March 11th, 2025
Crafting Inspiration with Ella Wiggins
Ella Wiggins (EW), the visionary CEO of WinkThoughts, an uplifting card company, is dedicated to spreading positivity one real-life experience via message at a time. She recently sat down with Kevin Small Jr. (KSJ), the President of SNAKE Magazine, to discuss her platform and the power of thoughtful connection.
Pictured: Poet Marlon Carey, Ella Wiggins, and Comedian Marlen Baker
KSJ: GIVE A QUICK OVERVIEW OF YOUR BUSINESS, WINKTHOUGHTS.
EW: Well, WinkThoughts is a greeting card company. I create based on people's lives--my cards are based on people's emotions. They're similar to poetry; they're my spoken words. Over the past 20 years I've taken different people's situations and I created greeting cards based on them. Whether it was myself, a family member, or a complete stranger, I created cards based on their situation, what they told me. Some people don't even realize that I created a card based on the discussion I may have had with them, but because they're my cards, I based them on people's lives. I create them because if one person feels a certain way, more than likely there's someone else that feels that exact same way. So I create cards based on their life.
KSJ: WHAT TYPE OF MUSIC DO YOU LISTEN TO?
EW: I love R&B, but country music is my favorite. Country music is similar to me; a country music artist has a story. So yes, country music would be my first selection.
KSJ: HOW DOES YOUR CHOICE OF MUSIC INFLUENCE YOUR POETRY?
EW: If you ever sit back and listen to the words of a country music artist, they're telling a story, just like me. When I write my greeting cards, I'm telling a story or putting a person in that place of mine where you're listening to someone express their emotions. I feel as though country music usually tells a story and I just love that.
KSJ: WHO IS YOUR FAVORITE MUSICAL ARTIST AND WHY?
EW: Luke Bryan. I love his music. Like I said, I'm a person of vision; I visualize things people tell me. When he sings, I put myself in his head. I feel as though I want to visualize what he's saying and when he says "this is my last Saturday night being single" or whatever it is, I visualize it.
KSJ: WHAT TYPE OF IMPACT DO YOU THINK POETRY HAS ON MUSIC IN GENERAL?
EW: I think poetry is spoken words. Any spoken word artist that writes poetry. It's music to your ears. It's very inspirational, it's motivational. If anyone's never been to a poetry slam, they should take the time to sit and listen. The poet will tell a story, or the way they express themselves--it's music to your ears in general, so it's beautiful. But I also work with comedians, and comedians bring the joy to a show. When I have my events and the poets bring that spoken word, that music to your ears...Yeah, but we're talking about my greeting cards, so I would stick with the poetry part. But my events are probably based on both of them.