Freelance Writing Direct with Estelle

Nicole Graev Lipson is the author of the memoir in essays Mothers and Other Fictional Characters. Her writing has appeared in The Sun, Virginia Quarterly Review, LA Review of Books, The Washington Post, The Boston Globe, and Marie Claire, among other venues. Her work has been awarded a Pushcart Prize, shortlisted for a National Magazine Award, and selected for The Best American Essays anthology. She lives outside of Boston with her husband and children.

In this episode:

• The organizing principle of Mothers and Other Fictional Characters and how personal essays that started with confusion or a question became a cohesive book [3:00]

• How Nicole layered literary themes and archetypes into her book along with real life situations [7:56]

• The complexity of intergenerational relationships, particularly with mothers and fathers [11:48]

• The duality of embracing and resisting traditional gender roles [16:34]

• How to write emotional scenes from everyday moments [22:21]

• Advice for writers on structuring essays, capturing sensory details, and writing an accumulation of small moments [41:03]

Connect with Nicole

Website https://nicolegraevlipson.com

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/nglipson/

Subscribe to Nicole's newsletter https://nicolegraevlipson.com/contact

Buy her book on Estelle's Bookshop

https://bookshop.org/p/books/mothers-and-other-fictional-characters-a-memoir-in-essays-nicole-graev-lipson/21565078?aid=98827&ean=9781797228563&listref=authors-who-have-appeared-on-freelance-writing-direct

Other Episodes Mentioned

Maggie Smith

Episode #81 The Art of Shaping a Compelling Story

https://estelleserasmus.com/81-the-art-of-shaping-a-compelling-story-featuring-maggie-smith/

Joanna Rakoff: Episode #87 Writing Memoir that Reads Like a Novel and Captivates on Every Page

https://estelleserasmus.com/87-writing-memoir-that-reads-like-a-novel-and-captivates-on-every-page-featuring-joanna-rakoff/

Kelly McMasters: Episode #39 The Literary Gifts of The Leaving Season

https://estelleserasmus.com/39-the-literary-gifts-of-the-leaving-season/

Christie Tate: Episode #123 Writing About Trauma Using Timelines, Throughlines, and Imagery

https://estelleserasmus.com/123-writing-about-trauma-using-timelines-throughlines-and-imagery-with-christie-tate/

Nicole's Pushcart- Prize winning essay "Tikkun Olam Ted" that was in River Teeth Journal

https://zibbymag.com/blog/pushcart-prize-essay-tikkun-olam

Estelle Erasmus: an award-winning journalist, is the author of WRITING THAT GETS NOTICED (named a "Best Book for Writers" by Poets & Writers Magazine), a Contributing Editor for Writer's Digest, and host of the podcast Freelance Writing Direct. She is an adjunct instructor for NYU's School of Professional Studies/Center for Publishing and Applied Liberal Arts, has written for over 150 publications, including The New York Times, Next Avenue/PBS, WIRED, The Independent,The Washington Post, and AARP: The Magazine, and was the editor-in-chief of five national publications. Find out more at estelleserasmus.com

Sign up for her Substack (with craft advice and writing opportunities). Paid subscribers receive opportunities for pitch reviews, plus bonus clips from Freelance Writing Direct guests https://estelleserasmus.substack.com

Mentioned in the episode: Estelle's substack post Why Taping My Podcast Reminds Me of Working in Magazines

https://estelleserasmus.substack.com/p/why-taping-my-podcast-reminds-me

Read Estelle's latest post on Substack (and an editing offer for paid subscribers): 5 Hard Truths about Essay Writing

https://estelleserasmus.substack.com/p/5-hard-truths-about-essay-writing

Apply to be on Freelance Writing Direct in a coaching episode: email [email protected] and state three of the issues you are dealing with that you would like Estelle's help with.

Sign up for Estelle's NYU Classes

https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional-pathways/faculty/e/1068-estelle-erasmus.html

Get Her Book

Writing That Gets Noticed: Find Your Voice, Become a Better Storyteller, Get Published: https://rb.gy/5ihwp0

Order Her Audiobook:

https://shorturl.at/4uG2P

Follow Estelle:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus

TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@EstelleSErasmus

Twitter: https://twitter.com/EstelleSerasmus

BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/estelleserasmus.bsky.social

Freelance Writing Direct has been named a 2025 Podcast of the Year Winner in the Education category by the American Writing Awards. For a list of winners go here https://americanwritingawards.com/

Bonny Reichert is a National Magazine Award-winning journalist. She has been an editor at Today's Parent and Chatelaine magazines, and a columnist and regular contributor to The Globe and Mail newspaper. When she turned forty, a now-or-never feeling made her quit her job to enroll in culinary school, and she's been exploring her relationship with food on the page ever since. Bonny was born in Edmonton, Alberta, and lives in Toronto with her husband and little dog, Bruno. HOW TO SHARE AN EGG won the 2022 Dave Greber Book Award for social justice writing.

