Unpublished

We're talking visibility, being seen, showing your face. The strengths and weaknesses. Why it's okay to get off social media, why great art can happen offline, whether it's possible to make money without socials, why you don't need to post everyday, and more!

Based on Amie's viral post (shared by Doja Cat no less!).

QandA part 2! Thank you to everyone who listened to last week's episode and who interacted with me over at the Unpublished insta! I'm doing my best to respond to all Dms so if you want a chat, please come on over!

Questions this week are about: Self-publishing, the craft of writing, finding a workflow that works for you, building self-confidence, writing about trauma (incl. worries about triggering your readers), vision boards, returning to creative work after a long break, changing creative disciplines, writing about struggles and pessimism/ pity porn.

We're answering questions from the members of the Inspired Collective (our membership program). We got so many great questions so we decided to make this part one of two!

Questions include:

What are your predictions for the indie creative scene in the next few years? How do you foresee traditional gatekeeping being further disrupted?

You interact and support so many creatives. What are the most common things that creatives seem to want answers/guidance on? And is it the "right" focus or are there themes you wish your community wanted to explore more?

Do you have any opinions (about creativity, the creative journey, etc.) or viewpoints that have changed in the last few years? What lead to that change and how did it impact your own journey?

You'll have seen a lot of creatives blossom and achieve their goals. Are there common traits or behaviour patterns you see amongst them that you think contribute to their growth? (Across creative disciplines)

For Amie: What's something you're particularly proud of or love about your latest published novel? Something maybe people haven't pointed out or commented on yet.

How do you think your move will effect your creativity/work - not just the positives, but also the potential negatives/challenges you might need to keep an eye on? & how do you hope to face them?

Do you have a recommendation on where to start? Should they be done simultaneously or separately? In a particular order to get the most benefit?

How is James' writing journey going, what is his intent for his finished books and his creative path, how he decided to abandon one novel, etc?

Enjoy!

Don't forget that Amie has FICTION you can buy. Witchy Book. Sexy-nuns Books.

Amie and James talk about the way hustle culture has ruined the way we look at accomplishment, painting it as an end in itself and a moral good where it should be a journey of self-discovery and joy. They discuss: their own fears about buying into hustle culture and how a reframe can help us to achieve the things we want to achieve in a more gentle, healthy way; the joy of achievement and doing hard things; the importance of protecting your energy and feeling safe; conversely, not letting safety hold you back from your goals, and much more!

Amie wanted me to link to the wonderful Amanda Jones' IG!

Today Amie had the pleasure of interviewing the author of Already Enough, creator of Human Stuff on substack, and one of our instagram heroes, Lisa Olivera.

Topics Discussed by Lisa and Amie: 

The magic of being introverted and quiet as a creative.

How to create when it feels like the world is burning

Why creativity and art is revolutionary

Creating when it isn't 'of value' to other people

How to promote your art when it feels really icky

And so much more.

You can find Lisa on instagram, substack, or her website where you can find links to buy her book!

Join us for a very casual conversation about our work life. We go through our past week and tell you what we did each day, why we might have done something or not done something, how we build rest into our week, why we don't work THAT much, and much more. This is one for those of you who like to just sit back and listen to friends chat. There isn't a huge amount to learn, just casual conversation. Let us know if you like these sorts of casual, chatty episodes and we might do more!

In this episode, we prompt Chat GPT, an advanced chatbot, to ask us "What are ten surprising questions to ask a creative in an interview?". In the first half, we answer the bot's (scarily good) questions. Then, we discuss the ethics of AI art, whether or not we're scared of AI, how we as a society might prepare for more advanced forms of AI, and steps our society might take to protect artists from getting their work stolen algorithms. 

You can sign up for the Art of Making Money course on Amie's website. Enrolments close 23rd Feb at 10pm AEDT.

We are thrilled to be interviewing Morgan Grace, poet, fantasy author, and recipient of one of Ireland's basic income for the arts grant. The grant guarantees Morgan and 2000 other artists 325 euro per week for three years, no strings attached. 

We discuss the incredible feeling of being recognised and supported by our society, how a basic income has impacted her creative practice, the basic income for artists program generally, why artists are undervalued despite being incredibly important and whether a guaranteed income could be a solution, and much more! Stay to the end for an amazing poetry reading by Morgan that brought Amie to tears. Seriously, it's incredible!

You can find Morgan on Instagram and tiktok where she shares her amazing poetry and creative journey.

Her website is bymorgangrace.com where you can find a more extensive sample of her work.

We are super excited to have Tiktok sensation Millie Ford on the pod this week!

We discuss: how to evolve and mature personally when your life is so public, perfectionism and procrastinating content creation when it's literally your job, having a safe place to make and share shitty art (+ how that can help your brand and creativity), taking advantage of inspiration, organising your day when you are responsible for your own schedule and much more!

You can Millie on Instagram and Tiktok

She has her own podcast, Out of Character with Millie Ford.

Did we get you with the title? We're trying to be catchier! Today we have a rambly episode about how varied everyone's taste in art is, why it's actually a good thing that not everyone will like your (or  your favourite creative's) art, why you shouldn't be mean about art that you dislike (and how that will help your own art), James' problem with Goodreads, radical self compassion and much more!