Episode 7: Summer Overstreet & Savana Santos on creative chemistry, trusting your instincts & The Women of Cheatham County

How did Alan Jackson write one of Faith Hill’s most convincing songs about a woman losing herself in marriage? And how did a heartbreak-fueled chorus become Russell Dickerson’s love song to his wife? In this mini episode, Parker explores empathy, unexpected songwriters, and the specific details that make a song universal, from “I Can’t Do That Anymore” to the story behind “Blue Tacoma.” A songwriter isn’t confined by age, gender, or labels and one song can hold more than one truth.

Ashley McBryde and Terri Jo Box join Parker and Lydia for crazy stories and the easy chemistry of a deep friendship. From “Bible and a .44” to “What If We Don’t,” their decade-plus of writing together comes with plenty of laughs. They share how “What If We Don’t” came back ten years later, giving Terri Jo her first radio single and Ashley her biggest add week at country radio. Along the way: an unreleased Wynonna cut, Music Row Freakshow, drunk songwriters bowling against professionals, and the trust behind their songs. Plus, Most Likely To, Title Talk, and a Song That Got Away conversation that turns toward songs they wish had gotten away—and one they love about Trent Willmon’s Wranglers.

You might already have a favorite songwriter—you just don’t know their name. In this mini episode, Parker follows the songs she grew up loving back to the women who wrote them, exploring how music, friendship, and creative influence travel across generations. From Matraca Berg and Gretchen Peters to Taylor Swift and Liz Rose, it’s a look at the people who shape our lives through songs—and the inspiration we carry without knowing where it began. What are your five favorite songs? Do you know who wrote them? Follow Along Women’s Writes on TikTok — @thewomenswrites https://www.tiktok.com/@thewomenswrites?_r=1&_t=ZP-99n4TLNC5xH Women’s Writes on Instagram — @thewomenswrites https://www.instagram.com/thewomenswrites/ Host - Parker Welling — Parkerwellingnohe https://www.instagram.com/parkerwellingnohe/ Host - Lydia Vaughan — Lydia_vaughan https://www.instagram.com/lydia_vaughan/

Jessi Alexander and Connie Harrington take us back to the beginning of their friendship and creative partnership, talk about what they bring out in each other as writers, and share the stories behind songs like “Make Me A Mop”, “I Drive Your Truck”, “Mine Would Be You” and more. Plus, they put their friendship to the test with a game of Most Likely To, turn a random title into a song idea during Title Talk, and Jessi plays their favorite uncut song in a segment called The Song That Got Away.

Women’s Writes started with a simple idea: get a group of female songwriters together for a weekend to hang out, write songs, and actually get to know each other. What happened next became the theory behind this entire podcast. In our first mini episode, Parker starts with the accidental experiment that started Women’s Writes and falls in a rabbit hole that leads to the realization that friendship creates proximity, proximity creates creative preference, and creative preference creates opportunity. Because sometimes the reason the same people keep ending up in the room together is simply because they like to hang out with each other.