The key to writing a book, working full-time, and keeping up with friends, family, and other activities is flexibility, says author, pharmacist, and triathlete Miffie Seideman. In this episode we talk about the importance of getting your facts right, research, staying grounded, and the importance of Plan Bs and 5

Find Miffie Seideman and her book "The Grim Reader: A Pharmacist's Guide to Putting Your Characters in Peril" here: https://miffieseideman.com/books/

Join our Simply Write community and become a member of the Simply, Paid Subscriber Perks program to receive access to tips sheets, writing assignments, feedback on your work, and more here: https://miffieseideman.com/books/.

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It's time to send out your work, it's part of your job--writers write and share their work. Yet, no matter how many thousands of times I've done that over the years it always feels a little scary.

Getting notes or negative feedback isn't easy, but giving and receiving it is essential to becoming a better writer and improving your work. It is also part of the publishing process.

In this show we talk about the Feedback Loop, how to ask for it, what to do with it, and how to use it in your work. Then we also discuss how to give feedback to help other writers.

Want to know more about beta readers, how to deal with comments on your work, and more? Tune in here and join the Simply Write

community at https://simplywrite.substack.com

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Sandra Gurvis hasn't run off to the circus, but she did write about the evolution of the Greatest Show on Earth in her historical nonfiction book Three Ringling Circus: A History of Sarasota, Florida, and the Famous Ringling Brothers It's one of nearly 20 books Gurvis haws written over her long freelance career. Today she talks about the importance of a cornerstone client, writing both fiction and nonfiction, and how to manage loads of research even when it's conflicting.

Contact Sandra Gurvis here: https://www.sandragurvis.com/

Join our Simply Write community and become a paid subscriber to begin receiving perks at https://simplywrite.substack.com

Thanks for listening.

Now sit down and Simply, Write.

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Writers can suffer from aching backs, carpal tunnel, stiff necks, cognitive issues, and chronic illnesses, that make it impossible to write. Remember to take care of your brain and body so you are able to do the work you want to do.

Start by staying hydrated, sitting in a good chair, and taking breaks, and be sure to tune in to Simply Write w/Polly Campbell for more tips and tricks to keep your body, brain, and business healthy.

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Author Laura Heffernan made her way by writing romance and then shifted to add multiple cozy mysteries to her repertoire. This prolific writer talks about writing romances, cozy mysteries under a pseudonym, and publishing three books a year.

Find Laura Heffernan at https:lauraheffernan.com

For more on the writing craft and crafting a writer's life join the Simply Write community at https://simplywrite.substack.com

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A writing niche can make researching, interviewing, and even writing more efficient and leave you more time to write. In this episode, Polly Campbell explains how to find your niche and why it makes the writer's life easier.

Get in touch with Polly and join the Simply Write community https://simplywrite.substack.com

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Last time thriller writer Tara Laskowski was here she was working on her book The Weekend Retreat. The book is now available and Tara returns to tell us what it was like to write the book under contract and on deadline, why she decided to toss out the original story--tears may or may not have been involved-- and what she's been up to since the book's publication.

For more join Polly and the Simply Write community at https://SimplyWrite.substack.com

Find Tara Laskowski here: https://taralaskowski.com and her new book The Weekend Retreat is available wherever you buy books.

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Whether you are writing nonfiction essays or books or novels and short stories, the most compelling pieces include emotional resonance. As readers, we are often sucked in by the feelings our characters are experiencing. We want to follow them through the story to see what happens next and the unique ways they experience and express their fear, joy, sadness, love. Our characters' emotions provide conflict and tension and reveal who they are. And as in life, the emotions on the page, often motivate a range of behavior.

But writing big emotions can be fraught because we've got to imagine, or feel them ourselves. In this episode, we explore the importance of allowing the people in your stories to express their big feelings and the techniques we can use to make them universal and unique. It's not enough to say your character is scared, you've got to show us what that looks like so we can feel it too.

This episode will offer some tips to do just that and also explain why there are some pieces we should put on hold until we have time to process the emotional moments before we write about them.

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From the comfort of a recliner Rachael Herron writes about her obsessions, whatever the thing is that has captured her interest, the thing that she's thinking about when she can't fall asleep--and then she gets down to the writing business working on deadlines, revisions, her podcast or classes that are coming up.

Herron who produces her podcast Ink In Your Veins and has traditionally and self-published a range of fiction and nonfiction books, says she is "highly distractible" so she puts boundaries or "guardrails" in place so she can get the writing done each day. And while she has always wanted to be a writer, 99 percent of the time while she is writing she says she feels like a fraud or a terrible writer. Now she recognizes that this feeling is normal, it's part of the process, and that has helped her become comfortable in those feelings of discomfort that many writers experience.

For more, listen to this fantastic conversation with Rachael Herron and go to https://rachaelherron.com to learn more about her work and podcast Ink In Your Veins.

For more about our interview, and crafting a writer's life and join our Simply Write community at https://simplywrite.substack.com.

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You might be able to work in your pajamas, but creating freelance writing success or securing an agent and publishing deal often comes down to much more than your ability to write. You've got to act like a professional.

In this episode Polly talks about what it means to be a professional writer, including the importance of meeting deadlines, getting work in on time, meeting editorial market requirements, and taking notes in a way that will have editors coming back to work with you.

Professional writing is about being coachable, emotionally intelligent, and recognizing what your job is. Tune in to learn more about what makes someone a sought-after writer so that you can become one yourself.

For more on the other qualities editors, agents and publishers look for in a writer, join our Simply Write community at https://simplywrite.substack.com

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