• Bonny's journey from journalism to food writing and memoir [2:23]

• The inspiration behind How to Share an Egg and how Bonny blended personal and historical narratives for a universal message [3:17]

• How Bonny's Holocaust-surviving father shaped her understanding of food, resilience, and storytelling [3:45]

• The power of a declarative sentence, key incident, conversation or experience [7:22]

• How Bonny restructured her book chapter by chapter for a stronger narrative arc [8:30]

• The meaning of the phrase coping was containment [18:11]

• The role of metaphors in good writing [20:01]

• Why Bonny believes writing for the reader [27:58]

• Advice for writers tackling their own personal and family histories [36:06]

Connect with Bonny Reichert

http://www.bonnyreichert.com

Subscribe to my newsletter:

bonnyreichert.substack.com

Find How to Share an Egg: A True Story of Hunger, Love and Plenty on Estelle's Bookshop

https://bookshop.org/p/books/how-to-share-an-egg-a-true-story-of-hunger-love-and-plenty-bonny-reichert/21415607?aid=98827&ean=9780593599167&listref=authors-who-have-appeared-on-freelance-writing-direct

Bonny and her Father on NPR with Scott Simon

https://www.npr.org/2025/01/25/nx-s1-5185933/bonny-reicherts-how-to-share-an-egg-is-a-memoir-about-food-and-family

Bonny's article on Jane Friedman's Site

How to Find Your Memoir's Narrative Arc (There May Be More Than One)

https://janefriedman.com/finding-your-narrative-arc/

Episode Mentioned in This Episode

Episode #87 Writing Memoir that Reads Like a Novel and Captivates on Every Page Featuring Joanna Rakoff

https://estelleserasmus.com/87-writing-memoir-that-reads-like-a-novel-and-captivates-on-every-page-featuring-joanna-rakoff/

Estelle Erasmus: an award-winning journalist, is the author of WRITING THAT GETS NOTICED (named a "Best Book for Writers" by Poets & Writers Magazine), a Contributing Editor for Writer's Digest, and host of the podcast Freelance Writing Direct. She is an adjunct instructor for NYU's School of Professional Studies/Center for Publishing and Applied Liberal Arts, has written for over 150 publications, including The New York Times, Next Avenue/PBS, WIRED, The Independent,The Washington Post, and AARP: The Magazine, and was the editor-in-chief of five national publications. Find out more at estelleserasmus.com

Sign up for her Substack (with craft advice and writing opportunities). Paid subscribers receive opportunities for pitch reviews, plus bonus clips from Freelance Writing Direct guests https://estelleserasmus.substack.com

Mentioned in the episode: Estelle's substack post Why Taping My Podcast Reminds Me of Working in Magazines

https://estelleserasmus.substack.com/p/why-taping-my-podcast-reminds-me

Read Estelle's latest post on Substack (and an editing offer for paid subscribers): 5 Hard Truths about Essay Writing

https://estelleserasmus.substack.com/p/5-hard-truths-about-essay-writing

Apply to be on Freelance Writing Direct in a coaching episode: email [email protected] and state three of the issues you are dealing with that you would like Estelle's help with.

Sign up for Estelle's NYU Classes

https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional-pathways/faculty/e/1068-estelle-erasmus.html

Get Her Book

Writing That Gets Noticed: Find Your Voice, Become a Better Storyteller, Get Published: https://rb.gy/5ihwp0

Order Her Audiobook:

https://shorturl.at/4uG2P

Follow Estelle:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus

TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@EstelleSErasmus

Twitter: https://twitter.com/EstelleSerasmus

BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/estelleserasmus.bsky.social

Freelance Writing Direct has been named a 2025 Podcast of the Year Winner in the Education category by the American Writing Awards. For a list of winners go here https://americanwritingawards.com/

Nina Badzin is the host of the top 1% charted podcast Dear Nina: Conversations About Friendship. As an essayist and freelance writer, she's had numerous pieces published on a wide variety of topics, but she started focusing on friendship in 2014. Nina moved to writing solely about friendship in 2021. Her Substack, "Conversations About Friendship" is a go-to newsletter for friendship advice, and her private Facebook group, "Dear Nina: The Group," has become a community where people help each other solve friendship problems and talk about books, shows, and more.

