Honestly, Dear Listener

This week on Honestly, Dear Listener, we’re talking about this American life—not the podcast—what it means to be an American (and ALL the things that come with it) AND make art. When we feel so bogged down by paying bills and managing households and businesses and remembering to schedule dentist appointments, etc., our creativity often takes the back burner or doesn’t get done altogether. When we’...

This week on Honestly, Dear Listener, we’re talking about passion versus paycheck—and which one makes us a “real artist.” Join us as we question the glorification of “original” art, the discomfort of financial dependence on one's art, and the ultimate pursuit of joy and self-expression in creativity. Whether we’re working on our own art, teaching, or helping someone else on theirs, we believe noth...

This week on Honestly, Dear Listener, we’re talking about AGEING. Let’s face it: We live in a culture obsessed with youth and beauty (and conflating the two). For so many of us, the message is, “If you’re over 40, you might as well get used to the slow, slippery slide into obscurity.” Well, we won’t go quietly into that night and neither should you, Dear Listener. We have the choice to reprogram o...

This week on Honestly, Dear Listener , we’re delving into the universal topic of burnout. We’ll explore the cyclical and seasonal nature of life and the relentless pressure to stay productive in our capitalistic society. We’ll discuss strategies like creating flexible schedules for those UN-ideal days and how listening to the wisdom of our bodies can be the very thing that leads us out of burnout....

It's Honestly, Dear Listener's 40th episode! This week, we're talking about how we know when we've "made it" in our art. But first! A riveting discussion about Emily stumbling upon human fecal matter on a daily basis in New York City. We also discuss how poop is the great equalizer of humanity and how "ladylikeness" is a tool of the patriarchy. We dive into what...

This week on Honestly, Dear Listener, we take a deep dive into the artist’s superpower: sensitivity. We discuss our personal struggles with criticism and the delicate balance of caring about others’ opinions while protecting our creative spirit. We also talk about how our sensitivity is like a knob that we can turn up and down depending on the situation and that, by strengthening that muscle, we g...

This week on Honestly, Dear Listener , we’re talking about self-promotion and why it’s so easy to promote others, but it’s so hard when it comes to ourselves. We wade into the all-too-loaded worded “bragging”<—what is it and how can we transcend the word to get to what we really mean underneath: the desire to share our creation babies with the world. We also discuss what Carrie is up to now tha...

This week, we have a treat, but first, a little history: I (Carrie) first started the Honestly, Dear Listener podcast all the way back in 2014—things were a little different back then. The show ran for two seasons, each episode was shorter (about 15-20 minutes in length), and it was more produced and way more edited than the longer form conversations Emily and I have today on the podcast. The focu...

This week on Honestly, Dear Listener , we delve into the complexities of breaking free from familiar yet unproductive patterns and embracing a more playful mindset. By comparing the focus needed for meditation to maintaining a playful mindset, we emphasize the importance of catching oneself driving away from what really brings us joy and redirecting. In general, we go so fast in our lives, often f...

NOTE: This week, Carrie is hosting the podcast as Emily is gone. But don’t fret! She’ll be back next week! On this week’s episode of Honestly, Dear Listener , I’m sitting down with none other than my husband, Seth Schaeffer. He’s an artist, songwriter, musician, filmmaker, director, and father to our two boys. First, we discuss how we attach our worth to our identity and what we do and make as wel...

This week on Honestly, Dear Listener , we’re diving into the complexities of self-acceptance, personal growth, and the impact of social media on well-being. Carrie celebrates graduating from her one-year sewing program but finds it’s hard not to downplay her accomplishments. We discuss how self-belief is key to being able to celebrate ourselves. Emily shares about her recent show at the legendary...

This week on Honestly, Dear Listener , we’re talking about something very scary indeed—what if we’re not actually special? If you’re anything like us, you were raised with the idea firmly planted in your brain that you were exceptional. This has served you some of the time, but it also plopped a huge helping of pressure on you when it came to creativity. Because if you make “bad art,” it would pro...

