Brooke Smith Of Wonder Storm Productions On The Book That Changed Her Life

An Interview With Sara Connell

Don’t create chaos.

I need to remember there’s only so much I can do in a single day. What’s important to me? I have the ability to choose what I want and what I don’t want to do in my business. When I pay attention to the things I want, I can create more quickly, more effectively, more passionately, and ultimately more successfully! Often, I need to pause and notice when I’m creating chaos in my day and remember what I really yearn to do.

Books have the power to shape, influence, and change our lives. Why is that so? What goes into a book that can shape lives? To address this we are interviewing people who can share a story about a book that changed their life, and why. As a part of our series, I had the pleasure of interviewing Brooke Smith.

Brooke lives in the mountains just outside of Durango, Colorado with her large blended family. She’s an avid reader, and recently left her career at the award-winning Pine River Library to pursue her new-found passion: Life-coaching! She’s a 4-time published author, and has developed her coaching style around Somatic Writer’s Coaching. She helps her clients tap into the feeling state they yearn to have as they navigate the beginning writing process all the way toward publication!

Brooke Smith was born in Santa Cruz, California, spent five years on Kaua’i and finally settled near Durango, Colorado where she lives in the mountains with her blended family including Joe, their five kids, and a sixth who’s grown and out creating her own adventures. Brooke is a certified Life- and Writing-Coach who finds herself involved in different community organizations, frequently writes, and continues to create, ponder and discover.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your “backstory” and how you grew up?

Oh my, where to begin. I was born in Santa Cruz, California, moved to Hawaii when I was 12, and then to Colorado when I was 16. We moved around a lot because my mom had a fear of natural disasters so, yet for some reason, we found ourselves chasing them. We experienced the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, then in 1992, we experienced Hurricane Iniki on Kaua’i. We moved to Colorado and while the natural disasters came to an end, it was a difficult place to live, and soon after our move there, she moved back to California. I stayed in Colorado, and was emancipated. I was sixteen. I became a teen mom, recovered from drug addiction, and have finally settled into my own wisdom and growth. It hasn’t been an easy road, but it’s been a worthy one. My backstory, as you say, is one of survival, homelessness, abandonment — including self-abandonment, and finally self-discovery, and thriving!

Let’s talk about what you are doing now, and how you achieved the success that you currently enjoy. Can you tell our readers a bit about the work you are doing?

I would love to! I am a Somatic Writing Coach. I work with those who yearn to write a book, but don’t know where to begin. We start with your BIG WHY, and work backward from there. Working together, you are able to navigate the entire writing process — from developing a writing habit, all the way through publication. I have been traditionally, self, and vanity published and I understand the publishing process for each mode of publication. I hold your hand as you tackle the steps through your writing journey while tapping into the feeling state you want to have so that you feel joyous the whole way through the process.

I work with groups and individually, depending on how you work best.

You are a successful leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?

Experience. When it comes to publishing, there’s a lot of information out there. Too much, in fact. When you Google: “How to publish” you can become overwhelmed with other people’s processes: What worked for them, what didn’t work; what to stay away from, or what you ‘need’ to do to be a successful author. I believe there is no one way to publish a book. The most important thing to remember is WHY you want to write a book, and then how do you want to feel when you reach the goal? This leads directly into my second character trait…

Somatics. Because I’m a Master Certified Life-coach, I’m all about feeling states and creating bliss in your life. If you feel heavy and dread the steps necessary to tackle any goal, you will eventually burn out and stop taking steps toward your goals. On the flip side, when you create a joyful process while navigating those steps, you will feel liberated while conquering goals. That’s where I come in. I help you figure ways to create a joyful step-by-step, simple process, so you feel great the whole way through your writing and publishing goals!

Listening. When you’re not doing the thing you say you want to be doing, there’s something deeper going on. My clients say they want to write a book. And yet they have not written a book until they start working with me! Why? Because there’s something deeper happening. When you say you want to write and still haven’t started, I’m able to listen deeply so you can untangle the limiting belief that is keeping you from actually doing the thing. The beliefs sound like: “Who will want to read my book,” or “It’s already been written.” Sometimes the blocks show up in distractions like Googling, “How to publish,” or looking for book cover ideas rather than actually writing your book. There’s nothing to publish if you haven’t written it yet; no cover to create if you have no content it put inside! These actions can create feelings of overwhelm and unworthiness before you’ve even started. I listen intently to find the real reason you’re seeking distractions rather than actually writing.

