Restorative Reading and Writing for Wellness

Today is a big day on the Get Lit(erate). podcast.

I’m interviewing someone that brings me a great deal of journaling inspiration with her colorful, curious and whimsical printable journals and journal pages: Christie Zimmer!

I feel like Christie is my journaling twin, as we have very similar philosophies about journaling and notebooking and we often head to our notebook for many of the same reasons.

But there’s one key difference: I tend to stay in the left side of my brain when I journal, sticking to my tried and true notebooking habits inside predictable, lined notebooks.  Christie invites me to explore the right side of my brain as I notebook, welcoming new colors, shapes, reflective prompts and overall notebooking experiences.

In today’s episode, we talk about all things journaling, from the why and how we journal to the when and what we do when we arrive on the page.

You'll find the show notes for this episode here.

Love this podcast and want more? Consider this your invitation to join my Get Lit(erate) Patreon community! Each month, we take a deep dive into one bookish theme and work to bring it to life in our own lives. You’ll get bonus episodes, book calendars, live book club and notebook sessions, special events and much more. Learn more at www.getliterate.co.

Follow Stephanie:

Website  

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit alitlife.substack.com/subscribe

Middle Grade March is here! We have the entire month to read, enjoy and celebrate all things middle grade children’s literature and that’s exactly what I’m doing today.

You'll find the show notes for this episode here.

Love this podcast and want more? Consider this your invitation to join my Get Lit(erate) Patreon community! Each month, we take a deep dive into one bookish theme and work to bring it to life in our own lives. You’ll get bonus episodes, book calendars, live book club and notebook sessions, special events and much more. Learn more at www.getliterate.co.

Follow Stephanie:

Website  

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit alitlife.substack.com/subscribe

Some of my most popular episodes on this podcast have been on the power and possibility of bringing a consistent notebooking and journaling habit into our lives.

We might think we are too busy, too overwhelmed and too tired to journal daily…and we might be. But honestly, we cannot afford not to and I’ll tell you why.

Today, I’m exploring the power of journaling and notebooking to support our mental health.

I’ll share powerful research on why journaling is important to our physical, mental and emotional health and share three specific journal techniques to support your model and mindset.

Come listen!

You'll find the show notes for this episode here.

Love this podcast and want more? Consider this your invitation to join my Get Lit(erate) Patreon community! Each month, we take a deep dive into one bookish theme and work to bring it to life in our own lives. You’ll get bonus episodes, book calendars, live book club and notebook sessions, special events and much more. Learn more at www.getliterate.co.

Follow Stephanie:

Website  

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit alitlife.substack.com/subscribe

I often bring a lot of whimsy into this podcast.
We share books that make us run to the stationary store, celebrate Festivus and make us hungry.
We talk about notebook love languages, complete journaling challenges together and share our favorite writing supplies.
But we also talk about serious things, too. Books that can help us when we get a diagnosis. Notebook prompts that can bring us greater clarity in life.
Today is a more serious kind of day.
This week is National Eating Disorder Awareness Week and I’m sharing a collection of books that explore body image, disordered eating and recovery.
It’s a heavier episode, but one that is needed.
I truly believe in the power of books and notebooks to heal and this episode might just be what you or a loved one needs to feel less alone.
You'll find the show notes for this episode here.
Love this podcast and want more? Consider this your invitation to join my Get Lit(erate) Patreon community! Each month, we take a deep dive into one bookish theme and work to bring it to life in our own lives. You’ll get bonus episodes, book calendars, live book club and notebook sessions, special events and much more. Learn more at www.getliterate.co.
Follow Stephanie:
Website  
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit alitlife.substack.com/subscribe

There’s nothing better than bookish conversation with bookish friends, is there?!

Join me as I talk all things book challenges with Allison of Mind Joggle. Her blog has been a favorite of mine for some time and when I saw that she was looking at reading challenges in a new way in 2023 too, I knew we had to chat.

Allison and I talk about reading, reading challenges, books and everything in between.

You'll find the show notes for this episode here.

Love this podcast and want more? Consider this your invitation to join my Get Lit(erate) Patreon community! Each month, we take a deep dive into one bookish theme and work to bring it to life in our own lives. You’ll get bonus episodes, book calendars, live book club and notebook sessions, special events and much more. Learn more at www.getliterate.co.

Follow Stephanie:

Website  

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit alitlife.substack.com/subscribe

Each month inside my Get Lit(erate) Patreon community, we explore a one-word theme in our reading and writing lives to make our actual lives better.

