The Daily Writer

The holiday season is in full swing, and most everyone is thinking about the gifts they are going to give others. Just yesterday, my son and I were talking about some gift ideas for my wife. And my wife and I have certainly been talking about gifts to get our son.

While we're probably spending a lot of time on Amazon or looking around local stores, the best gifts come from who we are, not just what we buy. As a writer, you are in a unique position to give to others in a variety of ways.

As I was thinking of ways to give and serve this holiday season, I thought it would be fun to make a list of a few different ways we can give to others as writers.

These are the ten tips we cover in this episode:

1. Mentor another writer.
2. Give helpful feedback to another writer.
3. Buy and promote a friend's book.
4. Leave reviews for books and podcasts.
5. Write that book you’ve been planning.
6. Publish your work.
7. Gather your writer friends for a call or mastermind.
8. Say thank you to clients or others who have helped you.
9. Tell an author how their work impacted you.
10. Give to yourself by reading.

I challenge you to choose just two of these and put them into practice from now until New Year's. I'd love to hear about the difference it makes in your writing, relationships, and creative life.

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There are a lot of challenging aspects of being a writer. But in my experience, some of the biggest obstacles come from inside.

If we look at why we sometimes are not achieving the impact and success we want, it's because we are paying attention to the false labels that others have given us, and that we have given ourselves.

My guest today is Bee Evans. She is a speaker, coach, and thought leader who is on a mission to help others "Tear Out the Tags." This initiative is all about removing the labels that are holding us back.

I have gotten to know Bee over the last few months, and she is not only a genuine encourager, but she helps you see yourself in a new way. I know you are going to be blessed by her incredible wisdom in this interview, which is all removing the labels that hold us back. This is such an important conversation, especially for writers and creative entrepreneurs.

Be sure to check out Bee's website, TearOutTheTags.com, as well as her podcast, Tear Out the Tags, which just launched a couple of days ago (on Thanksgiving!). And if you enjoyed this conversation, make sure to give Bee a shout-out on Instagram @embldnlabel.

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If you enjoyed this episode, we would be grateful if you leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps more people discover the show, and the more people listen, the more we can invest into it and improve the show.

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Being a writer is a lot like living in The Wizard of Oz. Some days feel like you’ve lost your brain, most days feel like you’re holding onto your heart, and every day feels like a battle for your courage. 

That’s how the Cowardly Lion felt just before he and the rest of the gang went in to see the Wizard in Emerald City. In one of the best musical moments of the whole movie, he says, 

What makes the elephant charge his tusk, in the misty mist or the dusky dusk? 

What makes the muskrat guard his musk?

What makes the Sphinx the seventh wonder?

What makes the dawn come up like thunder?

At the end of each line, the group says, “Courage!” Near the end of the song, the Cowardly Lion says, 

What have they got that I ain’t got?

And the answer, of course … is courage.

On today's episode, Kent questions the conventional wisdom about not having courage ... and shares a powerful reminder to look at courage in a different way.

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If you enjoyed this episode, we would be grateful if you leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps more people discover the show, and the more people listen, the more we can invest into it and improve the show.

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Are you a glass half empty or a glass half full kind of person?

If your answer is that you’re a glass half empty kind of person, it means you tend to focus on what you lack. If your answer is that you’re a glass half full kind of person, it means you tend to focus on what you have.

So the question is not about what’s inside the glass. The question is, what’s inside of you? It really comes down to how you see the world. It also affects how you perceive your writing and your potential for success. 

On today's special Thanksgiving episode, Kent shares an important reminder to be grateful for all the blessings we have as writers.

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If you enjoyed this episode, we would be grateful if you leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps more people discover the show, and the more people listen, the more we can invest into it and improve the show.

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Have you ever found yourself sitting, staring at the wall, thinking about that book you wanted to write? Then a few minutes later, you snap out of it and realize you were completely lost in thought?

If so, you’re not alone. Probably every writer can relate to spending more time thinking about a book than actually writing it.

But why do we do this? Why do we spend so much time planning, dreaming, visualizing, worrying, fretting, and stressing over a book before we even commit a word to paper? What is it about writers that we spend so much energy living in our heads, but we can’t seem to translate that energy into our hands by taking action?

On today's episode, Kent reminds us to look a little deeper if we are feeling creatively blocked.

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If you enjoyed this episode, we would be grateful if you leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps more people discover the show, and the more people listen, the more we can invest into it and improve the show.

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We live in an age when it is easy to get out of almost any commitment. If you’re unhappy with your cable TV service, you can switch companies. If your dinner at a restaurant doesn’t taste good, you can send it back to the kitchen. If you are irritated at someone on social media, you can unfollow or even block them.

But what about your relationship to your writing? 

The concept of having a relationship with your writing may be new to you. Sometimes we view our writing as a task to be completed. If we approach our work like so many writers do, as a “tortured artist,” then our writing feels like an unbearable burden, a cross we have to carry.

But writing is none of those things. It’s a privilege. A treasure. A responsibility. And an opportunity.

On today's episode, Kent shares three simple ways to stay committed to your writing.

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If you enjoyed this episode, we would be grateful if you leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps more people discover the show, and the more people listen, the more we can invest into it and improve the show.

Follow Kent Sanders:

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Twitter: https://twitter.com/kentsanders 

When you hear the name J.K. Rowling, what comes to mind? 

