After working as a staff writer on a daytime talk show, Phillips created the serial "Painted Dreams", which aired daily except Sundays on local Chicago station WGN. Phillips wrote every episode of the series in addition being a starring cast member as the characters Mother Moynihan and Sue Morton. Mother Moynihan was a widowed matriarch of a large Irish-American family. Phillips based Mother Moynihan's struggles on her own mother's obstacles. After creating, producing and starring in "Painted Dreams", Phillips became credited with innovating a daytime serial format for radio geared toward women. Later known as “Queen of the Soaps”, she introduced techniques such as the organ bridge to give a smooth flow between scenes and the cliff-hanger ending to each episode.