Find Your Voice: How to Write When You're Not a Writer

Is there someone in your life trying to silence you? How do you fight for your voice when you are challenged, and what do you do when that resistance comes from someone close to you? As an author, speaker, and influencer, Elyse Murphy uses words for a living. But she knows what it's like to have someone suppress her voice: She and Ally both left abusive marriages, and, on this episode, they t...

Maybe you doubt if you really have what it takes to write a book. On this episode, Allison Fallon names five common myths about how books get written—misconceptions that SO many people have about this process.  After debunking these myths, she reveals the truth. Listen to hear about the myth of the writer's retreat, the typewriter myth, and then what actually happens behind the scenes.  Hopef...

Is it worth writing even if no one will pay attention? Melissa wrote a best-selling cookbook back in the height of the Paleo movement called Well Fed . But now, ten years later, she wants to write about something new, and she's not sure her audience will follow. If you've ever struggled with having a "platform" or "audience" for your writing, today's episode is f...

Sometimes, we can see the light at the end of the tunnel. But what do we do when we feel hopeless? On this episode, author, speaking coach, and founder of the Don't Give Up Movement Amy Wolff speaks with us about mental health, writing, and how living a life of impact can start small. She brings "hope" out of the clouds and down to earth: naming its components and giving insights on...

As we approach the anniversary of the 2020 shutdown, we all need a place to process.  Author and writing coach Allison Fallon often praises journaling as a tool for personal growth and a form of self-therapy. But what exactly are the parallels between writing and therapy? And when is it best to simply go to the professionals?  Los Angeles Therapist Jessica Martindale uncovers what therapy is reall...

There's no getting around it: over time, we change.   As the world shifts and as you change with it, you might find that your creativity is what grounds you to yourself and what connects you to others too. This episode, Ally sits down with singer and songwriter Audrey Assad. She ask her about creativity as healing, her journey with writing, and her evolution as a creative person. The conversa...

Do you feel like you're living in an unstable world? (We sure do!) Today's guest,  poet and a creative coach Mark McGuinness, outlines how we can find stability and assurance in our own creativity. Listen to this conversation to learn: how to use the unpredictability we live in to our advantage what to do instead of picking up your phone why to "forget the career ladder" what f...

Mothers notoriously have no time in the day and no grace for themselves. Bunmi Laditan, writer and mother living in Quebec, Canada, does it differently. On today's episode, she shares about what a writing practice has meant for her, as a mother. She calls writing her nonjudgmental friend and encourages all writers (and mothers) that they are not alone.  Bunmi and Ally have a heartfelt convers...

In the face of collective, systemic problems—where does one start? Poet, entrepreneur, tech hybrid investor John Lee Gaston White has a suggestion: start with yourself. John is working on a book on what it’s like to be Black in America and how trauma is passed down through generations.  Recorded on the day of the insurrection at the US Capitol, Ally and John discuss what "finding your voice&q...

Sometimes we get what we want in life ... and it's not what we imagined.  Despite the fact that there were a lot of glamorous elements to her work in Hollywood, Alex Hudgens found herself feeling more and more distant from her true self the longer she worked in television—unsure of the difference between what she truly wanted versus what she was told she should want—until finally she couldn’t...

Do you feel like you matter? Like—really matter?  If you do feel like you matter, how do you know?  Today’s guest is a man who argues that one way to know that we matter—really know—is to do a thing that we tell you to do all the time: it’s to write . But not just write. It’s to have a daily practice of creativity (like writing) that brings you back to this conclusion everyday: I matter. My words...

Most people go their whole lives without ever actually saying what's on their hearts. Yet we all have something we want to say. What's getting in our way? It's launch week for Allison Fallon's book, The Power of Writing It Down : a Simple Habit to Unlock Your Brain and Reimagine Your Life. Listen as we interview our very own author, Allison Fallon, on what this book means to he...

In this final episode of our special podcast series called The Power of Writing it Down , I talk with my friend and someone you probably have heard about — her name is Ruthie Lindsey. This episode is the perfect capstone to what we’ve been talking about… Why writing is so hard but powerful How writing can act like therapy and reframe our experiences — even traumatic ones How writing has a tangible...

