If I had a dollar for every time someone asked for my origin story, I could retire. Okay, maybe not retire, but at least empty the shelves of an entire chocolate shop (my dream).

So here it is — the full story of how I went from having a degree in everything but business to running Between the Lines Copy. And, because I can’t tell this story without mentioning it, how my divorce and my business are forever intertwined. (Spoiler alert: one survived, the other did not. And honestly, zero regrets.)

If you’ve ever wondered how I became Website Girl, Newsletter Girl, Business Mentor Girl, and Squirrel Girl, press play!

TOPICS & TANGENTS

— The pancake theory of first marriages

— The absolute randomness of how I landed on copywritin

— Cold-pitching my way into my first paying clients

— Why my first website was a disaster (RIP GoDaddy era)

— My philosophy degree, which is essentially a degree in reading between the lines

— That one website project that traumatized me for life

— The full-circle moment of working with Showit, Tonic, and Squarespace after resisting them for so long

— How I went from just writing websites to teaching literally everything

— And, of course, what I’d do differently if I were starting over today

POINT OF THE STORY

Your origin story may or may not matter, and that’s up to you. Don’t feel pressured to share yours if it’s not relevant, or not something you want to revisit. But I DO want you to know that, no matter what your story holds, I DO think you should embrace it — even if you had a proverbial pancake flop.

GIVEAWAY

Remember to follow the pod on Instagram @pointofthestorypod and Sara @btlcopy and tag me in your stories for a chance to win your next bean water on me! Bonus entries if you rate the podcast or leave me a review. And remember, if you're the first to DM me how many times I said the F-word in this episode, you win a special prize!

Love you, mean it. 🖤

BTL LINKS

— Use code "MILLIONAIRE" for $100 off my website copywriting course, Site Series Sprint.

— Join the Point of the Story community on Slack.

— Leave feedback or episode requests in our Suggestions Box.

— To stay up to date with all things Point of the Story, follow on Instagram and Substack.

— Follow me on Instagram, Threads, and Substack.

— Subscribe to my newsletters Tuesday Table of Contents for one marketing tip, once a week and Millionaire Moment for the insider tea on how I plan to make $1 mil in sales by my 31st birthday.

— Check out my website betweenthelinescopy.com.

OTHER LINKS

— The only podcast I’ve been a guest on that didn’t ask about my origin story: “You’re Watering Down Your Message & it’s Hurting Your Business, with Sara Noel, Website Copywriter” from the Curiously Guided podcast by Mariah Magazine

— Read the OG origin story newsletter: “TOC #185: The first pancake's always a flop”

— Tonic Site Shop (code: "BTLCOPY" for 15% off everything always)

— Showit

— The blog post that pays my Showit bill: “Showit vs Squarespace: Which Should You Choose in 2024?”

— The Millionaire Moment newsletter where I talk about my money privilege: “Whatever the opposite of gatekeeping is, THIS is that”

— The blog post where I talk about not buying the Tonic template: “Are Tonic Site Shop’s Showit Website Templates Really Worth It In 2024?”

— Check out my copywriting collection on Tiktok

This episode was edited by Adrienne Cruz.

TIMESTAMPS

00:00 Intro + The Pancake Theory