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Perfectionism loves to lie to us—it says, “If it’s flawless, you’ll finally be safe from criticism.” But the truth is, perfectionism doesn’t protect you—it prevents you.

In this episode of Have a Cup of Johanny, I share what letting go of perfectionism has taught me as a writer, soldier, and creative woman. From the late-night rewrites that nearly drained the joy out of The Ordinary Bruja to learning that my worth isn’t measured by polish, this conversation is for anyone who’s ever felt trapped by their own standards.

You’ll also hear about my favorite chipped mug—a reminder that imperfection is where the beauty really lives. Inspired by The Parable of the Chipped Mug, this story helped me see that what’s cracked can still carry warmth, purpose, and love.

✨ The Ordinary Bruja is officially out now! It’s a story about identity, belief, and self-trust—a reminder that you don’t need to be perfect to be powerful.

Order your copy today and step into Marisol’s world of Dominican magic and self-discovery:

👉 haveacupofjohanny.com

Support the show

If today’s episode hit you in the chest the way it hit me, don’t just walk away—walk toward something that reflects you.

Subscribe to the podcast, hit that YouTube channel for the behind-the-scenes, and if you’re ready to read a story about what it really means to come home to yourself—
👉🏽 Preorder The Ordinary Bruja.

https://haveacupofjohanny.com/product/the-ordinary-bruja-book-one-of-las-cerradoras-series-j-e-ortega/

It’s about a Dominican-American bruja who’s been running from herself her whole life until ancestral magic, generational wounds, and a haunted-ass hill force her to face the truth.

If you’ve ever felt “too much,” “not enough,” or like you don’t fit anywhere, you’re exactly who this story was written for.

🎙️ Subscribe.
📺 Follow on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2SRDePbyy8M85Wbf25VUCg
📚 Preorder The Ordinary Bruja. https://haveacupofjohanny.com/product/the-ordinary-bruja-book-one-of-las-cerradoras-series-j-e-ortega/

Because becoming who you are is the bravest kind of magic.

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Some days, self-doubt doesn’t shout—it whispers. It sounds like “You should be further along by now.” It looks like scrolling through someone else’s success and wondering why you’re not there yet.

In this episode of Have a Cup of Johanny, I open up about how easily I fall into the comparison trap—especially as an indie author juggling a military career, family life, and creative dreams. I talk about the “should haves,” the guilt that comes with them, and how I’ve learned to bring myself back to reality.

You’ll hear how shifting from shame to curiosity, and from self-criticism to self-compassion, helps me grow instead of spiraling because we can admire someone else’s path without abandoning our own.

Be reminded that your timeline is valid and your magic is unique and preorder The Ordinary Bruja, a story for anyone learning to trust their own rhythm:

👉 haveacupofjohanny.com

Support the show

If today’s episode hit you in the chest the way it hit me, don’t just walk away—walk toward something that reflects you.

Subscribe to the podcast, hit that YouTube channel for the behind-the-scenes, and if you’re ready to read a story about what it really means to come home to yourself—
👉🏽 Preorder The Ordinary Bruja.

https://haveacupofjohanny.com/product/the-ordinary-bruja-book-one-of-las-cerradoras-series-j-e-ortega/

It’s about a Dominican-American bruja who’s been running from herself her whole life until ancestral magic, generational wounds, and a haunted-ass hill force her to face the truth.

If you’ve ever felt “too much,” “not enough,” or like you don’t fit anywhere, you’re exactly who this story was written for.

🎙️ Subscribe.
📺 Follow on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2SRDePbyy8M85Wbf25VUCg
📚 Preorder The Ordinary Bruja. https://haveacupofjohanny.com/product/the-ordinary-bruja-book-one-of-las-cerradoras-series-j-e-ortega/

Because becoming who you are is the bravest kind of magic.

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This weekend, self-doubt tried to take the wheel. While creating all the preorder goodies for The Ordinary Bruja, I caught myself thinking, “My creativity only goes as far as writing.”