In this episode:

• How Nina Badzin transitioned from parenting essays to writing exclusively about friendship [5:39]

• Why Nina started Dear Nina, Conversations About Friendship and how the podcast has evolved [9:45]

• The challenges of pitching to podcasts and what makes a great pitch [11:13]

• The importance of pivoting and adapting as a writer and creator [15:09]

• How Nina monetizes her writing and podcast through paid Substack subscriptions [19:54]

• How friendships evolve over time and why letting go of expectations can improve relationships [31:57]

Connect with Nina

Website

https://ninabadzin.com/

Substack

https://dearnina.substack.com

The Podcast

https://ninabadzin.com/podcasts/

TikTok

https://www.tiktok.com/@dearninafriendship

Facebook: Dear Nina: The Group

https://www.facebook.com/groups/855246118403712

Estelle's episode on Nina's Podcast

#97 Disclosing my Invisible Disability Increased the Intimacy in My Friendships

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dear-nina-conversations-about-friendship/id1576473592?i=1000656069611

Estelle Erasmus: an award-winning journalist, is the author of WRITING THAT GETS NOTICED (named a "Best Book for Writers" by Poets & Writers Magazine), a Contributing Editor for Writer's Digest, and host of the podcast Freelance Writing Direct. She is an adjunct instructor for NYU's School of Professional Studies/Center for Publishing and Applied Liberal Arts, has written for over 150 publications, including The New York Times, Next Avenue/PBS, WIRED, The Independent,The Washington Post, and AARP: The Magazine, and was the editor-in-chief of five national publications. Find out more at estelleserasmus.com

Sign up for her Substack (with craft advice and writing opportunities). Paid subscribers receive opportunities for pitch reviews, plus bonus clips from Freelance Writing Direct guests https://estelleserasmus.substack.com

Mentioned in the episode: Estelle's substack post Why Taping My Podcast Reminds Me of Working in Magazines

https://estelleserasmus.substack.com/p/why-taping-my-podcast-reminds-me

Read Estelle's latest post on Substack (and an editing offer for paid subscribers): 5 Hard Truths about Essay Writing

https://estelleserasmus.substack.com/p/5-hard-truths-about-essay-writing

Apply to be on Freelance Writing Direct in a coaching episode: email [email protected] and state three of the issues you are dealing with that you would like Estelle's help with.

Sign up for Estelle's NYU Classes

https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional-pathways/faculty/e/1068-estelle-erasmus.html

Get Her Book

Writing That Gets Noticed: Find Your Voice, Become a Better Storyteller, Get Published: https://rb.gy/5ihwp0

Order Her Audiobook:

https://shorturl.at/4uG2P

Follow Estelle:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus

TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@EstelleSErasmus

Twitter: https://twitter.com/EstelleSerasmus

BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/estelleserasmus.bsky.social

Freelance Writing Direct has been named a 2025 Podcast of the Year Winner in the Education category by the American Writing Awards. For a list of winners go here https://americanwritingawards.com/

Jessica Strawser is editor-at-large at Writer's Digest and the USA Today bestselling author of suspenseful book club novels, including Almost Missed You; Not That I Could Tell (a Book of the Month pick); A Million Reasons Why; The Next Thing You Know (a People Magazine Pick), and her latest, Catch You Later, as well as The Last Caretaker, both instant USA Today bestsellers. She has written for The New York Times, Modern Love, Publishers Weekly and other fine venues, and is a popular writing instructor and freelance editor specializing in helping writers with their submission packages. She lives with her husband and children in Cincinnati, Ohio, where she was named 2019 Writer-in-Residence for the Public Library of Cincinnati & Hamilton County and awarded an Ohio Arts Council Individual Excellence Award for 2024.

In this episode:

• The inspiration behind the story [2:48]

• How Jessica structured the dual POV, dual timeline narrative in Catch You Later [6:41]

• The concept of a reliable or unreliable narrator [11:08]

• How she built tension by giving readers more information than the characters have [12:30]

• The importance of friendship and friendship rituals as a central theme [15:07]

• Jessica's process for incorporating backstory [17:20]

• Throwing obstacles at her characters in an organic way [20:03]

• How she researched state troopers and highway travel stops for authenticity [22:15]

• The "murky middle" struggle and how she keeps her writing momentum going [25:58]

• Why she includes book club discussion questions [30:31]

• Why she overwrites [27:00]

• Jessica's disciplined writing routine—1,500 words a day, five days a week [27:29]

• Jessica's next book and plans for the near future [29:17]

Connect with Jessica

Website: https://jessicastrawser.com

Facebook: https://facebook.com/Jessicastrawserauthor

Instagram: https://instagram.com/Jessicastrawserauthor

Catch You Later on Estelle's Bookshop

https://bookshop.org/p/books/catch-you-later-jessica-strawser/21194221?aid=98827&ean=9781662510236&listref=authors-who-have-appeared-on-freelance-writing-direct

Jessica's prior appearance on the podcast

#96 Writing and Elevating a Suspense Novel

https://estelleserasmus.com/96-writing-and-elevating-a-suspense-novel-featuring-jessica-strawser/