What’s the WHY behind the work that you do? Please share a story about this if you can.

Throughout my life, my mom said she wanted to write. She was an avid journaler (as am I). Every once in a while, she’d complete a piece and submit an article to an online magazine or a competition. She often won publications for these simple submissions, but she never wrote for herself. She used to tell me she’d focus on writing when she retires. She worked in the Silicon Valley as an Administrative Assistant most of her career life, and finally retired in July of 2016.

Three weeks following her retirement, she was diagnosed with Stage IV Lung Cancer. Three weeks after that, she passed away.

One of the final things she said to me was, “My stories are still inside of me.” This breaks my heart, and impacted me deeply. Now when I hear someone say they don’t have time to write, my mind wanders back to that conversation in her hospital bed on her final days. We don’t have time to wait for life to become quiet to tackle our dreams. Today is the day. It’s all we have.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

There are two people I attribute to my success. The first is my mom. Since you just heard about her, I’ll move right into the second person. My friend Dominic. He was a good friend of mine in my early 20s. We dated for a minute or two, but it never turned into anything more than friendship. We lost touch for a long time. Following my mom’s passing, I slipped into a very hard place. I was bitter and angry and resentful with everyone around me. I didn’t know who I was. I couldn’t understand the reason for my still being here.

One day, as I was getting ready for work, Dominic’s name popped into my head. While I was in the shower, “Dom.” As I readied my kids for school, “Dom.” As I drove to work, “Dom.” As I flipped on my computer as I was settling into my workspace, “Dom.” At this point, it had been more than a decade since I’d talked to him.

Finally, I decided to answer the call. It was one of those rebellious, “Fine. I’ll connect with him!” moments where I was feeling pretty pissy at the universe for even mentioning his name.

I sent Dominic a simple Facebook message. Something like, “Hey Dom. Your name keeps popping up for me. I hope you’re doing well.”

Immediately he responded, “Hey Brooke! Great to hear from you! How you doing?”

It was one of those moments and one of those questions that made me pause an extra second. Reading his simple response made me seek inside of myself. Why had his name come to me? Why am I in this conversation?

I noticed I had a choice. I could do our cultured normal response, “I’m fine. Things are good. Kids are growing up. Marriage is fine. Job is fine. Etc.” But I understood there was something deeper happening here. My choice was between responding how I “should” answer, or to respond truthfully. I chose the truth.

“Actually, things are pretty crappy right now.”

Here’s my favorite part. He didn’t ask what was going on. He didn’t try to console me. He told me simply, “You need to get on the computer and order the book Steering by Starlight right away. Text me back once you receive it.”

I may have been in a crappy place in my life, but I still understood Universal Guidance. I got on the computer and ordered the book. It arrived the next day. I messaged him to tell him that I had received the book.

“Great! Now, start reading it, and actually do the activities. Even the ones that seem weird. I promise your life will change.”

The changes started immediately.

Awesome! Let’s now jump to the primary focus of our interview. I’m an author and I believe that books have the power to change lives. Can you please tell our readers about “The Book That Changed Your Life”? Can you share a story about how it impacted you?

I just mentioned how the book was presented to me. Now, I’d love to share how it’s impacted me.

Steering by Starlight is a workbook hosting many vivid and great activities, from understanding your Lizard Brain, and even naming it to analyzing your own dreams to realizing how you talk to yourself and who you define as your “everybody” (you know, like, “Everybody will banish me if I don’t cook dinner tonight!”). Many of the exercises were very new to me, but the things that were happening in my life alongside reading the book and doing the activities was really what changed me.

What was the moment or series of events that made you decide that you wanted to take a specific course of action based on the inspiration from the book? Can you share a story about that?

Yes, I can. I hope you have time to hear the journey!

