It's Time For Something New
A FREE storytelling workshop and brand new content in the works for you!
“So you’ve been building a story studio—how’s it going?”
One Brilliant Arc has been publishing here on Substack for a full year now. We are beyond grateful for you, OBA Nation members, who have stuck with us the whole time and reminded us of why building this movement is needed—and worth everything. You are the reason why we’re here.
We all believe that we can be a part of writing the better story of tomorrow, and that is a beautiful, powerful thing.
But now, it’s time for a change.
One Brilliant Arc began with one core belief: our stories are our power.
Our goal has always been to amplify authentic voices telling meaningful stories by getting their written works ready to publish. We have been offering our manuscript editing and writing coaching services to fiction writers, but we have realized that our offer needs to change in order to address a deeper problem that prevents writers from telling authentic stories.
Our world is becoming more and more hostile by the day. Oppressive systems are gaining power and things are getting uglier not only in the US, but in the entire world.
Too many of us telling stories with bold truths are facing silencing by these oppressive systems.
They conform our voices to fit in their narratives, dilute our truths, and steal our power of authenticity. Too many of us are are told that our words are too raw, too risky, too unmarketable to share. Too many of us are silenced by self-doubt and lies that the false narratives of these oppressive systems have made us believe, so we don’t know where to start or what to say. We can’t recognize our voice, define our truth, or speak like ourselves.
We realized that in order to support storytellers who face these challenges, we needed to develop programs that go deeper than simple editing and publishing services.
Because the journey of writing fictional stories is deeply intertwined with our personal journey through life.
So the first story you need to learn how to tell: your own.
We are thrilled to officially open up our story coaching services not only to fiction writers, but to non-fiction writers, speakers, movement builders, and business leaders who need help telling their stories in a way that makes an impact for good on this world. Those afraid that they don’t have anything important to say—or how to say it. Those who sit in front of a blank page but feel paralyzed. Those who have been silenced by lies and told that their voice doesn’t matter. That they have to be something they are not in order to see success. That they have to fit into someone else’s version of the story.
So, in order to do that, two things are changing here at One Brilliant Arc and two things are beginning:
First, we are opening our story coaching, editing services, and podcasts to non-fiction writers to join.
The stories we live are the first stories we must learn how to tell. If you want to make an impact on the world, you need to first recognize and own your voice.
Second, we have a new content schedule.
To support our expanded audience, we are slightly reorganizing our newsletter so that you can easily choose what kind of educational content you want to hear from us. No one likes an inbox clogged up with useless emails, and we are not here to provide unhelpful content.
We are here to have honest, raw, heart-to-heart discussions with you wherever you are on your storytelling journey and offer real, actionable advice from our professional experience that will help you share the truth that is on your heart.
You deserve to be heard, and we believe that your story can change the world. So that’s what One Brilliant Arc will help you accomplish.
Once a week on Mondays, we will share a letter written for you by one of our team members on the power of stories and authentic voices.
“Letters to Your Radical Self” by Jared Moses — Raw, unedited, radically honest letters from OBA’s founder to you about how to tell your truth in public and stay whole while doing it.
“We are the Stories” by Charles Rodriguez — Essays on cultural narratives, popular media, and hidden gem stories, unpacking how they shape the stories we tell about ourselves and the way we view the world.
“Pick up Your Pen” by Ceylan Gunduz — Articles from a professional editor offering practical advice and guidance to storytellers on how to craft world-changing stories for public platforms.
On Fridays, we will share a podcast episode so you can listen in on the deep conversations we have with storytellers in the real world, sharing writing tips and narrative clarity and with you. (Bonus content and more episodes on our YouTube channel and TikTok page!)
“Let’s Talk Stories” — dissecting the stories the world tells us through media and what they teach us.
“Let’s Fix Stories” — dissecting the stories we tell and how we can communicate our truth most effectively.