Today on Honestly, Dear Listener , we’re talking about the peaks and troughs of the creative process, exploring the emotional rollercoasters that accompany the life of an artist. Emily shares about how she uses the coping strategy of downplaying her creative endeavors in order to save herself disappointment. Carrie reveals that she’s back on the novel-writing track and shares a few resources for w...

Today on Honestly, Dear Listener , we dive into the process of starting over and the resilience it brings to us artists. Our wonderful guest, Vocal Coach Amber Mogg Cathey of Evolve Vocal Studio, discusses her recent move from Nashville, TN to Denver, CO. We relate! In the past several years, Emily has moved from Denver, CO to New York City, and Carrie has moved from a small town in Colorado to Na...

This week on Honestly, Dear Listener , we’re doing a special “uncut” episode (which basically means we had technical difficulties with our regularly scheduled episode and had to last-minute record the day before ; ). Today, we’re talking about how important it is to surround ourselves with people who can lift us up and reflect back who we are and where we’re headed when we forgot (and everyone doe...

Today on Honestly, Dear Listener, we’re talking to musician, vocalist, and front-person for Bryce Evans and the Black Cats, Bryce Evans. We discuss their new release, The Moonlight EP, which launched this month and is now streaming on all major streaming platforms. We also delve into how to be a good ally for non-binary folks and artists including what to do about pronouns, how fear can spark hate...

This week, we're talking about how gratitude is central to our creativity.

Today on Honestly, Dear Listener, we’re talking about overwhelm—all about facing the tidal wave of responsibilities, deadlines, and creative pursuits that can leave us feeling, well, overwhelmed. We’re talking to Becca Waugh, a multitalented artists who wears many hats, both literally in her hot dog-themed attire, and metaphorically in her diverse creative endeavors. However, managing such a varie...

In this episode of Honestly, Dear Listener , we unpack the art of valuing ourselves and our art—and how our lives would transform if we took what we make as seriously as what we do for others. We dive headfirst into the psychological tango of setting sky-high goals while still staying grounded…with a dash of self-kindness. Think of it as being the world best boss, but the employee is you. We also...

Today on Honestly, Dear Listener, we’re pulling off the band-aid on something that indiscriminately affects ALL of us: the omnipresent companion that is fear . We explore not only the primal instincts that come with fear but also how it intricately weaves itself into our creative lives and personal growth. Join us as we dive into personal anecdotes—from our childhood misconceptions influenced by p...

Today on Honestly, Dear Listener , we’re peeling back the curtain on a topic that’s both personal and pervasive in creators’ lives—VICES. We discuss how our underlying beliefs inform our behaviors, and how when we change our beliefs, more often than not, our behaviors also change. We share our experiences with alcohol—from sipping liquid courage before stepping onto the stage to wrestling with soc...

In this episode of Honestly, Dear Listener , we talk with visual artist and comedian Katie Bowman about the intersection of substance abuse and creativity in the entertainment industry. We explore the struggles of maintaining our personal and artistic boundaries amidst industry expectations, particularly in comedy and music. We discuss the need for diverse stories and authentic female portrayals i...

Today on Honestly, Dear Listener , we delve further into the complexities of fundamentalism in part two of our series on growing up as Christian fundamentalists. We'll unpack the profound impact a religious upbringing can have on aspects of morality, mental health, and the daunting concern of never being "ok" without the framework of faith to guide us.  Throughout this episode, we sh...

Welcome back to Honestly, Dear Listener . This week, we’re talking about the role fundamentalist religion plays in how we see the world and create in it. We dive into our own personal histories with charismatic, Pentecostal, evangelical Christianity and how just because we’ve deconstructed our faiths doesn’t mean we’ve left fundamentalism behind. We examine the barriers that rigid doctrines erect,...

This week on Honestly, Dear Listener , we dive into what to do when we just can’t seem to MAKE ourselves make things we want to make. We reflect on the need for creativity as an integral part of life, rather than an occasional indulgence, discussing strategies like changing environments and implementing boundaries to infuse passion into daily tasks. First, we talk about what happens when we finall...