Hi, there. My name is Colleen M. Story and I’m glad you’re here!
Below is a little bit about this brand and why I created it. If you have any questions or would like to work with me, please feel free to use my contact page.
The Next Story Project was created for people standing at the threshold of change. You know something in your life isn’t working anymore—but the way forward isn’t clear yet.
For over 25 years, I’ve worked as a research writer in the health and wellness industry. Along the way I began tracking the small signals in my own life—patterns, “coincidences,” moments that seemed to point somewhere. Again and again, I saw how those signals often pointed me toward where I eventually ended up, though at the time I was usually guessing at their meaning. Sometimes I guessed right; other times I didn’t. For years, I wished there was a clearer way to decode what those nudges were trying to tell me.
Meanwhile, I was navigating transformations of my own, moving from band director to corporate copywriter to freelance writer, then to author, speaker, and coach. I’ve gone through shifts in relationships, from single to married to divorced to happily solo. I’ve worked under others and built businesses of my own. Each change forced me to test what I was learning and listen more closely to the signals I was seeing.
All of this—decades of professional research experience combined with lived transformation—led me to create The Next Story Project. It’s the space where my work and my calling come together, a place to guide people who are ready for change but unsure of what direction to take. The brand exists because I know how disorienting those moments can feel, and how powerful they can become when you finally learn how to work with them instead of against them.
At the heart of the project is something I call the Signal Decoder Method. This is the breakthrough system that grew out of my years of research, reflection, and real-world practice. It shows you how to notice the signals life is already sending, decode them into small, doable steps, and gather the evidence you need to figure out which direction you need to go.
The Next Story Project is here to help you stop guessing, start listening, and step into a future that fits who you are becoming.
Your past has shaped you. The Next Story Project helps you shape what comes next.
Note: I’m a research writer and teacher who’s spent years studying how to turn chaos into clear next steps. I’m not your therapist or guru. I’ve built a playful, practical way to notice life’s clues and test them with small, reversible actions. You keep your agency. I bring structure, questions, and light.