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Welcome to Episode 25 – How Luanne Rice Writes

Today’s interview is a special one, but before we get started, I need your help. I am working on a new program called the 21-Day MFA Series. The program will teach one MFA-level skill over the course of 21 days… things like “How to Build a Writing Routine” and “How to Plot.” But, I want to make sure this program is 10 times better than any other writing programs out there, so I am asking for input from this amazing community by taking a 2-minute survey. In exchange for your input, I’ll send you a 50% off coupon for any 21-Day MFA course you’d like. Check out www.howwriterswrite.com/21day to be directed to the survey. THANK YOU.

This week’s episode is with Luanne Rice. Luanne and I recorded this episode the day after I left New York for my parent's house in Michigan, and meeting with her, talking about writing and her process was like a balm for my soul. I really think it “straightened me out.” 

I think you’ll find Luanne is a model for writers. I know I scribbled down notes the entire time we spoke. I felt as if I was learning the entire time, while also feeling as if I had known Luanne all my life. 

I cannot wait to share this episode with you. And so without further ado, here is the episode with Luanne Rice. 

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Monday Motivation – Say Nice Things 

For this Monday Motivation, you’ll need a piece of paper and a pen. Your computer or phone will work fine, but ideally you are writing this out by hand. I’ll do the “pause until you get this” notice that I always heard as a kid. 

Got your writing piece? Good.

Now, in this order, this is what I want you to do.

1.       Write just one thing that makes you incredibly excited about the story you are working on or want to work on. So, this can be a theme about the story, a main character who has captured your heart, or the setting. Anything that just fills you with deep, creative energy. Maybe it is the reason you kicked off this project in the first place.

2.       Write one amazing thing about your relationship with your story. Said another way, what does the story mean to you personally? What makes this story so important for you to tell? Let’s imagine this story is out in the world, and someone reads it, calls you up, and says... “wow your story deeply moved me, and here is why...” what is the why? 

3.       Write one thing about you as a writer. What is your superpower? What do you uniquely bring to the table that no one else in this world can bring? It isn’t arrogant to say this, it is beautiful and special. 

Okay, if you haven’t done this, take a moment to really dig into these answers. Feel free to take a moment if you need.  There is no rush.

Now that you do have these answers beautifully written out, hopefully in your own hand, read them to yourself three times each day. But don’t skim them. Let the words you just wrote sink down into you. Let them be your north star about yourself and your work. Feel free to add to them as you’d like. Make them more robust, let the language swell as the words more deeply connect with you. 

Read these three answers next two weeks and see what happens. I challenge anyone... I mean anyone... to do this exercise with gusto and focus and not see a dramatic improvement in their relationship with their self, their writing, and those around them. Sometimes, what we need most, is just to reconnect with our own hearts.

Thank you for listening, and I hope you have a wonderful week of writing. 

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Welcome to Episode 24 – How Joel C. Rosenberg Writes 

I have two announcements of happenings around How Writers Write. The first one is a call to check out our online reading series. As you know, book events are all canceled, and as readers, we are stuck in social isolation. I wanted to bring together those two groups to weather this pandemic storm. So, be sure to register for a free reading with some amazing authors. Go to howwriterswrite.com/onlinereading to see this week’s line up and watch the previous recordings.  

Okay, so second thing, last month I opened up a free one-on-one coaching session per day. We booked the entire month of March, and it was an absolute blast to connect with a new writer each day. And so, I’m offering a free session per day for the month of April! Anyone can book an hour to work on any issue they’d like. Maybe it is deciding on which project to start, dealing with self-doubt, or how to keep writing during a pandemic. To schedule your free call, go to howwriterswrite.com/freeapril  

This week’s episode is with Joel Rosenberg. Joel has an uncanny ability to read the tea leaves of the world and write compelling, gripping fiction that always seems to be one step in front of the headlines. I loved interviewing Joel and learning about his journey from political consultant to best-selling fiction author.  

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Welcome to Monday Motivation – Childlike Goals

 I know I’ve said this before, but so many of these talks start from the question, “what is heaviest on my heart?” I try to let these talks come from the inside out, which mirrors the way I taught myself to write: starting with what is in my heart, and trying my best to translate that feeling into words. 

 I say this because this topic is a straight-from-Brian’s-heart-onto-the-page type talk. 

 You see, I am an expert at setting a limiter on myself. I’ve developed a kind of governor for how fast I can go with my life, much in the same way a car’s governor won’t let the car go past 100mph. Even though I have an entire course on setting powerful goals, I still struggle with stepping into my full potential.