Connect with Estelle Erasmus

Estelle Erasmus: an award-winning journalist, is the author of WRITING THAT GETS NOTICED (named a "Best Book for Writers" by Poets & Writers Magazine), a Contributing Editor for Writer's Digest, and host of the podcast Freelance Writing Direct. She is an adjunct instructor for NYU's School of Professional Studies/Center for Publishing and Applied Liberal Arts, has written for over 150 publications, including The New York Times, Next Avenue/PBS, WIRED, The Independent,The Washington Post, and AARP: The Magazine, and was the editor-in-chief of five national publications. Find out more at estelleserasmus.com and follow her on Substack at https://estelleserasmus.substack.com

Her latest substack Post: My Predictions for Publishing in 2025

https://estelleserasmus.substack.com/p/my-predictions-for-publishing-for

Apply to be on Freelance Writing Direct in a coaching episode: email [email protected] and state three of the issues you are dealing with that you would like Estelle's help with.

​​FREE PITCHING GUIDE: Find out more about this episode at

https://estelleserasmus.com/podcast. You also get a free pitching guide if you sign up for her newsletter.

Sign up for Estelle's Personal Essay Class for Writer's Digest

https://www.writersonlineworkshops.com/courses/writing-the-personal-essay-101-fundamentals

Sign up for Estelle's NYU Classes

https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional-pathways/faculty/e/1068-estelle-erasmus.html

Get Her Book

Writing That Gets Noticed: Find Your Voice, Become a Better Storyteller, Get Published: https://rb.gy/5ihwp0

Order Her Audiobook:

https://shorturl.at/4uG2P

Sign up for her Substack https://estelleserasmus.substack.com (with craft advice and writing opportunities). Paid subscribers receive opportunities for pitch reviews, plus bonus clips from Freelance Writing Direct guests

Follow Estelle:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus

TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@EstelleSErasmus

Twitter: https://twitter.com/EstelleSerasmus

BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/estelleserasmus.bsky.social

Read Estelle's latest post on Substack (and an offer to paid subscribers)

5 Hard Truths about Essay Writing

https://estelleserasmus.substack.com/p/5-hard-truths-about-essay-writing

Freelance Writing Direct has been named a 2025 Podcast of the Year Winner in the Education category by the American Writing Awards. For a list of winners go here https://americanwritingawards.com/

Rachel Kramer Bussel (rachelkramerbussel.com) is an essayist, journalist, and editor based in New Jersey. Her writing has been published in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Glamour, Publishers Weekly, Salon, Slate, TODAY.com, The Village Voice, and many other publications. She's founder and editor of personal essay magazine Open Secrets and organizer of personal storytelling summit Open Secrets Live. Rachel is the author of How to Write Erotica and Lap Dance Lust and editor of 70+ erotica anthologies. She teaches essay writing workshops online and is working on a nonfiction anthology and a podcast on our attachments to our belongings.

In this episode:

• Rachel shares why she transitioned from writing erotica and fiction to founding Open Secrets, a Substack magazine for personal essays [2:45]

• The first piece of writing that made an impact on Rachel 30 years ago [4:14]

• The reason personal storytelling works so well to foster connections [6:40]

• The topics she covers on Open Secrets, now including climate change and our relationship with our belongings [10:14]

• The editorial process behind Open Secrets and what Rachel looks for in submissions [12:07]

• Rachel's focus next year on submitting pieces for awards [17:48]

• The programming for the upcoming Open Secrets Magazine Live, a one day summit on May 3, 2025 [17:48]

• The keynote speaker for Open Secrets Live who will bring a sense of nostalgia to most attendees [20:49]

• The power of personal essays—what makes a strong piece stand out [22:22]

• The role of humor in personal writing and why Rachel wants to publish more of it [27:37]

Connect with Rachel

Website: https://rachelkramerbussel.com

Open Secrets Magazine: https://opensecretsmagazine.com

Registration Link for Open Secrets Magazine Live One Day Summit: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/open-secrets-live-a-personal-storytelling-summit-tickets-1140713949129?discount=OS

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/opensecretsmag/

Threads: https://www.threads.net/@opensecretsmag

Rachel's piece on bankruptcy/debt for The New York Times referenced in this episode

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/09/business/bankruptcy-debt-chapter-7.html

Estelle's episode focused on Publishing Trends in 2025

#119 Solo Episode: Estelle's Edge on Steering Through the Publishing Gauntlet

https://estelleserasmus.com/119-solo-episode-estelles-edge-on-steering-through-the-publishing-gauntlet/