My husband’s quick, “No, it doesn’t,” stopped me. He was right. I’ve taught myself Canva, Photoshop, Affinity Publisher, podcast editing, marketing copy—so much more than I gave myself credit for.

In this episode of Have a Cup of Johanny, I share how focusing on what I lacked gave self-doubt power and how shifting to what I’ve already done helped me reclaim it. From DIY book design to learning when to ask for help, this is a love letter to every creative who’s ever second-guessed themselves.

✨ Preorder The Ordinary Bruja and get exclusive extras: a signed deleted scene, character cards, bookmarks, and a manifestation card.

👉 haveacupofjohanny.com

📧 [email protected]

📱 TikTok: @acupofjo_hanny | @thebookbruja

📸 Instagram: @haveacupofjohanny

Support the show

If today’s episode hit you in the chest the way it hit me, don’t just walk away—walk toward something that reflects you.

Subscribe to the podcast, hit that YouTube channel for the behind-the-scenes, and if you’re ready to read a story about what it really means to come home to yourself—
👉🏽 Preorder The Ordinary Bruja.

https://haveacupofjohanny.com/product/the-ordinary-bruja-book-one-of-las-cerradoras-series-j-e-ortega/

It’s about a Dominican-American bruja who’s been running from herself her whole life until ancestral magic, generational wounds, and a haunted-ass hill force her to face the truth.

If you’ve ever felt “too much,” “not enough,” or like you don’t fit anywhere, you’re exactly who this story was written for.

🎙️ Subscribe.
📺 Follow on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2SRDePbyy8M85Wbf25VUCg
📚 Preorder The Ordinary Bruja. https://haveacupofjohanny.com/product/the-ordinary-bruja-book-one-of-las-cerradoras-series-j-e-ortega/

Because becoming who you are is the bravest kind of magic.

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When I first found out I was pregnant, fear was the loudest emotion I felt. Not because I didn’t want my baby, but because I was terrified I’d mess it all up. Growing up in an unconventional household, raised by my grandmother after my parents’ divorce, I had no blueprint for what a “normal” family looked like. I doubted everything about myself as a soon-to-be single mom.

So I did what I always do when I’m scared: I went to the library. 📚 I read every parenting book Fayetteville, NC had on its shelves. I thought knowledge alone could erase my fear. But it wasn’t until almost a year later—after losing my grandmother and learning to trust myself—that I realized I wasn’t behind because of how I was raised. I was ahead because of it.

In this episode of Have a Cup of Johanny, I share how self-doubt shaped my early years of motherhood, how my grandmother’s love became my guide, and how fear can sometimes be proof that you care deeply about getting it right.

✨ Preorder my debut novel, The Ordinary Bruja—a story about finding strength in self-doubt and learning to trust your own magic: haveacupofjohanny.com

Support the show

If today’s episode hit you in the chest the way it hit me, don’t just walk away—walk toward something that reflects you.

Subscribe to the podcast, hit that YouTube channel for the behind-the-scenes, and if you’re ready to read a story about what it really means to come home to yourself—
👉🏽 Preorder The Ordinary Bruja.

https://haveacupofjohanny.com/product/the-ordinary-bruja-book-one-of-las-cerradoras-series-j-e-ortega/

It’s about a Dominican-American bruja who’s been running from herself her whole life until ancestral magic, generational wounds, and a haunted-ass hill force her to face the truth.

If you’ve ever felt “too much,” “not enough,” or like you don’t fit anywhere, you’re exactly who this story was written for.

🎙️ Subscribe.
📺 Follow on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2SRDePbyy8M85Wbf25VUCg
📚 Preorder The Ordinary Bruja. https://haveacupofjohanny.com/product/the-ordinary-bruja-book-one-of-las-cerradoras-series-j-e-ortega/

Because becoming who you are is the bravest kind of magic.