“Let’s Share Stories” (✨NEW✨) — purposeful, introspective conversations with guests about the stories we live in life, finding where we were taught silence, and how to own our voices.
Once a month, we will share a written piece either deep-diving into how powerful narratives show up in cultural moments OR a guest post. (Message us if you would like to be considered for a guest post!)
We have now opened the Story Archive as a home for YOUR most honest, raw stories that say what the world told you not to. Because if we don’t write down and preserve the truth, the oppressors will steal our voices. OBA’s Story Archive is where your truth will be kept safe and shared for those who need to find it.
Picking what you want to see from us is easy—just go to “settings” under your Substack profile dropdown menu, click “One Brilliant Arc” under your subscriptions, then uncheck any kinds of posts you wouldn’t like sent to your email. You can still view them on our homepage. 😉 (Here’s a link with handy dandy pictures of the instructions)
Third, we are launching a program for those who have faced silencing to reclaim their narratives, define their voice, and build their platforms of impact.
‘Tell It Anyway’ Pilot Program
Have you ever been told that you are “too much”? To “tone it down”? That you don’t have what it takes to be successful? That your story isn’t worth publishing? That the thing you are trying to build won’t make a difference? That your voice sounds too unprofessional to persuade people? That you need to fit into someone else’s version of you to be palatable? That you don’t have anything new to say?
Our answer to these lies: “TELL IT ANYWAY.”
We are developing this program to we’ll walk you through exactly how.
Because here’s the truth:
Your story has power.
If you don’t tell your story, someone else will control it for you.
And they will get it wrong.
If you don’t own your voice, someone else will sell it for you.
And they will steal the power of your truth.
This is how oppressive systems are allowed to flourish—because they control the narratives we all believe.
No more.
It ends when an army of us take back ownership of our own narratives and speak with our own voices.
If you want to build something that makes a difference — a brand, a book, a business, a movement — your honest, human story is the key.
‘TELL IT ANYWAY’ is an 8-week online storytelling workshop for passionate creators, marginalized founders, activists, and movement-builders who are tired of hiding who they are in order to survive in this world. This program teaches trauma-informed narrative clarity, guiding participants through un-learning the lies that have kept them silent and stolen their power.
One Brilliant Arc’s facilitators bring 40+ years of combined professional experience in writing, editing, filmmaking, entrepreneurship, and trauma-informed coaching along with lifetimes of personal experience fighting for their voices to help you:
Get a clear understanding of why your story is key to making an impact no matter the application, and why telling it NOW matters more than ever
Gain narrative clarity on your personal story by tracing the moments of your life that mattered
Discover and define your own authentic voice and learn to trust what you have to say without compromise
Turn your truth into a weapon for positive change—because the pen is mightier than the sword
Tell your story through whatever medium you wish in a way that connects with the people who need you most
By the end of 8 weeks, you will walk away with:
A polished personal Mission Statement and bio —written in your unique voice —that connects deeply with your audience.
A completed personal playbook for your continued reference that defines your narrative voice in a way that stands out from the noise.
Confidence in your truth and your voice as a world-changing weapon
A clear path forward to making a real difference in this world with your story.
A community of storytelling world-changers and truth-tellers who will support you every step of the way, for a lifetime.
Our first cohort starting in October is FREE, designed as a pilot program to refine our curriculum to be exactly what those who take this course need. After October, the price of this program will increase to $1,000.
✨Those of you who sign up now pay nothing AND get the unique chance to help us build something significant that will mentor the world-changers of tomorrow.✨
We only have 8 seats available—join our waitlist to learn how to Tell It Anyway.
Thank you all again, from the bottom of our hearts, for being here supporting this mission. Together, our stories and our unique voices speaking bold, honest truth will become an army of change.
See you next week!
Editor-in-Chief for One Brilliant Arc (OBA)
Very exciting stuff, and I feel many amazing stories are about to birth 🎉
Sounds very exciting