Author Sarah Hepola joins Rhett from her home in Dallas, Texas to talk about her writing career, which began unofficially when she wrote a Shawshank Redemption-inspired story in 7th grade and sold a copy to a fellow classmate. Sarah tells Rhett about the importance of freeing her mind in order to be creative, and what she does to achieve the meditative state that allows her to write. The two discuss struggling with one’s inner monologue and whether self-doubt can be a useful tool, and Sarah’s got some wardrobe advice for her 21-year old self.

Sarah Hepola is the author of the New York Times bestseller, Blackout, an unblinkingly honest memoir about her past history with alcohol. She has written articles and essays for the New York Times Magazine, Elle, Bloomberg Businessweek, The Guardian, Salon, and Texas Monthly. She also contributes short personal essays to NPR’s Fresh Air. Sarah is currently working on a podcast for Texas Monthly about the cultural impact of the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders, which will be released this fall.

Wheels Off is brought to you by Osiris Media. Hosted and produced by Rhett Miller. Co-produced by Kirsten Cluthe in partnership with Nick Ruffini (Revoice Media). Editing by Justin Thomas. Production Assistance by Matt Bavuso. Music by OLD 97’s. Episode artwork by Katherine Boils. Show logo by Tim Skirven. Photo credit: Brandon Thibodeaux

Revisit Season One of Wheels Off with Rosanne Cash, Rob Thomas, Will Forte, Lydia Loveless, Allison Moorer, Ted Leo, Paul F. Tompkins, Jen Kirkman, and more. This podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. You can also ask Alexa to play it. Please leave us a rating or review on iTunes.

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