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In this episode of Have a Cup of Johanny, I open up about one of the hardest lessons I learned as a new writer: how self-doubt shaped the way I received my very first feedback.

Like many new writers, I just wanted people to love me and love my project. But instead of pausing and filtering through the feedback, I took it all to heart. I changed everything. And in the process, I lost the story I wanted to tell—and almost lost my voice as a writer altogether.

Here’s what this experience taught me:

✨ Why confidence is key when receiving feedback.

✨ How to pause before reacting so feedback becomes a tool, not a takeover.

✨ Why self-doubt can derail your creative process if you don’t learn how to stand in your truth.

These lessons echo deeply in my debut novel, The Ordinary Bruja, where Marisol must also confront the voices of doubt and learn to trust herself.

📚 Preorder The Ordinary Bruja today: haveacupofjohanny.com

📧 Email me: [email protected]

📱 TikTok: @acupofjo_hanny | @thebookbruja

📸 Instagram: @haveacupofjohanny

🎶 Intermission Music License: SES7ZN8UVCXMTFFL

Support the show

If today’s episode hit you in the chest the way it hit me, don’t just walk away—walk toward something that reflects you.

Subscribe to the podcast, hit that YouTube channel for the behind-the-scenes, and if you’re ready to read a story about what it really means to come home to yourself—
👉🏽 Preorder The Ordinary Bruja.

https://haveacupofjohanny.com/product/the-ordinary-bruja-book-one-of-las-cerradoras-series-j-e-ortega/

It’s about a Dominican-American bruja who’s been running from herself her whole life until ancestral magic, generational wounds, and a haunted-ass hill force her to face the truth.

If you’ve ever felt “too much,” “not enough,” or like you don’t fit anywhere, you’re exactly who this story was written for.

🎙️ Subscribe.
📺 Follow on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2SRDePbyy8M85Wbf25VUCg
📚 Preorder The Ordinary Bruja. https://haveacupofjohanny.com/product/the-ordinary-bruja-book-one-of-las-cerradoras-series-j-e-ortega/

Because becoming who you are is the bravest kind of magic.

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After a painful experience at a writer’s conference, I stopped writing for a whole year. Doubt crept in, and I convinced myself maybe I just wasn’t cut out to write fiction. But the thing about silencing something you love? It never really leaves you. It nags. It whispers. It refuses to let you go.

In this episode of Have a Cup of Johanny, I share how that season of doubt led me to ask new questions: What about me? What if I’m not good? How can I get better? With the Army Sergeants Major Academy on the horizon and COVID shutting down in-person programs, I chose to nourish myself in a way I never had before—by enrolling in a Creative Writing MFA at National University.

It was the single best decision I made in higher education, and it gave me the foundation I needed to finally bring my stories to life.

✨ Be one of the first to read my debut novel The Ordinary Bruja! Advanced Reader Copies are available now:

 👉 NetGalley

👉 Booksprout

 👉 BookFunnel

📧 Email me: [email protected]

 📱 TikTok: @acupofjo_hanny | @thebookbruja

 📸 Instagram: @haveacupofjohanny

Support the show

If today’s episode hit you in the chest the way it hit me, don’t just walk away—walk toward something that reflects you.

Subscribe to the podcast, hit that YouTube channel for the behind-the-scenes, and if you’re ready to read a story about what it really means to come home to yourself—
👉🏽 Preorder The Ordinary Bruja.

https://haveacupofjohanny.com/product/the-ordinary-bruja-book-one-of-las-cerradoras-series-j-e-ortega/

It’s about a Dominican-American bruja who’s been running from herself her whole life until ancestral magic, generational wounds, and a haunted-ass hill force her to face the truth.

If you’ve ever felt “too much,” “not enough,” or like you don’t fit anywhere, you’re exactly who this story was written for.

🎙️ Subscribe.
📺 Follow on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2SRDePbyy8M85Wbf25VUCg
📚 Preorder The Ordinary Bruja. https://haveacupofjohanny.com/product/the-ordinary-bruja-book-one-of-las-cerradoras-series-j-e-ortega/

Because becoming who you are is the bravest kind of magic.

