Welcome to our newest feature Who’s on Fourth. One member of the yeah write community will interview another yeah writer, and the interview will publish the fourth Monday of each month. Third in the series features Arden R of Arden Ruth Writes interviewing Alisa S of Ice Scream Mama.

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yeah write on yeah write: Arden interviews Alisa

Early in Alisa’s blogging career, she stumbled upon yeah write through A Teachable Mom. While not new to writing, she was grateful for the new community she discovered. She could gain new followers, have people actually read her essays, and make some new friends in the process.

At first, the confidence that we see in Alisa’s posts week in and week out was not inherently present. In her first weeks at yeah write, the other writers intimidated her. Luckily, this intimidation brought about inspiration. These great writers made Alisa work harder.

She really, really, wanted to stand atop the grid.

Now that Alisa is a yeah write veteran, she’s eager to pass along advice to those who may be new to the grid and/or those who may have received a love letter or two.

Alisa knows exactly how you feel.

“I’d say just keep putting your stuff up on that grid. Some weeks you’ll wind up on the bottom, but keep trying and at some point, you’ll hit it just right. Then you won’t believe how gratifying it will feel; not just because you won Jury Prize or Crowd Favorite or Top Row, but because you’ll know you wrote a really solid piece.”

Alisa didn’t just wake up one day and decide she was a writer. Her love affair with prose began when she was a wee ice cream loving gal. She was 10 years old when she wrote her first poem that received notice from her teachers. It was called ‘Love and Hate’ and she can still recite it from memory.

When Alisa was younger, she wanted to be the next Sydney Sheldon. But her mentors don’t end there:

In regards to Alisa’s blog, she hopes to put out a quality essay at least once or twice a week. As all of us know, she is certainly succeeding. Her literary goals extend much farther from her blog though. Alisa dreams of one day publishing a novel or a book of essays. I know I will buy any book by Alisa, especially if it comes with a pint of Neopolitan.

Alisa’s writing is warm, inviting, and relatable. While I can only imagine her fictional voice, I look forward to her personal essays each and every week. In particular, the ones regarding her relationship with her father truly hit home. Her voice is incredibly honest.

On the other end of the spectrum, Alisa’s posts regarding her ‘hot mom’ tend to leave me reading through guffaws of laughter.

“Once I was older, I saw aging differently, and then I saw her differently, and I began to appreciate her so much more. And remember, even if she’s skinnier and hotter, you’re younger, so you kind of still win.”