Mindset is one of those things that people talk a lot about, but they don’t give a lot of specifics on. You have a lot to handle when you’re an independent author. When do you actually work on your mindset and is it something you need to focus on all the time? More importantly, what is your mindset in general terms, not those couched in pop psychology and internet memes.

In this episode, I talk about mindset and how it applies to your author business. This is the first of several podcast episodes talking about this topic, so stay tuned.

In the second part of this two part series, I discuss how to pick up and put the pieces back together after serious burnout. How do you decide which projects to pick up and which to discard? I also talk about the most important consideration for deciding how to move forward.

Join me for both parts of this series, and if you like what I’m talking about here, please visit Chicken Yogi where I talk specifically to neurodivergent individuals.

In the first of this two part series, I talk about burnout as it is commonly discussed and why for neurodivergent authors our burnout can be something more. We often don’t realize we’re in burnout or understand what burnout is or how it works. I push back against the “cure narrative”, especially for neurodivergent individuals, and talk about how I, as an author, use my annual word count to really tell me when I’m in burnout.

Join me for both parts of this series, and if you like what I’m talking about here, please visit Chicken Yogi where I talk specifically to neurodivergent individuals.

When writing fiction one of the things you have to think about is your setting. For fantasy and science fiction, especially, the setting can be a major component of the story. But do you world build just enough for the story you’re writing or do you build a bigger world?

I talk about my Musimagium world, which for me stretches back into history and forward into the future (and I’ve written some of those stories), but also stretches beyond the confines of the story. While building my world is a bit of a special interest of mine, and I find the more I write the larger this universe becomes. But also, as an author, I think when you create a vast world, it gives you more to work with and the readers can tell, too.

Enjoy this episode where I talk about one of my favorite topics–world building.

I’ve been completely self-published, all indie all the time, since probably about 2006-2007. I mean sure, I published through my own publication company (And we published as many as 75 authors over the company’s lifespan.), but I still consider that self-publishing since I did all the work. Recently, I’ve thought about submitting stories again and have had several very interesting calls for submission coming across my feed.

While (spoiler alert), the story I talked about writing for a class and submitting did eventually get a rejection notice, I’m finding this writing for submission calls an interesting and fascinating exercise that’s helping to spark my muse.

As writers we often spent a lot of time at our desks. If we spent that time with our body out of alignment (I know I find myself leaning forward and propping up my head on my elbow to read long articles), or typing with bad posture, that’s going to reflect itself in our bodies. In this episode I talk about my recent experiences with ergonomics and how it’s impacted my writing.

The workstation assessment I mentioned: https://ors.od.nih.gov/sr/dohs/Documents/checklist-ergonomics-computer-workstation-self-assessment.pdf

And here’s how I finished off my desk:
Cell phone holder: https://amzn.to/48KltUC
My desk: https://amzn.to/4aP45zR
My monitor stands: https://amzn.to/4aFwSqx

In this episode I’m going to get a little esoteric, and maybe a little spiritual, and talk about “numinous writing”. Otto coined the term numinous to refer to something sacred with otherworldly qualities, and I’m a firm believer that an author’s act of creating stories out of their minds, hearts, and if so you choose to believe, souls, counts as an experience with a numinous quality. So don’t worry, I’m not going to get organized religious on you, but instead, I want to talk about how this sacred quality to our writing, and treating it as something more than a “job” or a way to make money, but instead like a vocation or a calling, can help us to remain balanced and yes, holistic, in our approach to being authors. I hope you enjoy this side quest to our podcast.

With the spectacular and foreseen implosion of Twitter over the past year or more, and corporate-owned social media making it more difficult for smaller creators to gain traction, not to mention followers, and engagement, where is an author to go in search of readers? I, and many other authors, have found a new home in the Fediverse — on Mastodon. Join me as I discuss what Mastodon (and the Fediverse) is, how it differs from social media, and invite you to find a server to begin, such as Epona Author’s own EponaAuthor.Social. (See a full list of links in the show notes on our MuseCharmer page.)

Additional Links

EponaAuthor.Social
Tenforward.Social
Our Patreon

In this episode, which marks my pivot from the earlier episodes marked, I discuss why I’m moving away from the Wellness Wheel and the Wellness term/industry in general when it comes to doing my coaching and creativity work.

When it comes to writing, or doing activities around them like marketing, are you experiencing a fight, flight, or freeze response? These are normal ways in which our bodies handle stress. But they can impact your writing life. Learn more in this episode.

If you would like author mentoring and coaching, please visit AuthorYogi.com.

To see all the shows on the MuseCharmer Network, please Visit our Website

Follow us on: Facebook | Mastodon | Instagram | TikTok | YouTube | Twitch

Support us: Ko-Fi | LiberaPay | Patreon