Episode 23: Being Stuck, Making Decisions, and Forgiving Yourself
Hi, there! Abby, here.
Besides the Mom Guilt episode, this is one of my favorite episodes of the Mom Writes Podcast. It proves that sometimes good things can materialize out of difficult times. When we recorded this episode, I had just struggled with a major case of writer's block-- and I was still only working on my outline and my jacket copy! Oh, despair!
But, leave it to Jennie Nash to set me straight!
IN THIS EPISODE
Mel comes to terms with the fact that she's a dystopian sci-fi writer.
Jennie points out that sometimes when you struggle it's because you haven't nailed down your genre.
Knowing your genre is knowing where your book is going and who it is speaking to.
“We are trying to serve the reader at the end of the day. Writers who want to be read are not satisfied unless the loop is closed and the reader reads their work.”
Abby struggles with her Two-Tier Outline – she gets the beginning and the end, but not the middle.
They talk about some advice from Tim Ferris's Tools of Titans book. You have to get out of your own way when you create.
How does getting out of your own way feel when you're writing?
“Being creative is a skill you can cultivate.”
Writers need to feel like they are "in kindergarten again" – young kids create without judgment.
Judgment and worry will paralyze you.
Writers need a mindset shift – write with the idea that you are going to throw away half of what you write.
Give yourself a break, make decisions, and forgive yourself.
By Timothy Ferriss