 In my life, this shows up as limiting beliefs. If you haven’t heard the term before, a limiting belief is a belief that places an artificial constraint on our lives. We all have them, and they show up when we say things like, “I don’t, I can’t, I’m supposed to, I am not, That is the way it is…” Fill in the blank there and see how they come out for you. Here are a few of mine:

“I’m not supposed to want to write a best selling novel.” Getting better. 

“I will never make a comfortable living from writing.” Good. 

Let’s keep going. “I am not original enough. I am not smart enough. There is not enough time, enough money, enough space.”

“It is not possible that Barack Obama (one of my heroes) will list my novel as one of his top reads.” That’s what I want. Truly. My hands are sweating as I say it because it is absolutely ridiculous to say it out loud. But that is how bad I want it... AND how powerful limiting beliefs can be in our lives. 

 That took me all of 20 seconds to write. That goals. That dream… it is always bubbling right below the surface, in a place where I can imagine it, but a place where it is never exposed. A perfect safety...

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Welcome to Episode 23 – How Emma Chase Writes 

I have two announcements of happenings around How Writers Write. The first one is a call to check out our online reading series. As you know book events are all cancelled, and as readers, we are stuck in social isolation. I wanted to bring together those two groups to weather this pandemic storm. And, that looks like nightly online readings with a new author. The week of April 10th features Lisa See, Honor Moore in conversation with Claire Messud, Zack Jordan, and L. Penelope in conversation with Cerece Rennie Murphy. These events have been so much fun, so be sure to register for a reading at howwriterswrite.com/onlinereading  

Okay so second thing, last month I opened up a free one-on-one coaching session per day. We booked the entire month of March and it was an absolute blast to connect with a new writer each day. And so, I’m offering a free session per day for the month of April! Basically, anyone can book an hour to work on any issue they’d like. Maybe it is deciding on which project to start, dealing with self-doubt, or how to keep writing during a pandemic. To schedule your free call, go to howwriterswrite.com/freeapril  

Okay! So, now onto the interview with Emma Chase. Emma is the first romance author that I have interviewed, and I loved chatting with her. Emma shares how she produces book after book. Her spirit and generosity just flood this interview. I think I had a smile on my face the entire time.  

Thank you again to Emma for her time. And now, here is the interview with Emma Chase! 

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Monday Motivation – The Courage to Create

Lately, I’ve been getting into entomology. As a writer and someone who thinks about writers and words basically all day, it seems like the natural progression on my path to the ultimate ending of linguistics. Then I will complete the writer’s circuit and die, be made into a tree, only to be cut down to make the paper of a book. Okay, I’m getting away from myself. 

So, in this crazy world, a word that pops up over and over again is courage. It is one of those words we use a lot. “Have courage” we like to say, almost as a throw-away. It is one of those words that winds up being used into oblivion until the meaning of the word is watered down and unimportant. 

But, it is word courage is filled with power. I did a deep dive into the entomology in the word courage, only to find that it is rooted in the Latin word “cor” c-o-r. Cor means heart in Latin. Later, in old French, the word courage meant “innermost feelings.” Our modern dictionaries define courage as the ability to do something that scares us.

To put it all together, what is the courage to create? 

It is to write from the heart, to write from your innermost feelings. To write. Courageous writing is writing that counts. It is writing that transforms not just the reader, but the writer as well. It writing that empowers, that stretches, that is scary and yet propulsive. 

This courageousness manifests differently for each writer. For some, that might mean picking the pen and writing for the first time, because dear god it takes courage to start something new. For others, it might mean writing about a topic that stings. Maybe it is writing what you dream to write but don’t feel qualified. 

Courage is writing from the heart. 

All too often we get lost in the craft of writing. We want to have poetic prose that moves the reader to tears. A plot and characters who are unique and compelling. I’m not here to bash language. I am a writer. I’ve devoted my life to words. But, focusing on craft while the story lacks courage, lacks heart, will leave both the reader and writer as if something is missing from the page. 

Said another way, courageous writing is more than just intellectually learning and then mastering a set of rules. It takes more than a command of language to get a compelling story on the page. It takes heart. It takes emotion. Language is the way we bring our heart to the page, and it is amazing and wonderful, but it is the vehicle to communicate our writing heart. It is not less important than courage, but it is also not more important. 

This is one of my major gripes about how we teach writing. We focus on the brain and the how-to and not on the soul work it takes to be a writer. 

And so this week, as the world is crazy, as we feel so many new things, have courage. Write from your heart. Explore your feelings on the page. 