I started to read Steering by Starlight and that very day things began shifting. I received a message saying that I had been invited into an exclusive book club. I had heard rumors of this book club in my small town, but I didn’t know anything about it. I decided to take a leap and join them for a meeting. The participants were women who were incredibly supportive of each other. There was absolutely zero gossip. There was only recognition and support. I had never been around anything like that in a group of women before.

During my first meeting with the book club, one of the women pulled out a flyer for the International Women’s Summit which would be taking place in a couple of months. The speakers mentioned on the flyer were Elizabeth Gilbert and Glennon Doyle.

Now, this is where things begin to get weird. Elizabeth Gilbert is one of my favorite authors. In the previous year leading up to the moment when I was presented with this flyer, I had been in the same city multiple times just outside of being able to see Liz speak. She had done a few talks that were circulating online and I desperately wanted to see her in person. Every time I’d see a marquee or a flyer while I was visiting a certain place, the date of the event would either be the day after I was leaving the city, or the day prior to my arrival. It’s like I could never quite be there on time.

When my new book club friend showed the group this flyer, I immediately said I was going. Even if I have to go alone. I registered for the event on the spot.

I went to that event, and met a woman who was recently certified as a Martha Beck Life-coach. The same Martha Beck who wrote Steering by Starlight. The woman was hosting a retreat on Maui in a few months, and was offering a large discount for participants to join because it was her first retreat offering.

This time, I hesitated for a month or so, but I did sign up for the retreat.

Throughout this period of time, my insides were still a mess. I was so brokenhearted by my mom’s death. I was struggling with my marriage because my husband couldn’t seem to find a way to make things better for me. I blamed him for this which was totally unfair. I was trapped inside of my bitterness, anger, and resentment and I didn’t know how to break out of these emotions. Mostly I was unkind. Unkind to myself, to my husband, to my friends, to my employer, and to my community. I hated myself for this, but didn’t know how to get out of it.

On the retreat the coach helped me identify my Yesses and my No’s. It sounds rather basic, and it was; but we are so culturally engrained, that it was a huge new awareness to have. Additionally, I was given the space to develop the ability, respect, and the voice to announce what feels like a Yes and what feels like a No in my core. This is pivotal. My only job during this retreat was to practice saying yes when I mean yes, and saying no when I mean no.

The other impactful experience was inside of a labyrinth that we visited while on this retreat. It was the most magical experience of my life. Our guideline as we walked the paths of this labyrinth was to simply “notice what you notice.”

Inside of that labyrinth I was able to see my bitterness, anger, and resentment and notice how they were presenting in my daily actions. I saw who I was hurting the most — myself. Inside of that labyrinth, I owned who I had become, and I released her.

I returned home from that retreat a changed person. I built a labyrinth of my own in my backyard. I started hosting evening labyrinth retreats. I attended another International Women’s Summit and was invited to help select the speakers for their upcoming events! One of which actually hosted Elizabeth Gilbert and Martha Beck together presenting their personal tips and tricks over the course of a four-day weekend! I mean — come on! It’s as if this event was planned just for me!

Following that weekend, I signed up for the Wayfinder Life-coach training with Martha Beck, became a certified life-coach, then immediately signed up for the Master Coach Training, gained my Master Coach Certification, and am now a full-time/not-full-time Life-coach.

The number one message I long to present is this: Your body is constantly sending you signals about what is right for you and what is not right for you. Your duty is to learn how to listen to your body to discover ultimate bliss inside of this one life you’ve been given. That’s it. This is why I am a Somatic-Writing-Coach.

Aren’t books magical all on their own, without reason?

It amazes me that someone can put these little symbols on a page, full of thoughts inside of their own head, and another person can pick up that page, interpret those symbols and now those same thoughts are inside of their head!

Books give us the ability to experience things we cannot experience in our own lives. For example, when I read a book written by a person of color or from a politician I don’t necessarily agree with, I can empathize with their situations, gifting me the capacity and ability to understand a different perspective. When you read words, rather than hear the voice, you can pause and reflect on what’s being said. You can internalize the experience so much better. You can take time with their words and their experiences. Often when we’re in conversation with a person holding a different perspective, we’re creating a debate in our head rather than allowing their experience to sink into our minds to create necessary change and understanding.

