QWERTY Writing Life Podcast

Sharing You with the World

Do you have a public presence online? Have you considered what you should and shouldn’t put out for all the world to see? In Episode 12 of QWERTY Writing Life, authors Joy E. Rancatore and Mea Smith highlight a few tips of how to handle the spotlight when you’re in doubt.

Here are links to learn more about the two authors mentioned in the episode:

Nadine Brandes: https://nadinebrandes.com

Glennon Doyle: https://momastery.com 

Intro music created and performed by Brent Smith.

Continue this week’s chat via email at editorial@logosandmythospress.com. Subscribe in your favorite podcast portal or ring the bell on the QWERTY YouTube channel. For more information about the show and the QWERTY Writing Life author resource book series, head over to https://www.logosandmythospress.com/qwerty-writing-life. Meet the authors at https://www.logosandmythospress.com/authors.

Passion to Paycheck: Keeping the Spark When Creative Passion Becomes Career

Do you fear losing your passion when your creative endeavor produces a paycheck? You’re not alone! In Episode 11 of QWERTY Writing Life, authors Joy E. Rancatore and Mea Smith share their experiences with this fear in one creative endeavor where the loss of passion wasn’t worth the paycheck and in another where they’ve discovered habits to keep that creative spark shining brightly all the way to the bank.

 

Check out Joy’s blog post on a mindset shift from “have to” to “get to” here: https://www.joyerancatore.com/2018/05/03/what-do-you-get-to-do/.

 

Intro music created and performed by Brent Smith.

Continue this week’s chat via email at editorial@logosandmythospress.com. Subscribe in your favorite podcast portal or ring the bell on the QWERTY YouTube channel. For more information about the show and the QWERTY Writing Life author resource book series, head over to https://www.logosandmythospress.com/qwerty-writing-life. Meet the authors at https://www.logosandmythospress.com/authors.

Goals Disrupted: Perseverance Despite a Pandemic

How does your 2020 compare to the one you envisioned back in January? If you’re finding yourself discouraged by your lack of progress due to the world’s unrest, tune in to Episode 10 of QWERTY Writing Life for a little lift. Authors Joy E. Rancatore and Mea Smith reflected on their original goals for the year and decided they couldn’t stay disappointed in themselves. In a year like none other, they present their Goals Disrupted: Perseverance Despite a Pandemic.

 

Check out Mea’s recently launched (and GORGEOUS) new website, Story Swell: https://storyswell.net.

 

For more information on the authors’ book, Finders Keepers: A Practical Approach to Find and Keep Your Writing Critique Partner: https://www.logosandmythospress.com/finders-keepers.

 

And, to learn more about the two courses mentioned:

80/20 Course by Lindsay Eager:

https://www.lindsayeagarbooks.com/8020

Maggie Stiefvater’s course: https://www.etsy.com/listing/806360184/writing-with-maggie-stiefvater-2020

 

Intro music created and performed by Brent Smith.

Continue this week’s chat via email at editorial@logosandmythospress.com. Subscribe in your favorite podcast portal or ring the bell on the QWERTY YouTube channel. For more information about the show and the QWERTY Writing Life author resource book series, head over to https://www.logosandmythospress.com/qwerty-writing-life. Meet the authors at https://www.logosandmythospress.com/authors.

Learning from Creative Ideals

Who is your creative ideal? And, how can you learn from them? In Episode 9 of QWERTY Writing Life, authors Joy E. Rancatore and Mea Smith share some of their creative ideals and the four-step process they use to learn the most from them. Adapt these steps to your favorite creative medium!

 

Do your own study with the links mentioned in the show:

Maggie Stiefvater’s course: https://www.etsy.com/listing/806360184/writing-with-maggie-stiefvater-2020

Joy’s blog post and list of fantasy books to read and study: https://www.joyerancatore.com/2020/04/09/training-to-write-fantasy/

The Honey-Don’t List by Christina Lauren: https://christinalaurenbooks.com/books/the-honey-dont-list/

List of books by J.R.R. Tolkien: https://www.tolkiensociety.org/author/books-by-tolkien/

 

Intro music created and performed by Brent Smith.

