Honestly, Dear Listener

NOTE: This week, Carrie is hosting the podcast as Emily is gone. But don’t fret! She’ll be back next week!

On this week’s episode of Honestly, Dear Listener, I’m sitting down with none other than my husband, Seth Schaeffer. He’s an artist, songwriter, musician, filmmaker, director, and father to our two boys. First, we discuss how we attach our worth to our identity and what we do and make as well as how we make things both when we’re supposed to be good at it and when we’re not.

Next, we dive deep into the chaotic world of maintaining a household as creatives. We touch on the perpetual juggling act between our work and domestic responsibilities, the significance of establishing healthy boundaries, and the necessity of giving ourselves grace. Seth talks about his own podcast, Behind the Act, interviews with other artists and inspired by the unfiltered conversations during his film projects.

Join us as we unpack what we’ve learned in our nearly 20-year marriage; if you’ve ever felt the weight of expectations or the struggle of balancing a creative career with family life, this one’s for you.

Where to find Seth:

Website: behindtheact.com
Instagram: @behindtheact
YouTube: @behindtheact
Facebook: @behindtheact
TikTok: @behindtheactpodcast

References:

• Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear, book by Elizabeth Gilbert

This week on Honestly, Dear Listener, we’re diving into the complexities of self-acceptance, personal growth, and the impact of social media on well-being. Carrie celebrates graduating from her one-year sewing program but finds it’s hard not to downplay her accomplishments. We discuss how self-belief is key to being able to celebrate ourselves. Emily shares about her recent show at the legendary 54 Below in NYC and her accompanying performance anxiety. Finally, we delve into social media’s impact on our ability to create and happiness.

We also unpack more of our fundamentalist Christian upbringing by wondering about hell, a sadistic god, the rapture, and living without a soul.

References:

• Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear, book by Elizabeth Gilbert

This week on Honestly, Dear Listener, we’re talking about something very scary indeed—what if we’re not actually special? If you’re anything like us, you were raised with the idea firmly planted in your brain that you were exceptional. This has served you some of the time, but it also plopped a huge helping of pressure on you when it came to creativity. Because if you make “bad art,” it would prove that you’re not actually as special as you thought. So you stick to things you’re inherently good at. And boy is that limiting!

Hence, the scary supposition that maybe we’re not actually as special as we think we are. No longer believing in our exceptionalism frees us up to make “bad art” (which is really just fertilizer for the good art we make after we get all the “bad art” out of our systems. We can make “mistakes.” We can expand into new things instead of feeling boxed in by the need to stick to the safe things we know we’re already good at.

We also discuss Emily anxiety in reference to a big gig she has coming up and what it was like growing up in the 90s.

Today on Honestly, Dear Listener, we’re talking about the peaks and troughs of the creative process, exploring the emotional rollercoasters that accompany the life of an artist. Emily shares about how she uses the coping strategy of downplaying her creative endeavors in order to save herself disappointment. Carrie reveals that she’s back on the novel-writing track and shares a few resources for writers that have helped her along the way.

We touch on the unique challenges we creatives face, from dealing with the dopamine cycle in the brain to handling the emotional impact of social media on self-worth. 

We also implore you not to give up. WE NEED YOUR ART. Trust the process and stay the course. 

References:

• “Is This All There Is?” - episode 17 of Honestly, Dear Listener podcast, aired 1/12/24

• Nanowrimo.org (National Novel Writing Month) - Write a novel (50,000 words in 30 days)

• Save the Cat! Writes a Novel - book by Jessica Brody

• The Writer’s Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers, book by Christopher Vogler

• The Herby House podcast with Qveen Herby

• Morgan Riley - musical performing artist

• “How to Start Over: New Beginnings and the Power of Resilience with Amber Mogg Cathey” - episode 31 of Honestly, Dear Listener podcast, aired 5/3/24

Today on Honestly, Dear Listener, we dive into the process of starting over and the resilience it brings to us artists. Our wonderful guest, Vocal Coach Amber Mogg Cathey of Evolve Vocal Studio, discusses her recent move from Nashville, TN to Denver, CO. We relate! In the past several years, Emily has moved from Denver, CO to New York City, and Carrie has moved from a small town in Colorado to Nashville, TN.
Other than there being a ton of location overlap, we have all experienced what it’s like to start over and how the struggle forces us to grow. We also talk about the complexities of maintaining established relationships and while forging new ones in a digital age.
So tune in as we dissect the lessons learned from uprooting life as we know it, the power of staying true to oneself, and how sometimes, the most authentic thing we can do it to embrace the messiness of our journeys.

