Thoughts are the cause of all emotions in our lives. Whatever we decide to believe and think will determine how we feel. -Brooke Castillo (The Life Coach School)

Today Judy and I get into our heads and talk about our thoughts. As a life coach, I talk with my clients about how a circumstance can trigger thoughts, these thoughts cause feelings, our feelings drive actions, and actions create results.

So...we get into 4 questions that will help you shed some light on your thoughts. These questions will help you look at your thoughts about writing and about you as a writer. It is a good starting point to examine some foundational beliefs that could either set you up to be a prolific, motivated, and successful writer...or...not.

1. What do you think about writing?

2. What do you think about yourself as a writer?

3. What have your people (family/teachers) taught you about your writing?

4. What do you WANT to believe about writing and yourself as a writer?

Watch our conversation at ⁠https://youtu.be/W5oGNJGstUg

Get free monthly writing prompts and more information about our Sidetracked Legacies membership ⁠⁠at ⁠https://sidetrackedsisters.com/⁠

Follow LisaHoffmanCoaching ⁠⁠at ⁠https://www.instagram.com/lisahoffmancoaching/⁠

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"Writing is like pizza. Cold pizza, good pizza, bad pizza...it's better than no pizza. So remember: bad writing is better than no writing." --Lauren Oliver author of Vanishing Girls

Welcome to the Overcoming Writer's Block podcast episode #137.

Today Judy and I had some fun with pizza. A couple of hours before we talked, I was on a walk with my dogs and listening to a podcast. The speaker was explaining that when they were writing, they often really struggled with the worry, the fear really, of what other people--family mostly--would think of the story. This was a major block to their ability to get their words down on paper.

And, well, my brain went to pizza. (Not sure why...) It started to use pizza as a metaphor to illustrate why other people's opinions should have no bearing on your writing.

In my conversation with Judy, we talked for a while before I hit record. I didn't know if this was too much of a stretch. But we decided to go with the idea and just have fun with it.

Watch our conversation at https://youtu.be/nozXxJan9bg

Get free monthly writing prompts and more information about our Sidetracked Legacies membership ⁠⁠at https://sidetrackedsisters.com/

Follow LisaHoffmanCoaching ⁠⁠at https://www.instagram.com/lisahoffmancoaching/

#overcomingwritersblock #writersblock #blankpage #SidetrackedSisters #SidetrackedLegacies #legacybuilding #LisaHoffmanCoaching #LaurenOliver #sidetrackedlisa #sidetrackedjudy

"I tend to deal with writer's block by thinking, 'What can I simplify in my life?' Because that will get me more in tune with my intuition and the writing will come." -Dana Laquidara (speaker and author)

Today I talk with Dana Laquidara. She is a speaker and writer who recently had her second book published. Her first book explored the connection between creativity, simplifying, and healing in the book The Uncluttered Mother: Free Up Your Space, Mind, and Heart.

Today, we dig into her second book, YOU-KNOW-WHO An Alienated Daughter's Memoir. We get into her thoughts about the healing that occurs while writing and how she has navigated the process of writing about trauma that affects not only an individual but a family.

You can find her book ⁠⁠here ⁠⁠and ⁠⁠here ⁠⁠and on her website ⁠⁠here⁠⁠.

She mentioned a few books that she found inspiring. They were...

The Book Bible: How to Sell Your Manuscript―No Matter What Genre―Without Going Broke or Insane by Susan Shapiro

Be the Gateway: A Practical Guide to Sharing Your Creative Work and Engaging an Audience by Dan Blank

Get free monthly writing prompts and more information about our Sidetracked Legacies membership ⁠⁠at ⁠⁠https://sidetrackedsisters.com/⁠⁠

Check out LisaHoffmanCoaching ⁠⁠at ⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/lisahoffmancoaching/⁠⁠

⁠⁠#overcomingwritersblock⁠⁠ ⁠⁠#writersblock⁠⁠ ⁠⁠#blankpage⁠⁠ ⁠⁠#SidetrackedSisters⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠#legacybuilding⁠⁠ ⁠⁠#LisaHoffmanCoaching⁠⁠ 