Connect with Estelle Erasmus

Estelle Erasmus: an award-winning journalist, is the author of WRITING THAT GETS NOTICED (named a "Best Book for Writers" by Poets & Writers Magazine), a Contributing Editor for Writer's Digest, and host of the podcast Freelance Writing Direct. She is an adjunct instructor for NYU's School of Professional Studies/Center for Publishing and Applied Liberal Arts, has written for over 150 publications, including The New York Times, Next Avenue/PBS, WIRED, The Independent,The Washington Post, and AARP: The Magazine, and was the editor-in-chief of five national publications. Find out more at estelleserasmus.com and follow her on Substack at https://estelleserasmus.substack.com

Her latest substack Post: My Predictions for Publishing in 2025

https://estelleserasmus.substack.com/p/my-predictions-for-publishing-for

Apply to be on Freelance Writing Direct in a coaching episode: email [email protected] and state three of the issues you are dealing with that you would like Estelle's help with.

​​FREE PITCHING GUIDE: Find out more about this episode at

https://estelleserasmus.com/podcast. You also get a free pitching guide if you sign up for her newsletter.

Sign up for Estelle's Personal Essay Class for Writer's Digest

https://www.writersonlineworkshops.com/courses/writing-the-personal-essay-101-fundamentals

Sign up for Estelle's NYU Classes

https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional-pathways/faculty/e/1068-estelle-erasmus.html

Get Her Book

Writing That Gets Noticed: Find Your Voice, Become a Better Storyteller, Get Published: https://rb.gy/5ihwp0

Order Her Audiobook:

https://shorturl.at/4uG2P

Sign up for her Substack https://estelleserasmus.substack.com (with craft advice and writing opportunities). Paid subscribers receive opportunities for pitch reviews, plus bonus clips from Freelance Writing Direct guests

Follow Estelle:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus

TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@EstelleSErasmus

Twitter: https://twitter.com/EstelleSerasmus

BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/estelleserasmus.bsky.social

Siri Carpenter is an award-winning journalist and is co-founder, executive director, and editor-in-chief of The Open Notebook, a non-profit organization widely regarded as a leading source of training and educational materials for journalists who cover science. She is also the editor of the book The Craft of Science Writing. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, Science, Discover, Scientific American, Science News, bioGraphic, and other publications. She is a past president of the National Association of Science Writers and was the 2023 winner of the Online News Association's Community Award. She has a Ph.D. in social psychology from Yale University and lives in Madison, Wisconsin.

In this episode:

• Siri shares the inspiration behind The Craft of Science Writing and what's new in the expanded edition. [3:34]

• How the pandemic made everyone a science writer [4:34]

• The rise of science writing across all beats—why every journalist needs to understand and implement research and data. [5:05]

• How to craft compelling science stories without a science degree. [6:08]

• The dos and don'ts of pitching –pitching hygiene —plus how to sharpen your story angle. [9:30]

• How to write complex subjects in a reader-friendly way [13:48]

• The goal of the Open Notebook to make science writing accessible and offer training opportunities and free courses [27:17]

• Siri's thoughts on AI [30:22]

• Submission info for The Open Notebook [34:37]

• Why understanding research, statistics, and expert interviews is essential for today's writers. [37:16]

Connect with Siri via The Open Notebook

The Open Notebook

https://www.theopennotebook.com

Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/theopennotebook

Linkedin

https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-open-notebook/

BlueSky

https://bsky.app/profile/theopennotebook.bsky.social

Sign up for Newsletter and free courses

https://mailchi.mp/1b27e142c25a/theopennotebook

Editor, The Craft of Science Writing

SECOND, EXPANDED EDITION AVAILABLE NOW!

Connect with Estelle Erasmus

Estelle Erasmus: an award-winning journalist, is the author of WRITING THAT GETS NOTICED (named a "Best Book for Writers" by Poets & Writers Magazine), a Contributing Editor for Writer's Digest, and host of the podcast Freelance Writing Direct. She is an adjunct instructor for NYU's School of Professional Studies/Center for Publishing and Applied Liberal Arts, has written for over 150 publications, including The New York Times, Next Avenue/PBS, WIRED, The Independent,The Washington Post, and AARP: The Magazine, and was the editor-in-chief of five national publications. Find out more at estelleserasmus.com and follow her on Substack at https://estelleserasmus.substack.com

Her latest substack Post: My Predictions for Publishing in 2025

https://estelleserasmus.substack.com/p/my-predictions-for-publishing-for

Apply to be on Freelance Writing Direct in a coaching episode: email [email protected] and state three of the issues you are dealing with that you would like Estelle's help with.

​​FREE PITCHING GUIDE: Find out more about this episode at

https://estelleserasmus.com/podcast. You also get a free pitching guide if you sign up for her newsletter.