Continue this week’s chat via email at editorial@logosandmythospress.com. Subscribe in your favorite podcast portal or ring the bell on the QWERTY YouTube channel. For more information about the show and the QWERTY Writing Life author resource book series, head over to https://www.logosandmythospress.com/qwerty-writing-life. Meet the authors at https://www.logosandmythospress.com/authors.

Take a Creative Page from Kids

In Episode 8 of QWERTY Writing Life, join authors Joy E. Rancatore and Mea Smith and take a creative page from kids! Joy and Mea have learned many lessons from their children and share some in this episode. As they discuss ways they’ve encouraged creative discovery in their kids’ lives, they realized the same principles applied to their own—and other adults’.

 

Following the four steps they share might just lead you to discover a new passion or—at the very least—a new appreciation for a different creative medium. 

 

If you have creative kiddos (or you’re up for learning, too), here are a few links Mea mentioned for videos she and her kids enjoyed: 

Dav Pilkey: https://pilkey.com

Narwhal and Jelly: https://www.narwhalandjelly.com/books/

Frog and Toad

Frog & Toad The Complete Collection: https://www.amazon.com/dp/000813622X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_X1GfFbQ9DGE11

Lunch Doodles with Mo Willems: https://youtu.be/RmzjCPQv3y8

Dude Perfect: https://www.youtube.com/user/corycotton

Primitive Building: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClo-U5gvXPRy-4VqWEkkRDg

 

Intro music created and performed by Brent Smith.

 

Continue this week’s chat via email at editorial@logosandmythospress.com. Subscribe in your favorite podcast portal or ring the bell on the QWERTY YouTube channel. For more information about the show and the QWERTY Writing Life author resource book series, head over to https://www.logosandmythospress.com/qwerty-writing-life. 

Meet the authors at https://www.logosandmythospress.com/authors.

Interview with Two Creatives' Spouses: Tony Rancatore and Brent Smith

In Episode 7 of QWERTY Writing Life, authors Joy E. Rancatore and Mea Smith chat with their husbands about their tips on how to have a relationship with a creative person. Tony Rancatore and Brent Smith impart some gems of wisdom for others who desire to support their creative significant others; plus, they share some great general marriage or relationship advice.

Special thanks to Brent Smith for creating and performing the intro music!

Continue this week’s chat via email at editorial@logosandmythospress.com. Subscribe in your favorite podcast portal or ring the bell on the QWERTY YouTube channel. For more information about the show and the QWERTY Writing Life author resource book series, head over to https://www.logosandmythospress.com/qwerty-writing-life. Meet the authors at https://www.logosandmythospress.com/authors.

Getting the Most from Creative Instruction, Part III

In Episode 6 of QWERTY Writing Life, authors Joy E. Rancatore and Mea Smith share how their process for Getting the Most from Creative Instruction helped them with a recent seminar they took. They share some of the biggest lessons learned from the 2020 Writing with Maggie Stiefvater seminar and how they plan to implement them into their writing lives—and some ways they already have.

Joy was surprised to find herself already putting a few things into practice with her current work in progress. Mea has a brand new plan and goal, thanks to Maggie’s wise advice, combined with the influence of Lindsay Eager’s 80/20 workshop she also recently took.

Check out the two seminars we mention and our previous episodes in this series with the links below:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/806360184/writing-with-maggie-stiefvater-2020

https://qwertywritinglife.podbean.com/e/getting-the-most-from-creative-instruction-part-1/

https://qwertywritinglife.podbean.com/e/getting-the-most-from-creative-instruction-part-2/

https://www.lindsayeagarbooks.com/8020

Intro music created and performed by Brent Smith.

Continue this week’s chat via email at editorial@logosandmythospress.com. Subscribe in your favorite podcast portal or ring the bell on the QWERTY YouTube channel. For more information about the show and the QWERTY Writing Life author resource book series, head over to https://www.logosandmythospress.com/qwerty-writing-life. Meet the authors at https://www.logosandmythospress.com/authors.