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Welcome to Episode 22 – How Elizabeth Wetmore Writes 

Before we get started, I am so excited to announce the How Writers Write Online Reading Series. Come listen to your favorite authors read from their books, have a thoughtful discussion, and answer audience questions. The schedule is already packed with incredible authors like  Amy Harmon, Lisa See, Zack Jordan and so many others. To sign up, visit www.howwriterswrite.com/onlinereading -- that is all one word. 

The first reading is Amy Harmon on April 1st at 8pm ET. You do not want to miss it.

This episode with Elizabeth Wetmore was such a treat to record. Elisabeth spent 14 years writing her debut novel, Valentine, and we dig into her process,  that time, and how sometimes it takes some growing before you can write the story in your heart. 

I want to give a special thank you to Elizabeth for her time. 

And now, please enjoy this interview with Elizabeth Wetmore.

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Monday Motivation – The Limits of Your Feelings

This talk is inspired by Ludwig Wittgenstein’s famous quote, “The limits of my language are the limits of my world.” The concept is so deeply impacted me that it has reframed my understanding of what it means to grow, not just in the writing life, but in life in general. 

 A good example of this quote is a recent experience I just had. I’m teaching myself how to be more handy for some upcoming home projects. One of the things I need to do is learn how to frame, which is basically how to make a wall. For about a week I was watching all of these videos on framing and just couldn’t understand what they were saying, because I couldn’t follow the language. And then, finally, I found a YouTube video where a guy went step by step to talk through framing terminology. So, what is a header, cripple stud, plate, king stud, nailer, level, plum, and on and on. I watched the video like three times, writing down the terms and definitions, and then, went and watched a video on framing.

I’m sure you already know what happened. Boom. I understood the video. I could follow the language, and so I understood, at least intellectually, how to build a wall. Now, who knows what happens when I go to do it, but the point is I can now engage with all the training and informational videos I want. I know the language. 

 What’s the language of writing? What is to story what plum is to framing? 

 The language of writing is feeling. Not the definition or explanation of feeling on the page, but the writer herself feeling emotion and then writing that feeling. 

 Oftentimes we are afraid of feeling. We don’t want to feel hurt because it hurts. We don’t want to feel joy because soon it will fade. We are afraid to feel fear. I say those things to you and to me. I feel hurt and fear. Even though here I am, a podcast host speaking into a microphone, I am just like you. 

For a long time, I was afraid of my feelings, and so I numbed myself. I used video games, busyness, alcohol, friends, willful blindness, mindless media consumption… anything in an attempt to not touch feelings that were locked inside of me. 

This happened with my first book. The book stalled thirteen times for various reasons—plot problems, character problems, my sheer boredom while writing it. I used my head to write those first thirteen drafts and the story was soulless—like a calculation of what should or shouldn’t happen on the page. 

But, then, for whatever reason, and I wish I could remember, I made this huge switch. I excavated myself and I wrote my feelings into the page. The story flipped overnight. Instead of some lame plot, the main character came alive. I saw him as I saw myself—in 3d. To write his story, I went into the hard places—my regret, my feeling like an alien in my own life, my failures, my fears, the times people expected something from me and I didn’t deliver. I let myself feel those things that were bubbling right under the surface. And what came out onto the page was good, even though I wasn’t a good writer. 

 The point is, if I wouldn’t have let myself feel those things, I would have never grown as a writer. I’d have stalled, unable to access the emotion needed to really make have a soul.

 To rewrite Wittgenstein’s quote for writers- “The limits of my feeling are the limits of my writing. The limits of my feeling are the limits of my writing.”

 You can’t write joy without allowing yourself to experience joy. You can’t write rage without allowing yourself to experience rage. The writing will be flat, like looking at the emotion through a buffer. Powerful writing happens in and through our emotions. 

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Welcome to Episode 21 – How Lisa See Writes 

I am so excited to announce the How Writers Write Online Reading Series. There is this huge gap in live book events now that the world has more-or-less shut down. We’re stepping in to fill that void. We are scheduling as many daily readings as possible. These are live events, where the author will read from their book, answer some questions, and take questions from the audience. Your truly is hosting most of these. Come hear Amy Harmon, Lisa See, Zack Jordan. You can ask that question you’ve wanted to ask, maybe win a signed book, all for free. To sign up to attend, visit www.howwriterswrite.com/onlinereading -- that is all one word. The first reading is Amy Harmon on April 1st at 8pm ET. You do not want to miss it.

Okay, so this episode is Lisa See is timeless. Lisa is such a wealth of knowledge and gracious shared a lifetime of lessons about the writing life. I felt as if I could have spoke with Lisa for hours… in fact we stopped the recording only to restart it because the information she was sharing was just too good not to capture. 

Thank you again to Lisa for her time. 

And now, here is the interview with Lisa See. 

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