The Next Chapter

Closing the first chapter of ECS only means there’s plenty more story left for all who have participated. Holditch and Diamond say year two will be bigger and better, with several new initiatives in the works and more that are mere plot babies in their minds. In addition to adding more Open Mic Nights and Story-Pairing Dinners, they plan to roll out a membership program to provide early access to event tickets, brand partnerships in the area, and more. A literary magazine is also in the works, where storytellers and artists can submit their work for inclusion. “The goal is to publish annually and make it an anthology of various storytellers in our community, which would allow an even bigger stage for them that goes well beyond our small beach town,” Holditch shares.

“We also want to provide more organic experiences for our members, whether that’s an invitation-only workshop with a poet laureate or a candlelit writing night at a local artist’s gallery,” says Diamond. “We want to keep creating beauty and authenticity in this community. I’d also love to incorporate a visual element into our event portfolio. We stress that we’re a storytelling organization. Stories can be told in mediums far beyond the written and spoken word. We’ve worked with music producers, authors, publishers, painters, and documentarians; they all have a story. They’re just told differently. We want to tell every single one.”

From here, the founders are focused on sustaining that authenticity while managing events in a measure of controlled growth—not to mention somehow carving out time for themselves to write, which was one of the initial catalysts for forming ECS. With Holditch and her husband, Harrison, welcoming their baby girl into the world in late June as the storytelling organization celebrates its first year, it’s certainly a chapter of new beginnings and adventures.

“The doors that have opened for us in such a short amount of time have been so synchronous and such a nod to this incredible place and the people who live here,” she says. “From growing beyond the Emerald Coast to partnering with big-name authors, establishing a nonprofit that will help us instill the power of storytelling in new ways, and setting up our storytellers for publishing success and beyond, we can only hope it’s not a matter of if, but when.”

Tickets are on sale for the One-Year Anniversary Open Mic Night. Get yours, learn more about future events, and read past storyteller submissions at EmeraldCoastStorytellers.com or follow on Instagram @emeraldcoaststorytellers.