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By the time I was nearing retirement, I had climbed as far as I could in the Army. I no longer needed points, promotions, or another degree to advance. And that’s when the question hit me: What about me? What have I done for me?

In this episode of Have a Cup of Johanny, I open up about how I finally admitted that nursing would never be my path, why business administration left me uninspired, and how I made the “selfish” decision to chase joy instead of practicality. But how trying to validate this decision left me crying. 

✨ Want to be one of the first to read my debut novel The Ordinary Bruja? Advanced Reader Copies (ARCs) are available now!

 👉 Request on Booksprout: Click here

 👉 Or grab it directly on BookFunnel: Click here

📧 I’d love to hear your thoughts—email me at [email protected]

 📱 TikTok: @acupofjo_hanny | @thebookbruja

 📸 Instagram: @haveacupofjohanny

Support the show

If today’s episode hit you in the chest the way it hit me, don’t just walk away—walk toward something that reflects you.

Subscribe to the podcast, hit that YouTube channel for the behind-the-scenes, and if you’re ready to read a story about what it really means to come home to yourself—
👉🏽 Preorder The Ordinary Bruja.

https://haveacupofjohanny.com/product/the-ordinary-bruja-book-one-of-las-cerradoras-series-j-e-ortega/

It’s about a Dominican-American bruja who’s been running from herself her whole life until ancestral magic, generational wounds, and a haunted-ass hill force her to face the truth.

If you’ve ever felt “too much,” “not enough,” or like you don’t fit anywhere, you’re exactly who this story was written for.

🎙️ Subscribe.
📺 Follow on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2SRDePbyy8M85Wbf25VUCg
📚 Preorder The Ordinary Bruja. https://haveacupofjohanny.com/product/the-ordinary-bruja-book-one-of-las-cerradoras-series-j-e-ortega/

Because becoming who you are is the bravest kind of magic.

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After dropping out of college the first time, I figured higher education just wasn’t for me. Then I joined the Army—and suddenly, there I was, back at it again. Only this time, the motivation was completely different. Providing for my son lit a fire under me. I went from “College? Again?” to “Let’s go. Earn the promotion. Get the paycheck. Buy the diapers.”

Back then, online education carried a heavy stigma, but I made a pact with myself: if I was going to do this, I’d do it all the way. Read every lesson. Watch every lecture. Prove that this path was just as valid as sitting in a classroom.

In this episode, I share how I turned that “second chance” into an opportunity, earning my associate’s and bachelor’s degrees through discipline, focus, and sheer determination. It wasn’t glamorous, but it gave me the confidence I lacked the first time around. And it taught me that while an external motivator can get you started, the real growth and sustainment of that growth comes from within.

✨ Preorder my debut novel The Ordinary Bruja here: haveacupofjohanny.com

📧 Email: [email protected]

📱 TikTok: @acupofjo_hanny | @thebookbruja

📸 Instagram: @haveacupofjohanny

Support the show

If today’s episode hit you in the chest the way it hit me, don’t just walk away—walk toward something that reflects you.

Subscribe to the podcast, hit that YouTube channel for the behind-the-scenes, and if you’re ready to read a story about what it really means to come home to yourself—
👉🏽 Preorder The Ordinary Bruja.

https://haveacupofjohanny.com/product/the-ordinary-bruja-book-one-of-las-cerradoras-series-j-e-ortega/

It’s about a Dominican-American bruja who’s been running from herself her whole life until ancestral magic, generational wounds, and a haunted-ass hill force her to face the truth.

If you’ve ever felt “too much,” “not enough,” or like you don’t fit anywhere, you’re exactly who this story was written for.

🎙️ Subscribe.
📺 Follow on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2SRDePbyy8M85Wbf25VUCg
📚 Preorder The Ordinary Bruja. https://haveacupofjohanny.com/product/the-ordinary-bruja-book-one-of-las-cerradoras-series-j-e-ortega/

Because becoming who you are is the bravest kind of magic.