Sign up for Estelle's Personal Essay Class for Writer's Digest

https://www.writersonlineworkshops.com/courses/writing-the-personal-essay-101-fundamentals

Sign up for Estelle's NYU Classes

https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional-pathways/faculty/e/1068-estelle-erasmus.html

Get Her Book

Writing That Gets Noticed: Find Your Voice, Become a Better Storyteller, Get Published: https://rb.gy/5ihwp0

Order Her Audiobook:

https://shorturl.at/4uG2P

Sign up for her Substack https://estelleserasmus.substack.com (with craft advice and writing opportunities). Paid subscribers receive opportunities for pitch reviews, plus bonus clips from Freelance Writing Direct guests

Follow Estelle:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus

TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@EstelleSErasmus

Twitter: https://twitter.com/EstelleSerasmus

BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/estelleserasmus.bsky.social

Becca Powers is a USA TODAY best-selling author, renowned keynote speaker, Fortune 500 sales executive, and visionary behind The Dragonfly Effect, which she leads as a transformative movement inspiring positive change and resilience. Through The Dragonfly Effect, Becca empowers high performers to embrace adaptability, growth, and impactful purpose. She has shared her inspiring journey from minimum-wage worker to award-winning Fortune 500 leader with organizations like Cisco, Dell, Carrier Global, and Royal Caribbean. Her insights have been featured in Business Insider, Newsweek, Forbes, USA TODAY, and more.

Her books, A Return to Radiance and Harness Your Inner CEO, and her podcast, The emPOWERed Half Hour, deliver practical tools for personal and professional growth. Becca's proprietary POWER Method teaches individuals the skills and tools to integrate career success with creative fulfillment, cultivating happier, healthier, and more impactful lives.

Certified in Kundalini Yoga and trauma-awareness, Becca incorporates these healing practices to help clients overcome limiting beliefs and achieve new heights. Dedicated to philanthropy, she supports causes like the Alzheimer's Association, Believe Ranch, and Feeding America. As a sought-after speaker, Becca's transformative insights inspire audiences to join The Dragonfly Effect movement, to embrace and share qualities like resilience, adaptability, and purpose to elevate impact around the globe . She resides in South Florida with her firefighter husband, their blended family of four young adult children, two french bulldogs, and a pitbull mix.

In this episode:

• The inspiration behind her book, A Return to Radiance [3:24]

• The underlying spiritual component of success [4:50]

• How witnessing her family member's disconnect shaped her understanding of radiance. [6:13]

• Becca's proprietary Power Method and how she used it as an acronym to structure the book. [9:41]

• Challenges Becca faced on when to go into teacher mode, and when to go into personal storytelling [12:29]

• Making each theme in her book digestible to the reader [16:46]

• Adding stories of transformation from Becca's coaching clients into the book for another layer of expertise [19:08]

• What Becca means when she writes "bear hugging the uncomfortable." [23:49]

• How Becca's book melds the spiritual and the practical into an accessible package. [25:24]

Connect with Becca Powers

Website:

https://www.beccapowers.com/

Connect with Estelle Erasmus

Her latest substack Post: My Predictions for Publishing in 2025

https://estelleserasmus.substack.com/p/my-predictions-for-publishing-for

Apply to be on Freelance Writing Direct in a coaching episode: email [email protected] and state three of the issues you are dealing with that you would like Estelle's help with.

​​FREE PITCHING GUIDE: Find out more about this episode at

https://estelleserasmus.com/podcast. You also get a free pitching guide if you sign up for her newsletter.

Sign up for Estelle's Personal Essay Class for Writer's Digest

https://www.writersonlineworkshops.com/courses/writing-the-personal-essay-101-fundamentals

Sign up for Estelle's NYU Classes

https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional-pathways/faculty/e/1068-estelle-erasmus.html

Get Her Book

Writing That Gets Noticed: Find Your Voice, Become a Better Storyteller, Get Published: https://rb.gy/5ihwp0

Order Her Audiobook:

https://shorturl.at/4uG2P

Sign up for her Substack https://estelleserasmus.substack.com (with craft advice and writing opportunities). Paid subscribers receive opportunities for pitch reviews, plus bonus clips from Freelance Writing Direct guests

Follow Estelle:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus

TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@EstelleSErasmus

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BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/estelleserasmus.bsky.social

Alyson Shelton writes about women across mediums + genres. In the film To Hold The Night she tackles a psychological thriller through fractured realities and self-invention. In her comic Reburn she centers a superpowered and mutli-faceted heroine, and in Eve of Understanding, the award winning feature she wrote and directed, the narrative delves into childhood secrets and their ongoing repercussions. She hosts a weekly Instagram Live series inspired by George Ella Lyon's poem, Where I'm From, where she's welcomed over 160 writers and creatives. And her own Where I'm From poem provides the spine for her memoir in essays, currently in revision. Her writing has been published widely at outlets including The New York Times, Ms., The Rumpus and more. She is thrilled to be a contributor to the essay collections, Broken Free: Writers on Estrangement (Forthcoming from Catapult in 2026) and Comics Lit Vol. 1 , to host her podcast, Fine Cut for Femme On Collective and to be co-founding a Sibling Loss community and co-editing an anthology entitled, The Loss of a Lifetime: Advice from Grieving Siblings on Loss, Love and Hope. You can learn more about her through her website, www.alysonshelton.com and her Instagram @byalysonshelton

