How does one find the time and energy to embrace creativity after the bottom has dropped out of their life? Today I am excited to share a powerful interview with Shannon Connery,PhD who gets radically honest about what it means to build a life filled with intention, creativity, and happiness.
One of my favorite quotes is from Bono reflecting on the transition U2 made in their music from the 1980s to 1990s: “You have to reject one expression of the band first, before you get to the next expression. And in between you have nothing. You have to risk it all.” Today I share an extraordinarily honest interview with book coach Jennie Nash who is making a profound creative shift with her business. Her story applicable to every writer or artist who dares to create and release it to the world.
Jennie gets really honest here about the realities of running a business and taking risks. It’s often a scary place to go to as a business owner and may be even scarier to hear as a client of that business, but it’s valuable to look these realities in the face. It’s the only way to ensure that the people you do business with are aligned with your values. Jennie is a person who values honesty and integrity, and she is also deeply committed to serving her customers and clients.
Writers feel an intense pressure to jump into social media. Many are for it, many are against it, and most are stuck somewhere between the two. They ask, "Will social media actually lead to book sales?” The answer? No. But social media does so much more for writers. Today I want to discuss the benefits of social media for writers. I also invite you to join me in a weeklong training I am doing in this Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/readerconnectionproject/
Today I'm excited to share my podcast interview with illustrator and author Aura Lewis. She shares her story of making a huge career shift to focus on the arts, how she developed her first book, got a book deal, then another, and then in the last year signed deals for 6 additional books!
I'm celebrating 10 years of running my business, WeGrowMedia, full-time. In that decade, I have worked with thousands of writers and made space for creativity in my daily life. Today I want to reflect on what that decade has taught me, and how I am using that to set my goals for this year, and for the next decade.
Today I review what I have learned in running a mastermind group for writers and artists for the past four years, and why you should consider joining one yourself. I also mention my Creative Shift Mastermind: https://wegrowmedia.com/mm
I spend the last quarter of every year going back to the well. Back to my source of creative inspiration in order to find ways to better live my mission as a writer and creator. Today I take you inside my process for how I create specific plans for the next year.
Today I reflect on marketing practices that I feel are not only highly effective, but well suited to introverts. With so much of the work I do with writers, I find that people are apprehensive to "put themselves out there." Today I try to make the entire process more approachable, and dare I say, fulfilling.
Brian Sherrill was miserable in his day job, and one day, he sat down and listed out all of the things he enjoyed in life. On that list was his love of playing guitar and mandolin, and of social media and the internet. In this conversation, Brian and I talk about how he got from that moment to earning a full-time living by writing a musical composition each week and teaching people how to play it on guitar. If you ever consider if you can radically change your life to focus on your craft, listen in!
Two years ago, I first interviewed Elise Blaha Cripe about how she developed her career as a creative professional. Her new book is about to be published, Big Dreams, Daily Joys: A Step-by-Step Guide to Crushing Your Goals, so I reached out to her to discuss the process of writing and launching her book, and the advice she has for making creative goals a part of your every day life.
In this episode, psychologist and author Kelly McGonigal is going to share with you a radically different vision of what it means for an author to connect with readers and prepare for a book launch. Her new book, The Joy of Movement, comes out in December, and she shares specifics on what she is doing and why. She also shares what having a viral TED talk with twenty million views, did (and didn't) do for her career. Oh, she will also explain why she turned down an invitation from Richard Branson!
Bestselling author Jennifer Louden is about to upend your idea of what success as a writer looks like. She's been a bestseller, she's been on Oprah, and she's been a successful author for more than 25 years. But the wisdom she picked up along the way will surprise you. We dig into topics of book marketing, navigating your writing career, the creative process and so much more.
All I do all day is talk to writers and creators about what to create, how to get it done, and how to connect it with people who care. Today I want to discuss the essential first ingredient: creative clarity. I'll share some resources for how to instill your process with radical clarity.
