters and women to be the supporting audience. Learning to do stand up was my way of reasserting my power not just in my professional life, but as a way of reclaiming my own narrative. (I wrote a whole chapter about this in my book! You’ll love it!)
Writing in the 1970s, feminist critic Naomi Weisstein argued that women “Must try out forms [of humor] which throw off the shackles of self-ridicule, self-abnegation; we must tap that capacity for outrage, the knowledge of our shared expression.” Laughter, jokes, humor are a way for women and people who are marginalized to regain social control and reduce feelings of powerlessness.
And “leadership,” as the Funny Girls website notes, “is no joke.”
The Harnisch Foundation has been supporting women in leadership since 1998, And I’m really honored by their sponsorship. Stay tuned for more information about season two of This American Ex Wife the Podcast!
Episode 2: “Catharsis” with Candice Luter.
Many suspect that their partner is cheating on them. Few of us show up outside the motel room to catch them in the act. Candice Luter gets honest about insecurity, breaking and recovering after her ex showed who he really was.
If you like what you hear, preorder This American Ex-Wife and subscribe to this newsletter.
Also, for everyone who preorders the book, I’m giving away “burn it down” stickers and a signed nameplate for your book. Details on the giveaway are here.
You can listen to the podcast by clicking the link at the top of this email. You can also find an AI-generated transcript in the dropdown box above.
You can find this podcast on all your favorite podcast apps. If you need help finding it, here is a link!
This American Ex-Wife is hosted by Lyz Lenz and produced by Zachary Oren Smith. The illustration for the show was drawn by Alessandro Gottardo. Art was made by Suzanne Glémot.
Show notes:
You can find Candice’s amazing designs on her Etsy store. And on her website. You can also find Candice on Instagram.
In the podcast, Candice talks about her asemic journaling. You can see an image of it here:
“Catharsis” with Candice Luter