In this episode:

• The genesis of her Where I'm From poetry series, inspired by George Ella Lyon's poem [1:18]

• The importance of specificity when storytelling [8:05]

• How storytelling through poetry and fiction can clarify complex relationships and help heal and process childhood trauma [12:32]

• The difference between writing from the "scar" versus writing from the "wound" [16:19]

• A discussion of anticipatory grief when it comes to estrangement [13:01]

• Tips for writers on channeling difficult emotions into creative works [15:54]

• Alyson's personal experience towards growth and self-acceptance [17:27]

• Advice for writers on how to have give themselves self-care while writing memoir [26:17]

Connect with Alyson Shelton

Website:

https://www.alysonshelton.com

Where I'm From Poems

https://www.alysonshelton.com/where-im-from.html#/

Jeannine Ouellette's episode referenced #103

Launching into New Dimensions with Embodied Writing

https://estelleserasmus.com/103-launching-into-new-dimensions-with-embodied-writing/

YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwAksUboWwYOEM785ZQMpRw/videos

Estelle's Episode of Where I'm From #163

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KiHBtSDWEpI

Instagram

https://instagram.com/byalysonshelton

Connect with Estelle Erasmus

Her latest substack Post: My Predictions for Publishing in 2025

https://estelleserasmus.substack.com/p/my-predictions-for-publishing-for

Apply to be on Freelance Writing Direct in a coaching episode: email [email protected] and state three of the issues you are dealing with that you would like Estelle's help with.

​​FREE PITCHING GUIDE: Find out more about this episode at

https://estelleserasmus.com/podcast. You also get a free pitching guide if you sign up for her newsletter.

Sign up for Estelle's Personal Essay Class for Writer's Digest

https://www.writersonlineworkshops.com/courses/writing-the-personal-essay-101-fundamentals

Sign up for Estelle's NYU Classes

https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional-pathways/faculty/e/1068-estelle-erasmus.html

Get Her Book

Writing That Gets Noticed: Find Your Voice, Become a Better Storyteller, Get Published: https://rb.gy/5ihwp0

Order Her Audiobook:

https://shorturl.at/4uG2P

Sign up for her Substack https://estelleserasmus.substack.com (with craft advice and writing opportunities). Paid subscribers receive opportunities for pitch reviews, plus bonus clips from Freelance Writing Direct guests

Follow Estelle:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus

TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@EstelleSErasmus

Twitter: https://twitter.com/EstelleSerasmus

BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/estelleserasmus.bsky.social

Athena Dixon is the author of essay collections The Incredible Shrinking Woman and The Loneliness Files and her work appears in publications such as Harper's Bazaar, Shenandoah, Grub Street, Narratively, and Lit Hub among others. She is a Consulting Editor for Fourth Genre and the Nonfiction/Hybrid Editor for Split/Lip Press.

In this episode:

• How the Pandemic pushed Athena into writing essays [3:26]

• The extreme loneliness epidemic in our country [5:35]

• How Athena explored loneliness in throughlines of grief, the concept of a "split self", and journals [7:57]

• Why she used a multi-tiered braided essay in the collection [10:15]

• How she used the vessel of the body to play with the fear of the heart [11:09]

• The influence of her fanfiction fixation on Athena's writing and ability to daydream a new reality [14:11]

• Her use of intention and ritual as a roadmap for bringing romance to fruition [16:51]

• Athena's editorial work with Fourth Genre and Split Lip Press [24:44]

• Why Athena now values her loneliness and moments of isolation as a tool in her tool kit [25:47]

• Advice for identifying a strong throughline in your essay collection [32:45]

• Keys to figuring out the right format for your stories, when deciding between memoir or a memoir in essays [35:42]

Buy The Loneliness Files on Estelle's Bookshop

https://bookshop.org/p/books/loneliness-files-cl-athena-dixon/19712061?aid=98827&ean=9781959030126&listref=authors-who-have-appeared-on-freelance-writing-direct

Connect with Athena

Website:

www.athenadixon.com

Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/the_muse_paper/?hl=en

TikTok

https://tiktok.com/@AthenaDIxon

BlueSky

https://bsky.app/profile/athenadixon.bsky.social

Split Lip Press

https://www.splitlippress.com/

Fourth Genre Magazine

https://fourthgenre.org/

Episode mentioned with Jeannine Ouellette

#103 Launching into New Dimensions with Embodied Writing

https://estelleserasmus.com/103-launching-into-new-dimensions-with-embodied-writing/

Connect with Estelle Erasmus

Her latest substack Post: My Predictions for Publishing in 2025

https://estelleserasmus.substack.com/p/my-predictions-for-publishing-for

Apply to be on Freelance Writing Direct in a coaching episode: email [email protected] and state three of the issues you are dealing with that you would like Estelle's help with.