Where to Find Amber:

Website: evolvevocalstudio.com
Instagram: @EvolveVocalStudio
YouTube:  @EvolveVocalStudio  
Facebook: @EvolveVocalStudio
TikTok: @EvolveVocalStudio

References:
- "I Am Here" - song by Pink - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UENevWnRsx0
- The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating  - book by Elisabeth Tova Bailey

This week on Honestly, Dear Listener, we’re doing a special “uncut” episode (which basically means we had technical difficulties with our regularly scheduled episode and had to last-minute record the day before ; ).

Today, we’re talking about how important it is to surround ourselves with people who can lift us up and reflect back who we are and where we’re headed when we forgot (and everyone does at some point). None of us are islands, and having solid community around us is key to helping us see our dreams through. But it has to be mutual! We can also reflect back to our people who they are.

We also discuss undying Emily’s love for Wicked the Musical.

References:

- “We’ll Do It Live” with Bill O’Reilly

- “A Soft Place to Land” from Waitress the Musical

- “Defying Gravity” from Wicked the Musical

- Broadway sensation Capathia Jenkins

- “11: Boundaries in the Music Industry 12.01.23” - Honestly, Dear Listener episode 11 with Sarah Mount of Sarah Mount and the Rushmores

- “28: How Gratitude Fuels Creativity 03.29.24“ - Honestly, Dear Listener episode 28

Does the way I talk to myself actually matter?

Today on Honestly, Dear Listener, we're talking about self talk, what it is, and how it affects not only us but the world we're creating around us. We check in with our listeners on how monitoring our self talk the week before had gone. We explore the joy and freedom that come from engaging in hobbies without the pressure of perfection, and how to quiet the fear of being "bad" at something we love.

This is final installment in our two-part series on self talk. Click here to listen to Part 1!

Note: We recorded this episode back in October of 2023, but we're finally releasing it April of 2024. 

Hosts: Emily Hatch and Carrie Schaeffer
Instagram: @honestlydearlistener
Youtube: youtube.com/@honestlydearlistener

Does the way I talk to myself actually matter? 

Today on Honestly, Dear Listener, we're talking about self talk, what it is, and how it affects not only us but the world we're creating around us. We discuss the importance of being your own ally and carving out an internal sanctuary amid the chaos. This episode delves into the intricate dance with our inner critics as well as the different Parts of ourselves that come into play when we're creating a safe inner space. We'll examine the role of our upbringing, particularly within a strict Christian paradigm, and its influence on the narratives we tell ourselves. 

Note: We recorded this episode back in October of 2023, but we're finally releasing it April of 2024. 

Hosts: Emily Hatch and Carrie Schaeffer
Instagram: @honestlydearlistener
Youtube: youtube.com/@honestlydearlistener

Today on Honestly, Dear Listener, we’re talking to musician, vocalist, and front-person for Bryce Evans and the Black Cats, Bryce Evans. We discuss their new release, The Moonlight EP, which launched this month and is now streaming on all major streaming platforms. We also delve into how to be a good ally for non-binary folks and artists including what to do about pronouns, how fear can spark hate, and what it’s like being a queer creator in an artistic community.

How to Find Bryce Evans:

• Website: bryceevansmusic.com

• Instagram: @bryceevansmusic

• Facebook: Bryce Evans and the Black Cats

• TikTok: @bryceevansmusic

• Threads: @bryceevansmusic
  

References:

• The Moonlight EP, album by Bryce Evans on Spotify

This week, we're talking about how gratitude is central to our creativity.