Maybe you want to write — but life gets in the way. You’re busy, you’re tired. You don’t have a cabin in the woods. How do all of these people actually get writing done? This is the fifth episode of a special series that’s all about the power of a writing process to create positive change in your personal life. We’re covering topics like why writing can be so challenging, what’s happening in your...

Who gets to be a writer? It’s a question so many people ask themselves.  On today’s episode, I chat with some voices you’ll recognize, including Science Mike and therapist Elyse Snipes as well as a new voice: Rafik Wahbi, whose program with hip hop writing helped men in jail feel a sense of empowerment over their own stories. We talk about the voices we’ve silenced and the importance of diversifyi...

If your life was a movie, what kind of story would it be? Do you ever wish you could... pick a new story? (hint: you can!) This week you’ll hear, again, from therapist Elyse Snipes and also from singer and songwriter Audrey Assad. You’ll get a sense of how writing about your own personal story might help you to reframe it and feel like the hero of your life — rather than just like things happen to...

The big secret about writing is: it doesn’t actually have to be that hard. It’s really simple to tap into the therapeutic aspects of writing.  This week you’ll hear from our favorite experts, Journal Therapist Deborah Ross and the infamous Science Mike, and I’ll introduce you to therapist Elyse Snipes, who will walk us through the Cognitive Behavioral Model. You’ll get a sense of how easy it is to...

If I’m really a writer, why is writing so hard for me? Most people are shocked to find that writing is not only hard for them, it’s hard for anyone and everyone who has ever tried to write—even those people who are very gifted at their craft. In this episode, we hear from: Psychotherapist and Journal Therapist Deborah Ross, author of the book Your Brain on Ink: A Workbook on Neuroplasticity and th...

You know how sometimes no matter how hard you try to write, you just can’t seem to get any words on the page? Hello 2020 . Today,  poet, writer, two-time author and writing coach Nicole Gulotta shares why that can sometimes be a good thing, how inspiration ebbs and flows, and how in learning to be more present with our writing we do eventually get more writing done. Wild Words: Rituals, Routines,...

Do you consider yourself a confident person? If not, what's getting in your way? Not only has Hilary Billings interviewed some of the biggest celebrities out there on the red carpet, she's been in the spotlight herself as Miss Nevada.  Hilary is a self proclaimed recovering perfectionist, and, on this episode, she shares her journey from inadequacy to confidence. Hint: "fake it unti...

The chaos of 2020 can make us feel like our lives are going off track. But what if the frustrating detours of life weren't detours at all? Christine Owenell is the woman behind Alchemy of Chaos: a group program experience for leaders, a podcast and a book. While Christine has structured business deals for millionaires (and hung out with Richard Branson on his private island), her genuine spir...

No matter who you are, it's sometimes difficult to access your intuition. Kim Chestney, author, creative business incubator, and intuition expert, joins us on this episode to dive into what intuition is, what keeps us from trusting ourselves, and how to use intuition to fuel a creative life. Order a copy of her new book to learn more: Radical Intuition: A Revolutionary Guide to Using Your Inn...

What happens when the story we've been working towards takes a sharp turn? What do we do when, despite our best attempts to prepare, difficult and painful moments come our way anyways? What do we do when we think to ourselves, "This is not how this story was supposed to go"? In today's episode, Ally tells the story of her daughter's birth. To put it lightly, nothing went a...

Why are some people happier and more successful than others? And is there anything we can do to move ourselves from here (discontent, striving, always looking for the next thing) to there? Tim Schurrer, COO of StoryBrand and author of an upcoming book on success, says yes. Listen in to hear the mindset change which can make all the difference for you: in your personal life and in your career. Inst...

So often are we wonder, "Did I do it the 'right way'?" But what if, instead, we asked ourselves, "Did I feel empowered by that experience?" Brittany Ross is a voice on marriage, motherhood, baseball, and anti-trafficking. She's a writer and client of Find Your Voice. Her journey is one which makes us pause, reflect, and ask ourselves new questions. mission108.com...