A book has many aspects, of course. For example, you have the writing style, the narrative tense, the topic, the genre, the design, the cover, the size, etc. In your opinion, what are the main, essential ingredients needed to create a book that can change lives?

Great question. The formula that I seek when looking for a book is something that will move me forward on my own journey. What do you offer in your words? How can I use your experience in my own life to become a better person, while also maintaining my own personal integrity? I don’t want to adopt who YOU are. I want your book to relate with me and who I am. In that way, I suppose, it needs to be adaptable.

What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started My Career” and why?

1. Relax into it.

I have to constantly remind myself that I didn’t leave my muggle job so that I can stress while launching my own business. It’s easy to get sucked into that last email of the day while the family patiently waits for me to join them for dinner. But is that really why I started a business? No. I have to constantly remind myself of my values. Then I had to learn how to recognize when my values are being neglected. Typically, it’s a tug that happens inside of my chest. When I feel that tug, it’s time to step away from that email and attend to my value.

2. Don’t create chaos.

I need to remember there’s only so much I can do in a single day. What’s important to me? I have the ability to choose what I want and what I don’t want to do in my business. When I pay attention to the things I want, I can create more quickly, more effectively, more passionately, and ultimately more successfully! Often, I need to pause and notice when I’m creating chaos in my day and remember what I really yearn to do.

3. What’s your Why?

In addition to being a Somatic Writer’s Coach, I’m also an author. I haven’t sold a ton of books though. Why? Because that’s not the reason I write! The reason I write is to develop connection. I don’t want to spend a lot of time marketing my books. I enjoy in person readings, and answering questions about authorship. When it comes to the marketing piece, I may want to hire someone else to help with that, or maybe not. I get to remember what’s important to me and stick with what I know!

4. Turtle-steps are key.

I’m a list writer. I love my lists. In fact, I’ll write things on my list that I’ve just completed just so I can cross it off my list! What I noticed is that I was writing every single thing I have to do on these lists, and it became so long and daunting that I started beating myself up for not finishing my list at the end of each day. When I break the tasks down to minute turtle-steps, then I can remember that I’m not trying to tackle the entire goal this very day; but rather, I’m planting seeds, taking small, broken-down steps toward the larger picture to reach my goals in a more natural, better feeling way.

5. It’s harder than you think, and that’s okay.

It amazes me when I look back at how far I’ve come over the last year since I quit my job. Building a business or launching a career is a slow process. If someone had told me that, I don’t think I would have quit my job! I’d still be there, not focusing on my own business. Ultimately though, I needed to quit my job to focus on what I’m doing now. My muggle job served as a distraction and ultimately blocked me from recognizing my own worth. Settling into that, I’ve found peace in the slow-growing process of building a business. I envision a tiny little redwood seed that I’ve just planted into the rich soil that I’ve provided for it. It’s only beginning to germinate. If I keep tending to it, watering it, and making sure it has sunshine, eventually, it will grow into something massive. It simply takes time. If I stop watering it though, it will stop growing. So that’s what I do! It’s slow, and that’s okay.

The world, of course, needs progress in many areas. What movement do you hope someone (or you!) starts next? Can you explain why that is so important?

I have thought about this a lot. The movement I would love to start is to guide people internally so they can release old habits and cultured beliefs that keep them from creating all good things in their lives. We are trained to live a certain way, often calling it selfish when we seek within ourselves, our own wisdom; but really, the things that are inside of us is our gift to the world. I know it sounds cliché but I mean it. When you can follow your own internal knowing, you are able to become a solid foundation, an example, for those around you to do the same. It opens up the entire world for you and for anyone who knows you to care for our planet and our humanity from the inside out.

How can our readers further follow your work online?

My website is BrookeSmithLifeCoach.com

Email address: brookesmithlifecoach@gmail.com

Facebook: facebook.com/BrookeSmithLifecoach

Instagram: instagram.com/brookesmithcoach/

Thank you so much for taking the time to share with us and our readers. We know that it will make a tremendous difference and impact thousands of lives. We are excited to connect further and we wish you so much joy in your next success.