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In this first episode of my September series on higher education, I open up about the tug-of-war I felt as a teenager—caring for my grandmother while craving freedom, being accepted to UMass Amherst but landing at community college instead, and realizing I wasn’t ready the first time around.

This is a story about leaving and staying, guilt and grace, and the small seeds that stay with us—like the moment a professor told me, “You have a talent.” It’s proof that even when we think we’ve failed, we’re actually carrying the foundation for what comes next.

✨ Preorder my upcoming novel The Ordinary Bruja here: haveacupofjohanny.com.

 ☕ Mentioned in this episode: my journey as a barista college dropout—and why that detour mattered more than I knew at the time.

📧 Email me: [email protected]

 📱 TikTok: @acupofjo_hanny | @thebookbruja

 📸 Instagram: @haveacupofjohanny

Support the show

If today’s episode hit you in the chest the way it hit me, don’t just walk away—walk toward something that reflects you.

Subscribe to the podcast, hit that YouTube channel for the behind-the-scenes, and if you’re ready to read a story about what it really means to come home to yourself—
👉🏽 Preorder The Ordinary Bruja.

https://haveacupofjohanny.com/product/the-ordinary-bruja-book-one-of-las-cerradoras-series-j-e-ortega/

It’s about a Dominican-American bruja who’s been running from herself her whole life until ancestral magic, generational wounds, and a haunted-ass hill force her to face the truth.

If you’ve ever felt “too much,” “not enough,” or like you don’t fit anywhere, you’re exactly who this story was written for.

🎙️ Subscribe.
📺 Follow on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2SRDePbyy8M85Wbf25VUCg
📚 Preorder The Ordinary Bruja. https://haveacupofjohanny.com/product/the-ordinary-bruja-book-one-of-las-cerradoras-series-j-e-ortega/

Because becoming who you are is the bravest kind of magic.

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Why is it that the thing we resist most… is usually the thing we need most?

In this episode, I reflect on Day 9 of my 75-Day Soft Challenge and the moment I almost hit pause, just because I was “off” from work. That tiny urge to delay revealed something much deeper: the way my brain associates postponement with protection.

Through years of journaling and self-observation, I’ve learned that my resistance often points to the exact path I need to walk. And it’s not about hustle. It’s about healing. This episode is for anyone who’s ever sabotaged their own progress out of fear, perfectionism, or discomfort.

🎧 Tune in to discover what your own resistance might be trying to teach you and how to stop mistaking fear for wisdom.

📚 And if you’re ready for a haunting, magical story about reclaiming identity and breaking generational patterns, preorder my debut novel The Ordinary Bruja—available now at https://haveacupofjohanny.com/product/the-ordinary-bruja-book-one-of-las-cerradoras-series-j-e-ortega/

Support the show

If today’s episode hit you in the chest the way it hit me, don’t just walk away—walk toward something that reflects you.

Subscribe to the podcast, hit that YouTube channel for the behind-the-scenes, and if you’re ready to read a story about what it really means to come home to yourself—
👉🏽 Preorder The Ordinary Bruja.

https://haveacupofjohanny.com/product/the-ordinary-bruja-book-one-of-las-cerradoras-series-j-e-ortega/

It’s about a Dominican-American bruja who’s been running from herself her whole life until ancestral magic, generational wounds, and a haunted-ass hill force her to face the truth.

If you’ve ever felt “too much,” “not enough,” or like you don’t fit anywhere, you’re exactly who this story was written for.

🎙️ Subscribe.
📺 Follow on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2SRDePbyy8M85Wbf25VUCg
📚 Preorder The Ordinary Bruja. https://haveacupofjohanny.com/product/the-ordinary-bruja-book-one-of-las-cerradoras-series-j-e-ortega/

Because becoming who you are is the bravest kind of magic.