This Creative Life

What do you do when you've established a writing career and then it's not giving you what you came for? What does it look like to be a person who writes but whose entire identity isn't wrapped up in Being a Writer? Is there life on the other side, if you can just let go? Bennett Madison joins me for the first time since 2013 to talk about the work of deprofessionalizing his writing life to pivot t...

New full episode next week! Until then, here's the audio version of this week's newsletter, with a question for YOU about your dream writing podcast. Get the newsletter version of this post Get the book www.sarazarr.com

The audio version of this week's newsletter on resting before making the next creative decision. Find the text version here!  

In the third episode in the Comebacks, Pivots, and Reinventions series, my longtime friend and one-time (?) collaborator Tara Altebrando talks to me about her multiple pivots over a couple of decades as a working writer, and the driving forces behind those choices. Currently, she's working in scripted audio as the creator and writer of the Dream Breachers podcast at Pinna Audio and the President o...

In the second episode in the Comebacks, Pivots, and Reinventions series, Malinda Lo and I talk about her huge year with Last Night at the Telegraph Club and what it has meant for her writing and life. But is it really a "comeback" if she never went away in the first place? Also we talk about her brand new book, A Scatter of Light . Get the show notes / newsletter Get A Scatter of Light Thanks to D...

When author Faith Gardner grew frustrated with the slowly grinding gears of traditional publishing and wanted to spread her wings a bit, she took matters into her own hands. This is the first episode of this fall's Comebacks, Pivots, and Reinventions series! Get the show notes / newsletter Get the This Creative Life book Thanks to Dave Connis for the theme music!

What's coming this fall from This Creative Life! Show links: the newsletter the audiobook www.sarazarr.com

When it feels like the world is burning down, is writing something you want to save from the fire? Get the newsletter version of this post Get the book Thanks to Dave Connis for the theme music www.sarazarr.com

Get the newsletter version of this post Get the book Thanks to Dave Connis for the theme music. www.sarazarr.com

Get the newsletter version of this post. Get the book. Thanks to Dave Connis for the theme music.

I'm so happy to be back with one my favorite contemporary novelists, Michelle Huneven. I love the compassion, humor, and reality in how she renders life and relationships. She's got a brand new book out, Search , which we talk about along with her other books, her background, and process—including the 20-year circuitous journey to the publication of her first novel, Round Rock. I hope you enjoy th...

It's launch day for the This Creative Life ebook, with the paperback close behind! I was recently on Jenn Laughran's Literaticast digging into the content and ideas in the book, and she graciously let me crosspost the ep into the TCL feed.  The Literaticast on Apple Podcasts Get the show notes / newsletter Get 30% off the book with this link and this code: QWBODLO8MX Or find it just about everywhe...

A lot has happened since the last episode! Namely: A Song Called Home and The Temps are both out in the world and no longer under our control, if they ever were. We're already no longer in our pub-day month; new books come out, people move on. Our role as authors is pretty much done. So, what's next? As you'll discover in this episode, neither Andrew nor Sara are sure. Whether it's Andrew trying t...

As Andrew and I wait through the last few weeks before our books come out, we digress ever so slightly into an incomplete history of self-publishing, from its reputation as "vanity publishing" to where it converged with the advent of ebooks and e-readers to arrive at its present day status as a messy juggernaut. Also: why every writer should consider learning how to self-publish in the 21st centur...

Laurel Snyder is the author of numerous books for young readers, including Orphan Island, My Jasper June, and the Charlie & Mouse books.  In this episode, we talk about staying fluent in the language of childhood, the "ghost of brokenness" when writing from a sad place, how Laurel works with the all-or-nothing cycles of her writing process, being an extrovert in an introvert's career, and the diff...

The Launch Box is back! Andrew and I talk about letting go, publicity (including his experience with a freelance publicist), and have a breakthrough about what might be behind the Book Blues for a lot of writers. Also, we catch up on The Temps movie option and where we stand on unboxing videos. Ephemera: Ringo Starr, Scrivener syncing, and the ghost of Dorothea Brande. Andrew DeYoung Sara Zarr Ask...

I'm so excited to kick off 2022 with my conversation with Preeti Chhibber , a multitalented lady with just the energy we need to help take us into a new year. Preeti is an author, podcaster, speaker, and all-around badass who has published multiple IP projects as well as her original work. In this episode, we talk about how she got started in IP and what it takes to succeed in that world, managing...

In this episode of The Launch Box, Andrew and I discuss the mysteries of professional gift-giving, how to balance big-picture career thinking with getting the writing done, the possibilities of being a weekend novelist, and EVENTS. Also, Sara gets a review and Andrew answers the TCL two questions. Plus so much more. Andrew DeYoung Sara Zarr Ask a question / get extended show notes Support the pod...

Sara helps cast her audiobook, Andrew gets a movie option, Sara learns more about Ingram Spark for self-publishing, and we both write letters to booksellers hoping to endear them to us. Also, everyone is burned out, including Andrew's cat. Andrew DeYoung Sara Zarr Ask a question / get extended show notes Support the pod Theme music: Creative Commons Deep Friendship by Lobo Loco is licensed under C...

Why does everything about having a book published embarrass us? What is man's proper relationship to the 'Zon? And what happened with that Realms of Ruin thing? We try to break it all down. Also: Andrew gets his first trade review and Sara reports some pre-order numbers. Links: Andrew DeYoung Sara Zarr Ask a question Support the pod Theme music: Creative Commons Deep Friendship by Lobo Loco is lic...

Writer, podcaster, radio host, and VJ emeritus Dave Holmes joins me to talk about his long and winding road to writing his wonderful 2016 memoir, Party of One, his writing at Esquire, and how it all connects to his current podcast project, Waiting for Impact. We talk ADHD, burnout, the longing to be understood, and the obsessions that drive us. And a whole lot more.  Waiting for Impact Party of On...

Introducing a This Creative Life special season: The Launch Box, in which Andrew DeYoung and I take you through the six-month period leading up to publication of our new books as we each publish for the first time in new categories. This series will cover a Big Five middle grade launch, a midsize-publisher adult literary launch, and a self-published nonfiction launch.  We'll talk covers, ARCs, blu...

Author Mike Jung joins me for the first of a new batch of fall episodes. We talk about the events of his early life that put him on the path to being a writer, his publishing stories and writing process, a later-life autism diagnosis, and BTS. Thanks so much for being back with us for a new season! Mike Jung Support This Creative Life Get the emails Our Bookshop Shop

In March 2020, I spoke with Daniel Bowman, Jr., about writing, teaching, and being #ActuallyAutistic. This week, his new book On the Spectrum: Autism, Faith, and the Gifts of Neurodiversity is out. The book: "... rings with poetry, compassion, and wisdom, and it reveals so much about autistic experience." (Katherine May)  "...lights the path toward greater understanding, better advocacy, and a com...

In March, 2020, I spoke with author Brandy Colbert about her work and writing process. Her nonfiction book, Black Birds in the Sky: The Story and Legacy of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, is now available for pre-order. Brandy Colbert Support the Podcast