Hey everyone, my name is Austin, and welcome
back to another episode of the Unfiltered Faith
Podcast. If this is your first time tuning in,
I'm so glad you're here, and if you've been here
before, welcome back. I'm so excited for today's
episode, because we're sitting down with the
author of love notes from the other side, Susan
Cottenham. So Susan, why don't you introduce
yourself and tell us why you're here? Well, thank
you so much for having me today, Austin. I am
so excited to be here and speak with you. I am
Susan. I am born and raised from Saginaw, Michigan.
And I've actually called this my home my entire
life. I'm someone who's driven by goals and I'm
passionate about anything that involves learning,
growing, helping others pursue what they love.
And that's why I'm here today. So what inspired
you to write your book? Was there a specific
moment or message that sparked it? Well, that's
a great question. Honestly, the inspiration came
from a mix of personal experiences like the deep
desire to connect with others. There wasn't like
just one moment. It was more like a series of
quiet realizations over time. I remember like
waking up quite a few times in the middle of
the night with this undeniable feeling like almost
like a divine nudge telling me, like, it's time
to write. And it wasn't just the feeling. I believe
it was a calling. So I believe that God made
it clear that in my journey, it wasn't just for
me. It was meant to be shared for others to help
heal, maybe even reflect and, you know, give
them a piece of themselves in the story. And
it was deeply personal for me, but also incredibly
purposeful. So you mentioned being woken up with
a clear message from God. Kind of like Samuel
in 1 Samuel 3, when he heard God's voice calling
him in the night. You experienced your own Samuel
moment. But unlike Samuel, who was called into
prophetic ministry, God was calling you to write.
At first, you may have doubted or questioned
what you were hearing. Is this really God? Could
He be asking me to write? Much like Samuel went
to Eli uncertain of what was happening, you may
have looked for confirmation or clarity, but
as the call became clearer and more insistent,
it was undeniable. God was inviting you to use
your words or experiences in your faith to speak
life into others. Reading became your form of
obedience. Just as Samuel ultimately responded,
speak the word for your servant is listening.
You also responded with a willing heart. Your
pen became your altar, a space of surrender,
of worship, and of proclamation. This calling
to write wasn't just about producing words on
a page. It was about stewarding a divine assignment,
sharing truth, and ministering to hearts through
story and insight. Your sami moment marked a
turning point, a sacred realization that your
voice shaped by faith. was meant to be echoed
by the voice of the one who called you. Can you
describe how that felt and what you did next?
Well, actually, I can tell you the first few
times after, you know, I was woken up, I just
sat there for a moment thinking to myself, is
this really happening to me? Because it kept
happening continuously. And like you said, I
kind of maybe was a little bit in denial. And
then I thought, hmm. Maybe I better not ignore
this. So actually, I took a leap of faith and
the first step I did was I started Googling and
YouTubing and the words were, how do you write
a book? And I'm sure there were a lot of challenges
along the way. What was the biggest challenge
you faced while writing and publishing your book?
I would say the biggest challenge was 95 % of
the book is true. So it actually happened to
me. And the biggest challenge for me would be,
do I really want to say all that? And if I do,
how do I say it professionally and or to get
someone's attention? That was the biggest challenge.
What does God's timing mean to you personally
and how have you experienced it firsthand? God's
timing to me is It may not be your timing. You
may not have any clue at all. And when it's his
timing, you stay obedient and you fulfill the
mission. So your book became an international
bestseller with minimal marketing. Why do you
think it resonated so powerfully with readers?
I would say it resonated so well because it's
actually a story about finding love and it happened.
right during the pandemic where everybody was
not able to communicate with others. And remember,
there's many forms of love. So I think it resonated
with people about loneliness and hope. And also,
I had to split my time with my career at that
time. And I knew that I had to keep a strong
faith that this was God's desire for me. to bring
this to life because I literally published the
book and said, OK, it's in your hands, Lord.
And look what happened. What do you want readers
to walk away with after reading your book? I
would like the reader to walk away with anything
is possible as long as you believe you're going
to achieve whatever goal you set in your own
mind, spiritually, physically, mentally, and
just believe that All things are possible. And
reading this book is also going to give them,
again, their own voice that it's okay if you
experience something like this in life. Feel
free to talk about it and share with others because
others really want to talk to you about it. What
would your younger self think if she could see
everything you're creating now? Oh, wow. She
would be blown away. My younger self would say
we really did it with God's guidance the faith
to believe in ourselves all along But also to
help others see that it's okay to express their
own journey, too and you don't have to label
or be a label as a celebrity and that your story
matters just as much as anyone else's so it's
also my understanding that you're turning this
book into a song and You're working with a local
artist, Ollie Rogers, and unfortunately, he couldn't
be here with us today because he's in the studio
working on The Fishing Duchess. But is there
a particular story or passage from the book that
the song is directly based on? Well, the book
is actually about two people connecting through
the Internet. So actually not knowing each other
and truly knowing if that other person or who
is that other person on the opposite side of
the computer screen. And so the song is going
to be, I'm searching for you. Where are you now?
And I don't want to give too much away about
it, but I can honestly say that this song is
absolutely amazing and everybody is going to
be jamming to it when it comes out. What was
the inspiration to turn this book into a song?
I had no clue that I was going to be a writer
in my life, number one. And number two, I took
the time to learn it correctly, learn from a
professional that is awesome and amazing that
I did find on YouTube. And she helped me reach
that goal of bringing that book to life. Again,
a romance with a twist, so it's not your typical
romance story without telling the ending of the
book. And then... I've known the artist who actually
is producing the song right now for a little
over 10 years. And he actually has an amazing
voice and it just, I had a vision and the vision
was I want him to sing the song for me. And I
brought it to his attention and he was like,
absolutely. And so far it's been amazing. Can
you tell us more about the lyrics you wrote?
What message or emotion were you hoping to capture?
I would say the message or the emotion to the
lyrics is, we all want to feel some type of love
in our life or connection or communication. And
this song is, don't give up in finding that.
What was it like collaborating with Allie Rogers
to bring your words to life through music? It's
been amazing. I actually had no clue that this
would be just as fun and exciting as writing
the book. He's spot -on. He's intelligent. He's
very good singer and I'm just so excited for
everybody to hear the song once it's finally
ready. I know for a fact that I'm very excited
to hear it when it comes out. So you're also
working on a second book. Can you tell us something
about that as well? I absolutely can. Unfortunately,
I'm not going to share the title yet, but I'm
going to give everybody a little sneak peek.
On my birthday in April, I ended up flying to
Italy and enjoying my birthday celebration there.
And the book is going to be based on one of the
main characters traveling overseas. So we'll
kind of leave it there. And hopefully I'll have
the opportunity once it is ready for the general
public to read. We'll do another podcast. Absolutely.
I would love to have you back. Whenever that
gets published, just shoot me an email and let
me know so I can get you on the schedule. Thank
you so much, Susan, for joining me on the Unfiltered
Faith podcast. There's something starting you
today. Don't ignore it. It's time to pick up
that pen, dust off that dream, or simply start
the conversation. That you've been avoiding,
whether it's through a book, a song, or a moment
of stillness, God is still speaking. If you were
encouraged today, share this episode with a friend,
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unfiltered conversations with others to better
understand the world around us.