This month, our theme is WINTERING.

The idea of wintering is simple and incredibly appealing: wintering means we give ourselves the space to rest and recover alongside Mother Nature.

Today, I’m sharing the episode from inside my Patreon community so you can explore 28 new books perfect for this time of year, too.

Then, if you like what you hear, you can join my community for FREE for 7 days to try it out and see if it’s something your reading and writing life needs next.

Love the books and want a printable calendar of them all? Just click here!

You'll find the show notes for this episode here.

Love this podcast and want more? Consider this your invitation to join my Get Lit(erate) Patreon community! Each month, we take a deep dive into one bookish theme and work to bring it to life in our own lives. You’ll get bonus episodes, book calendars, live book club and notebook sessions, special events and much more. Learn more at www.getliterate.co.

Follow Stephanie:

Website  

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit alitlife.substack.com/subscribe

Love is in the air!

Chocolate is being eaten, roses are being given and it’s time to think about what sets our reading hearts on fire.

For me, that’s an easy one: children’s literature!

I love all things children’s literature. I devoured books when I was a kid, read them like it was my job as an educator (it was!) and choose to intentionally bring them into my adult reading life today.

So today on the podcast, we are celebrating children’s literature. And there is no better guest to help me do that than James Preller.

James is author of the Jigsaw Jones series, The Courage Test, Bystander, Six Innings, Blood Mountain and many, many more.

Come listen as we talk about his journey to writing, his MANY books and what’s coming next.

You'll find the show notes for this episode here.

Love this podcast and want more? Consider this your invitation to join my Get Lit(erate) Patreon community! Each month, we take a deep dive into one bookish theme and work to bring it to life in our own lives. You’ll get bonus episodes, book calendars, live book club and notebook sessions, special events and much more. Learn more at www.getliterate.co.

Follow Stephanie:

Website  

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit alitlife.substack.com/subscribe

Happy Valentine’s Day!

To celebrate, I’ve got a fun episode that dives deep into the world of notebooking.

Today, we are diving deep into our notebook love languages.

Yes, notebook love languages.

First, I’ll talk about The 5 Love Languages by Gary Chapman and how it can be a game-changer for our relationships.

Then, I’ll talk about the 5 Notebook Love Languages, what they mean for your writing life and the perfect notebooking supplies for you.

Come listen!

You'll find the show notes for this episode here.

Love this podcast and want more? Consider this your invitation to join my Get Lit(erate) Patreon community! Each month, we take a deep dive into one bookish theme and work to bring it to life in our own lives. You’ll get bonus episodes, book calendars, live book club and notebook sessions, special events and much more. Learn more at www.getliterate.co.

Follow Stephanie:

Website  

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit alitlife.substack.com/subscribe

So, I figured out something about my reading life that I did not know I needed:

Hyper-local books.

Hyper local books are books that have a strong sense of place and take place in an actual setting with actual references of local points of interest.

I had no idea how much this truly enhanced the reading experience until I read a few books set in my upstate New York location by JD Spero.

These books captivated me in a way that other books could not because I felt like I was truly there inside the book, not just imagining the setting, but recalling it from when I was there last.

It’s the best.

So, I sat down with JD Spero to talk about her books and the process of writing hyper-local books for readers. We talked about all that and much more and I cannot wait to have her back on so we can continue our bookish conversations.

Come listen!

You'll find the show notes for this episode here.

Love this podcast and want more? Consider this your invitation to join my Get Lit(erate) Patreon community! Each month, we take a deep dive into one bookish theme and work to bring it to life in our own lives. You’ll get bonus episodes, book calendars, live book club and notebook sessions, special events and much more. Learn more at www.getliterate.co.

Follow Stephanie:

Website  

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit alitlife.substack.com/subscribe

Do you know what day it is? It’s National Send a Card to a Friend Day!

To celebrate, I’m sharing a collection of books that celebrate friendship AND letter-writing that are sure to remind you of the power of having both in your life. Then, I’m issuing you a challenge to celebrate this whimsical holiday in your own life.

You'll find the show notes for this episode here.

Love this podcast and want more? Consider this your invitation to join my Get Lit(erate) Patreon community! Each month, we take a deep dive into one bookish theme and work to bring it to life in our own lives. You’ll get bonus episodes, book calendars, live book club and notebook sessions, special events and much more. Learn more at www.getliterate.co.

Follow Stephanie:

Website  

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit alitlife.substack.com/subscribe