"Sometimes people ask me if I regret 'wasting' those decades before I learned to believe in my writing and take it seriously. No, I tell them. I was gestating, amassing experience and material I tap into when I write my poems today." --Rebecca Faust (poet)

As a woman with many diverse experiences behind me, I recognize that life is always changing. We are always learning... something. In each stage of life, it often feels like that is the way it will always be. But, that isn't the case. In writing, sometimes I feel tornado-ish (writing comes fast and easy). At other times, I'm in a more potato-ish place (boring and bland). If life has its ups and downs, peaks and troughs, doesn't it make sense that our experience with writing will also?

Today, Judy and I talk about writing when we feel like it, and when we don't. Because...that's just the way it works.

Get free monthly writing prompts and more information about our Sidetracked Legacies membership ⁠⁠at https://sidetrackedsisters.com/

Follow LisaHoffmanCoaching ⁠⁠at https://www.instagram.com/lisahoffmancoaching/

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"I'm the other kind of writer. I don't write every day. I don't have set hours that I write (and I know I should). But I get there eventually...I want it to be an enjoyable process." --Heidi Eliason

Have you ever felt suffocated by your routine and responsibilities, or just longed for some adventure? Heidi Eliason did, so at the age of 45 she quit her job, sold her house, bought a motorhome, and embarked on a five-year road trip with her dog, Rylie. It was a journey that transformed her life.

Through memoir, she recounts the challenges of managing the Green Monster--her motorhome--traveling in Mexico, and getting derailed by Mr. Wrong. She learned--sometimes the hard way--that chasing the corporate ladder and storybook romance was not always a sure route to happiness. She struggled with insecurities, faced her fears, and dug her way out of depression.

Here are a couple of resources she mentioned in today's interview:

Reedsy.com

Ebooklaunch.com

IngramSpark.com

Draft2Digital.com

You can find her book ⁠here ⁠and ⁠here ⁠and on her website ⁠here⁠.

You can check out Heidi's writing editing services here.

She belongs to The California Writer's Club and the Nonfiction Authors Association.

She mentioned several books that she found inspiring. They were...

On Writing by Stephen King

The Art of Memoir by Mary Karr

Big Magic by Melissa Gilbert

Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott

Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg⁠, and

The Nonfiction Book Publishing Plan: The Professional Guide to Profitable Self-Publishing

Watch our conversation at ⁠https://youtu.be/bxm0xx2v3vA

Get free monthly writing prompts and more information about our Sidetracked Legacies membership ⁠⁠at ⁠https://sidetrackedsisters.com/⁠

Check out LisaHoffmanCoaching ⁠⁠at ⁠https://www.instagram.com/lisahoffmancoaching/⁠

⁠#overcomingwritersblock⁠ ⁠#writersblock⁠ ⁠#blankpage⁠ ⁠#SidetrackedSisters⁠ ⁠#SidetrackedLegacies⁠ ⁠#legacybuilding⁠ ⁠#LisaHoffmanCoaching⁠ 

"If you have an idea, you should run with it. That idea was given to you for a reason, and you...YOU are the person who is supposed to take that idea and make something out of it." -- Melanie Gareau

Today I talk with Melanie Gareau. She is a parent, educator, and author who lost a student to suicide and the experience shattered her heart. As a form of self-therapy, she turned to writing. This writing in turn developed into a resource for teenagers and young adults--WHY ME? What now?

Melanie knew that kids don't want or need to be told what to do or what to think. There are enough people trying to do that already. Instead, she wants to empower teens to talk, ask for help, find support, and do what feels right for them. Her book is a resource with stories and practical advice to empower readers. The struggle is real, but it is possible to meet life's challenges and come out the other side stronger and more resilient.

Here are a couple of resources she mentioned in today's interview:

Reedsy.com

Bigmoosepublishing.com

You can find her book here and here and on her website here.

She is also on social media on Facebook and Instagram.