You probably picture an ultra-successful author whose books are adored by millions of readers all over the world. As the author of the Harry Potter series, she has achieved a level of fame and fortune that very few authors will know.

But it wasn’t always that way. Just a handful of years before she published the first Harry Potter book, J.K. Rowling was a poor, jobless single mother who was fresh off a divorce. She had conceived of the idea for the Harry Potter series a few years earlier.

Now at a low point in her life she never anticipated, she gave her full attention to her writing.

On today's episode, Kent reminds us that the best gifts--including failure--often come in unexpected wrapping.

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If you enjoyed this episode, we would be grateful if you leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps more people discover the show, and the more people listen, the more we can invest into it and improve the show.

Follow Kent Sanders:

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One of the most common themes I hear from people who want to write is, "Where do I start?" So many people have the desire, even the calling, to write ... yet they don't know where to begin.

Rather than do a straight-up teaching episode on this topic, or having a single guest, I thought it would be fun to do a round-table discussion with a few of my writer friends to give different perspectives on getting started. This was so much fun that I've decided to do a monthly round-table format on different topics.

I'm thrilled that three good friends have been able to join me for this conversation: Eric Elder is an online pastor, author, pianist, and music producer. Mary Felkins is a novelist who released her first book last year, and Ashley Rescot is a violinist, music teacher, and short story author. Of course each of these friends is much more, but that gives you a little context for what each of them brings to the table.

In this conversation, we tackle some topics such as:

• What would you say to someone who believes they're not a good writer?
• How and where do get started?
• What was a failure you have experienced as a writer, and what did you learn from it?
• How do you stay on track with your writing?

By the way, all four of us have been participants in an online Christian writers group that Eric has so graciously been leading for the past year. In this group, you'll learn things like how to get started writing, how to make a first draft, how to edit, how to format and upload to self publish on Amazon, how to approach traditional publishers, and so on. It’s all on TheRanch.org and you can click on the online Christian writers group to watch all the episodes.

By the way, all four of us have been participants in an online Christian writers group that Eric has so graciously been leading for the past year. In this group, you'll learn things like how to get started writing, how to make a first draft, how to edit, how to format and upload to self publish on Amazon, how to approach traditional publishers, and so on. It’s all on TheRanch.org and you can click on the online Christian writers group to watch all the episodes.

You can connect with Eric at TheRanch.org, Mary at MaryFelkins.com, and Ashley at RescotCreative.com. 

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If you enjoyed this episode, we would be grateful if you leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps more people discover the show, and the more people listen, the more we can invest into it and improve the show.

Follow Kent Sanders:

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Twitter: https://twitter.com/kentsanders 

Episode Description (Libsyn & SM Post)

Here is the U.S., we like to talk about ownership. In fact, one of the hallmarks of American society is the concept of owning land, owning a house, and owning a car.

But when it comes to our careers and the direction of our lives, we often leave that completely up to chance.

My guest today is here to help us do a course-correction. His name is Andy Storch, and he is a consultant, coach, speaker, and facilitator specializing in the Talent Development space. Andy is also the host of two podcasts, including The Talent Development Hot Seat and the Own Your Career, Own Your Life Show.  In addition, Andy also heads up the Talent Development Think Tank Conference and Community and can now add "author" to his growing list of achievements.

Andy's brand-new book just released on Amazon this past week, and it's called Own Your Career, Own Your Life: Stop Drifting and Take Control of Your Future. I can honestly say this is one of the best professional and personal development books I have read in a long time.

Andy teaches you how to own your career, take responsibility, do networking the right way, and a lot of other key habits and practices that will make you successful.

I first got to know Andy in the Total Life Freedom Community, which you probably recall is a running theme with a lot of my podcast guests. Andy is the real deal. He is kind, generous, brilliant, a great connector, and the kind of person who will help you succeed in life just because you spend time with him.

In this conversation, Andy and I talk about the importance of asking for help, how to network properly (especially if you're an introvert), Andy's process of writing this book, and his advice to aspiring authors. I definitely recommend that you purchase Andy's book and use some time over the holidays to digest it.

You can connect with Andy via his website, LinkedIn, Instagram, or Twitter.

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If you enjoyed this episode, we would be grateful if you leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps more people discover the show, and the more people listen, the more we can invest into it and improve the show.

Follow Kent Sanders:

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If you’re a fan of the Peanuts comic strip, you may remember one of the ongoing storylines involving Snoopy, Charlie Brown’s loveable dog. Snoopy would be perched on top of his doghouse with a typewriter, trying to begin his novel. No matter what he was writing, he always used the opening line, “It was a dark and stormy night.” 

Many readers of Peanuts thought Charles Schulz came up with this phrase since he created the comic strip. However, the phrase has actually been around for nearly two hundred years. It was first written by the English novelist Edward Bulwer-Lytton in 1830 for one of his novels. 

Less than a decade later, in 1839, he wrote a historical play called “Cardinal Richelieu.” The play contained a line of dialogue that would come to symbolize the power of writing. Perhaps you’ve heard of the phrase, “The pen is mightier than the sword.” 

But what does it mean, exactly? What should we learn from this truth that words can indeed by mighty? There are two lessons—the first one obvious, and the second one not so much.

On today’s episode, Kent reminds us why it’s important to use our words for good, not for harm.

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If you enjoyed this episode, we would be grateful if you leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps more people discover the show, and the more people listen, the more we can invest into it and improve the show.

Follow Kent Sanders:

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