✴️ In this episode: A Christmas Eve encounter in Shanghai. The emotional resonance of brief connections. Art, intellect, seduction, and saying what we mean. How some moments become memories the instant they happen.

In a dimly lit café in Shanghai’s French Concession, I met Emily. She had a sharp bob, a wicked smile, and a copy of John Berger’s Ways of Seeing open on the bar. What followed was an afternoon of shared truths and quiet recognition — the kind of fleeting encounter that lives on longer than it should.

🗺 Part of The Accidental Exile, a series of illustrated stories from modern China about connection, identity, and the quiet beauty of moments in between.

🔔 Subscribe for more poetic encounters, illustrated travel stories, and moments that don’t let go.

Buy Me Caffeine and I'll Write More Words https://buymeacoffee.com/finlaycowan

One Time Pay Pal Donation https://paypal.me/finlaycowan235

Finlay’s Print Shop on Etsy - Buy my art, I'll be dead soon and the prices will go up. https://finlaystravelart.etsy.com

The Accidental Exile on Substack https://finlaycowan.substack.com

The Accidental Exile on Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-accidental-exile-stories-of-cities-strangers-and-silence/id1810037955

Unravelling China on Tik Tok www.tiktok.com/@finlay6948

Unravelling China on Instagram www.instagram.com/finlaycowan_

Finlay Studio Portfolio https://www.krop.com/finlaycowan/ Finlay on Patreon patreon.com/FinlayStudio

Linktree https://linktr.ee/finlaydesignstudio

Pinterest - You made it this far ? Really ? Wow... I like you. https://uk.pinterest.com/finlaycowan/yet-here-we-are-seasons-in-china/

#UnravellingChina #LiteraryMemoir #TravelWriting #HybridBooks #VisualStorytelling #AuthorPitch #BookProposal

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit finlaycowan.substack.com