Watch our conversation at https://youtu.be/Dgfsaw_3zGo

Get free monthly writing prompts and more information about our Sidetracked Legacies membership ⁠⁠at https://sidetrackedsisters.com/

Check out LisaHoffmanCoaching ⁠⁠at https://www.instagram.com/lisahoffmancoaching/

#overcomingwritersblock #writersblock #blankpage #SidetrackedSisters #SidetrackedLegacies #legacybuilding #LisaHoffmanCoaching #melaniegareau #whymewhatnow

Author Lois Lowry was asked about her writing process and how she got over writer's block (here). She answered, "I write on a computer and I have never suffered from writer's block. In fact, I don't believe in it. It's a made-up term that has taken on some kind of silly importance. Writing is a job. Some days you don't feel like doing your job. But there is no 'teacher's block' or 'dentist's block.' I can't figure out why we have created this mysterious phrase .. only for writers .. which only means 'I don't feel like doing this right now'."

Today, Judy and I talk about the possibility that writer's block doesn't. even. exist. We get into three strategies that you've definitely heard of before that you are probably already doing. And like many well-known, successful techniques, it's sometimes nice to know that you're on the right track. These practices are like a vaccine that protects you from getting all blocked up. So sit back and enjoy a conversation that is sure to inspire you.

Get free monthly writing prompts and more information about our Sidetracked Legacies membership ⁠⁠at https://sidetrackedsisters.com/

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#overcomingwritersblock #writersblock #blankpage #SidetrackedSisters #SidetrackedLegacies #legacybuilding #LisaHoffmanCoaching #loislowry #sidetrackedlisa #sidetrackedjudy

Today I interview the author of "Untethered", Deborah Staunton. In her book, Deb tells the story of growing up with a mentally ill, alcoholic father and the experience of raising a mentally ill daughter. It follows Deb's journey through multiple miscarriages and the "untethering" of minds, relationships, and pregnancies.

At one point in our interview, Deb says, "I just have to get 200 rejections and I'm on my way." This statement beautifully illustrates Deb's tenacity when faced with challenges.

In this episode, we talk about Deb's writing process and the resources she has accessed during the process of writing, editing, and publishing her book.

She talks candidly and with encouragement to others who have a story to tell. Her book is a testimony to the resilience of the human spirit and Deb inspires other writers to keep moving forward in the process of writing and getting their work out into the world.

Deborah's book Untethered can be found everywhere you buy books including Walmart, Amazon, and Barnes&Noble

You can find Deb on Facebook here and she recommends that you check out the International Women's Writers Guild for support in your writing journey.

"You can always edit a bad page. You can't edit a blank page." --Jodi Picoult

Watch our conversation on Youtube ⁠⁠at https://youtu.be/tXZybyqUGrI

Get free monthly writing prompts and more information about our Sidetracked Legacies membership ⁠⁠at https://sidetrackedsisters.com/

Follow LisaHoffmanCoaching ⁠⁠at https://www.instagram.com/lisahoffmancoaching/

#overcomingwritersblock #writersblock #blankpage #SidetrackedSisters #SidetrackedLegacies #legacybuilding #LisaHoffmanCoaching

"Writer's block is real. It happens. Some days you sit down at the old typewriter put your fingers on the keys, and nothing pops into your head.

Blanko. Nada. El nothingissimo.

What you do when this happens is what separates you from the one-of-these-days-I'm-gonna-write-a-book crowd."

--James N. Frey

Today Judy and I talk about writer's block--what it is and what it looks like. We get into how self-criticism is at the heart, but the brain drama of writer's block shows up in unique and identifiable ways. Stress. Vague thoughts. Fear. Lack of motivation.

Watch our conversation on Youtube ⁠here ⁠

Get more information about our Sidetracked Legacy membership ⁠here ⁠

Follow LisaHoffmanCoaching ⁠here⁠

#overcomingwritersblock #writersblock #SidetrackedSisters #SidetrackedLegacies #legacybuilding #LisaHoffmanCoaching