What happens when a celebrity with 11 million followers tells them all that she loves your book? Today, author Jessica Lahey and I discuss that exact situation, and dig deep into the tactics and strategies of book marketing.
Each year, Boston's GrubStreet offers more than 600 courses and programs for writers. They began in 1997 with 8 students, and today, they serve more than 6,000 writers per year. In this episode, I talk to GrubStreet Founder and Executive Director Eve Bridburg. We dig into how she and the GrubStreet team make decisions, take risks, and challenge themselves to expand how they can serve writers throughout the Boston Community.
Earlier this year, author Audrey Monke and I talked about her plans for her upcoming book launch. I knew that she had been preparing for it for months -- even years -- ahead of time. But I waited to have her on the podcast, because I didn't just want to discuss what she was planning, but also the results! Today I'm excited to share with you that conversation. We dig into serious details on her book launch strategy and results! Audrey is the author of Happy Campers: 9 Summer Camp Secrets for Raising Kids Who Become Thriving Adults.
In this episode of The Creative Shift Podcast, I talk with literary agent Lori Kilkelly about two creative shifts that she made in her career. The first is when she left a successful career in advertising and sales pursue a career in publishing, starting as an intern. The next one is more recent, the launch of her own agency: LK Literary Agency.
Today I want to share my process for getting out of a creative rut. So many writers and creators I speak with struggle to develop the habits they need to feel fulfilled in what they create, I wanted to share my way of staying on track. In this episode I also mention my next Creative Shift Mastermind which begins July 1: http://wegrowmedia.com/mm/
In this interview with bestselling author Chuck Wendig, he gets really honest about how he navigated his career as a writer from early jobs to hitting the bestseller list. We dig into details of the four novels he wrote which were never published; how he changed from taking 4 years to write a book, to 30 days for the one that followed; the real value of social media for writers; and the reality of what it is like to have your book optioned for a deal in Hollywood.
Today I want to share the specific steps I took to help a first-time author establish her platform and release her book. The topline results of our work together so far: her book hit #1 New Release in the Divorce category on Amazon; She now manages a thriving private community of 1,350+ people; She has 2,500+ people who like her Facebook Page, with lots of engagement. The author is Whitney Boole, and her new book is You Got This: Healing Through Divorce.
Leigh Stein did something that few writers do: she talked publicly about how many copies her books have sold. Her novel sold 8,000 copies. Her memoir that followed it sold 1,345 copies, which was hugely disappointing to her. In particular because it came out at a time when she was running an organization of 40,000 people. We dig into the highs and lows of the writing life, and what she learned in publishing fiction, memoir, and poetry. Plus we celebrate the sale of her new book to Penguin!
In this episode of The Creative Shift podcast, I interview author Brian Heiler about how he developed a thriving online community around his love for 1970s toys and pop culture. He runs PlaidStallions.com and is the author of the book: Rack Toys: Cheap Crazed Playthings. He blew me away when he told me that in order to do the layout and design for the book he wrote, he went to night school! I Oh, and we talk about the time his dad came home with 5,000 General Urko dolls from Planet of the Apes.
"The most interesting marketing opportunities are those that are unconventional." That is how author-illustrator Lori Richmond sums up the case study we are about to present here. In today's episode of The Creative Shift podcast, we take you step by step as to how Lori discovered a way to get her work seen by millions of people in the middle of New York City. You can find Lori at LoriDraws.com and on Instagram at @LoriRichmondDraws
In this episode, I share my system for how to develop a daily creative practice. For some of you, this may be to double-down on your primary craft, such as your writing or art. But for others, it may help you better stay connected with your ideal audience through your blog, newsletter, podcast or other means.
In this episode of The Creative Shift podcast, artist, illustrator, and author Samantha Dion Baker takes us inside her career. She tells us how a simple daily practice of drawing radically reshaped her career, and helped her stay true to her creative vision. She is the author of the book Draw Your Day.