​​FREE PITCHING GUIDE: Find out more about this episode at

https://estelleserasmus.com/podcast. You also get a free pitching guide if you sign up for her newsletter.

Sign up for Estelle's Personal Essay Class for Writer's Digest

https://www.writersonlineworkshops.com/courses/writing-the-personal-essay-101-fundamentals

Sign up for Estelle's NYU Classes

https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional-pathways/faculty/e/1068-estelle-erasmus.html

Get Her Book

Writing That Gets Noticed: Find Your Voice, Become a Better Storyteller, Get Published: https://rb.gy/5ihwp0

Order Her Audiobook:

https://shorturl.at/4uG2P

Sign up for her Substack https://estelleserasmus.substack.com (with craft advice and writing opportunities). Paid subscribers receive opportunities for pitch reviews, plus bonus clips from Freelance Writing Direct guests

Follow Estelle:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus

TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@EstelleSErasmus

Twitter: https://twitter.com/EstelleSerasmus

BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/estelleserasmus.bsky.social

Christie Tate is an essayist and author who writes creative nonfiction and memoir. She is the author of the New York Times bestseller Group, which was a Reese's Book Club selection and has been translated into 19 languages. She is also the author of B.F.F.-- A Memoir of Friendship Lost & Found. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, McSweeney's Internet Tendency, and elsewhere. Her essays have been nominated for Pushcart Prizes, and Kiese Laymon selected her essay, Promised Lands, as the winner of the New Ohio Review's 2019 nonfiction contest. She writes about addiction, eating disorders, friendship, alienation, recovery, and her Grandma's farm in Forreston, Texas. She grew up in Dallas and now lives in Chicago with her family. She has finally stopped telling people that she graduated first in her law school class. Please don't hate her because she has no pets.

In This Episode:

• The inspiration behind Christie's memoir, Group, and its impact on readers worldwide [3:08]

• The inciting incident that drove the rest of her book [4:24]

• How she initially started with a prologue that became her ending and why she made that choice [5:41]

• Why vulnerability and honesty are crucial in her storytelling [6:02]

• The ticking time bomb that informed her memoir and why that's key to building dramatic tension [7:37]

• How group therapy transformed her life and how 'prescriptions' offered a structure for her writing [8:54]

• The key to using detail and specificity to bring readers into the story [11:33]

• Her advice for aspiring writers: go where the "heat" is, and how to do that [28:13]

• How Christie found her throughline and worked it into the memoir [29:27]

• The power of images in writing [32:36]

• What to do when you get stuck and how being a reader before a writer, helps [33:54]

Connect with Christie Tate

Website: https://www.christietate.com/

Books: https://www.christietate.com/writetogetherworkshops-1

Buy Group on Estelle's Bookshop

https://bookshop.org/p/books/group-how-one-therapist-and-a-circle-of-strangers-saved-my-life-christie-tate/15065918?ean=9781982154622

Connect with Estelle Erasmus

Her latest substack Post: My Predictions for Publishing in 2025

https://estelleserasmus.substack.com/p/my-predictions-for-publishing-for

Apply to be on Freelance Writing Direct in a coaching episode: email [email protected] and state three of the issues you are dealing with that you would like Estelle's help with.

​​FREE PITCHING GUIDE: Find out more about this episode at

https://estelleserasmus.com/podcast. You also get a free pitching guide if you sign up for her newsletter.

Sign up for Estelle's Personal Essay Class for Writer's Digest

https://www.writersonlineworkshops.com/courses/writing-the-personal-essay-101-fundamentals

Sign up for Estelle's NYU Classes

https://www.sps.nyu.edu/professional-pathways/faculty/e/1068-estelle-erasmus.html

Get Her Book

Writing That Gets Noticed: Find Your Voice, Become a Better Storyteller, Get Published: https://rb.gy/5ihwp0

Order Her Audiobook:

https://shorturl.at/4uG2P

Sign up for her Substack https://estelleserasmus.substack.com (with craft advice and writing opportunities). Paid subscribers receive opportunities for pitch reviews, plus bonus clips from Freelance Writing Direct guests

Follow Estelle:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/EstelleSErasmus

TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@EstelleSErasmus

Twitter: https://twitter.com/EstelleSerasmus

BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/estelleserasmus.bsky.social