The Maison Gaton Podcast

She's Here. Almost. 
This episode is about what a story can do that an essay cannot. I have spent years writing essays about formidable women. About refusing smallness. About taking up space without apology. I meant every word of every one of them
I have been sitting on this long enough.
Madame J arrives Tuesday June 2nd on Substack. Five installments. Every Tuesday. Free to read.
Connect: Instagram @judithgaton | Substack for weekly essays

Where Do You Want to Be?
This week I talk about the very human experience of looking for your reflection in someone else's record of the night, what I actually found when I looked, and the distinction that changed everything for me: I wasn't missing from the night. I was missing from the record of the night. Those are two different things.
This week I talk about:
The event, the Instagram carousel, and the very human pang that followed
Why I looked anyway even though I told myself not to
What I actually found in those videos
The difference between being missing from the action and being missing from the record
Where you actually want to be this season (not where you think you should be)
Your mission should you choose to accept it: intentionally get in the photo record when it feels good to you. And move toward where you actually want to be. My hope is that this episode helps move you to the dance floor.
Where do you want to be this season? Come tell me in the comments on Substack.
Connect: Instagram @judithgaton | Substack for weekly essays

This week I want to introduce you to a woman you haven't met yet. And before I tell you about Madame J, I have to tell you about Elle.
Elle was my imaginary friend when I was eight. A 1920s movie star with a jet black bob, cupid bow lips, and apartments in Paris, Hollywood, and New York City. Whenever I opened the imaginary door to her apartment I never knew which city I'd land in. Sometimes I held up a bottle of Palmolive soap and accepted awards alongside her while I did the dishes. She was the fun place to go.
Madame J is not Elle. But there are qualities to her that remind me of Elle, as if these were real women who simply knew each other.
This week I talk about:
The childhood imaginary cast: Berg, Peter, Betty, and Elle
What this season of life made possible that my eight-year-old imagination couldn't
Why I wanted to write women I'd actually want to spend time with. She's not nice, but she's kind.
The short story serial tradition: Sherlock Holmes, Agatha Christie, Beatrix Potter
Bringing Madame J to life with illustrator Gemini.H
My 26 girl cousins, the matriarchy, and the women we surround ourselves with
Madame J arrives June 2nd on Substack. Five installments. Every Tuesday. Free to read.
Connect: Instagram @judithgaton | Substack for weekly essays
Gemini.H's work

This week we're continuing our A Collection of Lovely Things series with a theme of Blue: Hopes, Dreams & Aspirations, and this week's room is a little different.
The Blue room has comfy couches, table space, journals, notebooks, whiteboards. It's a space for dreaming. And more importantly, it's a space with a microphone in the center because this week we're talking about something rarely discussed among highly accomplished women.
Accomplishment Loneliness.
Not platitudes about goal setting. Not a vision board exercise. The real, lived experience of what it feels like to accomplish much and still feel completely alone in it.
In this episode, the three faces of Accomplishment Loneliness:
The Loneliness of Outpacing Your Circle
The Loneliness of the Summit
The Loneliness of Not Being Able to Celebrate Fully
Your missions this week:
Find the part of the good thing you're willing to share — and share it with someone
If you reach a summit and it's not what you expected, find the emotion you can name and share that instead
Communicate your expectations of celebration clearly and unequivocally — no hinting, no hoping
Ask yourself honestly: am I doing this for the love of the thing, or for the applause?
Accomplishment Loneliness is real. It's common. It's survivable. Say the quiet parts out loud.
If this episode resonated with you — share it with a woman in your life who needs to hear it. And if you're enjoying the show, leave us a review. It means the world.
Until next time. 
Read the full Blue collection — essay, playlist, poem, style inspiration, and book recommendations — at: maisongaton.substack.com
Connect: Instagram @judithgaton | Substack for weekly essays