Getting the Most from Creative Instruction, Part 2

In Episode 5 of QWERTY Writing Life, authors Joy E. Rancatore and Mea Smith give you some practical tips to get the most from creative instruction. With all the opportunities for learning through webinars, workshops and courses, it’s easy to access knowledge these days. The question is, are you harnessing it?

Joy and Mea grew frustrated with not having a system to unpack creative lessons and then implement them into their daily writing lives, so they developed one to share with you! In this second part, they outline the steps you can take during and immediately after your creative instruction to continue your learning success. They wrap it all up with ways to implement your new knowledge into a working action plan to accompany your future work.

For more about Maggie Stiefvater: http://maggiestiefvater.com

To get Maggie’s 8-hour video seminar for yourself: https://www.etsy.com/listing/806360184/writing-with-maggie-stiefvater-2020

For more about Joanna Penn: https://www.thecreativepenn.com

For more about Helen Scheuerer: https://helenscheuerer.com

To listen to Part 1 of this mini-series, visit the QWERTY Writing Life page: https://qwertywritinglife.podbean.com/e/getting-the-most-from-creative-instruction-part-1/

If you would like a PDF of the tips and tricks we’ve outlined for Getting the Most from Creative Instruction, email us at editorial@logosandmythospress.com.

Intro music created and performed by Brent Smith.

Continue this week’s chat via email at editorial@logosandmythospress.com. Subscribe in your favorite podcast portal or ring the bell on the QWERTY YouTube channel. For more information about the show and the QWERTY Writing Life author resource book series, head over to https://www.logosandmythospress.com/qwerty-writing-life. Meet the authors at https://www.logosandmythospress.com/authors.

Getting the Most from Creative Instruction, Part 1

In Episode 4 of QWERTY Writing Life, authors Joy E. Rancatore and Mea Smith give you some practical tips to get the most from creative instruction. With all the opportunities for learning through webinars, workshops and courses, it’s easy to access knowledge these days. The question is, are you harnessing it?

Joy and Mea grew frustrated with not having a system to unpack creative lessons and then implement them into their daily writing lives, so they developed one to share with you! In this first part, they explain what led them to create this system and outline the steps you can take before your creative instruction begins to set yourself up for learning success.

For more about Maggie Stiefvater: http://maggiestiefvater.com

To get Maggie’s 8-hour video seminar for yourself: https://www.etsy.com/listing/806360184/writing-with-maggie-stiefvater-2020

If you would like a PDF of the tips and tricks we’ve outlined for Getting the Most from Creative Instruction, email us at editorial@logosandmythospress.com.

Intro music created and performed by Brent Smith.

Continue this week’s chat via email at editorial@logosandmythospress.com. Subscribe in your favorite podcast portal or ring the bell on the QWERTY YouTube channel. For more information about the show and the QWERTY Writing Life author resource book series, head over to https://www.logosandmythospress.com/qwerty-writing-life. Meet the authors at https://www.logosandmythospress.com/authors.

Kickstarting Creative Collaborations

Authors Joy E. Rancatore and Mea Smith close out a three-part series on Kickstarting Creativity in Episode 3 of QWERTY Writing Life. This time, it’s all about collaborations. Once you’ve kickstarted your own creativity and helped a friend do the same, how about teaming up for a unique creative collaboration? You might be surprised by what that can look like or where you might find it.

Check out the fabulous creatives we mentioned at all their special links:

Megan Lacourrege: https://www.mysiblingstill.com and https://www.instagram.com/mysiblingstillbook/

Brandee at Green Oaks Apothecary in Slidell, LA: https://www.facebook.com/greenoaksapothecary/ and https://www.instagram.com/greenoaksapothecary/

Whistlestop Brew Shop, Opelika, AL: https://www.whistlestopbrewshop.com

And on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whistlestopbrewshop/

Intro music created and performed by Brent Smith.

Continue this week’s chat via email at editorial@logosandmythospress.com. Subscribe in your favorite podcast portal or ring the bell on the QWERTY YouTube channel. For more information about the show and the QWERTY Writing Life author resource book series, head over to https://www.logosandmythospress.com/qwerty-writing-life. Meet the authors at https://www.logosandmythospress.com/authors.