Best AmWriting With Jess Podcasts (2024)

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406: Escaping the Lure of Attention and Approval with Kathleen Smith 47:49

16m ago47:49

47:49

It’s SO SO EASY for creatives to get caught up in chasing after praise and approval to boost their own mood and productivity. How can we spend less energy "borrowing self" from other people's reactions, and more energy pursuing what's important to us? KJ asks Kathleen Smith, author of True to You: A Therapist's Guide to Stop Pleasing Others and Sta…

1
Escaping the Lure of Attention and Approval with Kathleen Smith 47:49

4h ago47:49

47:49

It’s SO SO EASY for creatives to get caught up in chasing after praise and approval to boost their own mood and productivity. How can we spend less energy "borrowing self" from other people's reactions, and more energy pursuing what's important to us? KJ asks Kathleen Smith, author of True to You: A Therapist's Guide to Stop Pleasing Others and Sta…

1
Why you don't have to do it like that one writer in the NYT 54:05

6d ago54:05

54:05

We only meant to dissect the success of the writer from this NYT piece briefly, but it turned out we had a lot to say. No, we can’t all imitate her (nor do we want to) but there are things to be learned here. And things to be learned by checking in on your goals at mid-year! How’s it going out there? LINKS New York Times: How a Self-Published Book …

1
405: Why you don't have to do it like that one writer in the NYT 54:04

6d ago54:04

54:04

We only meant to dissect the success of the writer from this NYT piece briefly, but it turned out we had a lot to say. No, we can’t all imitate her (nor do we want to) but there are things to be learned here. And things to be learned by checking in on your goals at mid-year! How’s it going out there? LINKS New York Times: How a Self-Published Book …

1
Stop! Don't Write that Book (Yet) 21:37

8d ago21:37

21:37

The Blueprint is a process of inquiry that ideally happens before you start to write a book, but is also incredibly effective before you start to revise a manuscript or if you happen to be stuck writing chapter three, or thirteen, or thirty-three over and over again. Jennie created the Blueprint and KJ is both a fan and a book coach who is certifie…

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404: An #AmWriting Success Story! 34:18

13d ago34:18

34:18

The #AmWriting team is so excited to present this interview with Dr. Barb Mayes Boustead – because it’s an #AmWriting success story! Barb was the random winner of The Summer Blueprint Challenge we ran in the summer of 2022. She won a Blueprint review with Jennie Nash – and the book proposal that came out of that work recently landed Barb a book dea…

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An #AmWriting Success Story! 34:19

14d ago34:19

34:19

The #AmWriting team is so excited to present this interview with Dr. Barb Mayes Boustead – because it’s an #AmWriting success story! Barb was the random winner of The Summer Blueprint Challenge we ran in the summer of 2022. She won a Blueprint review with Jennie Nash – and the book proposal that came out of that work recently landed Barb a book dea…

1
Tiny Worlds: How a nature illustrator and author built a fanbase for her work. 40:34

28d ago40:34

40:34

Hello #AmWriters, Jess here. When Rosalie Haizlett emailed to introduce me to her work, I was intrigued. At the time, I was working on the marketing section of a book proposal, trying to thick- and thin-slice the book’s potential audience and explain why my fanbase as well as new readers might purchase this particular book I was describing. So when…

1
403: Tiny Worlds: How a nature illustrator and author built a fanbase for her work. 40:33

28d ago40:33

40:33

Hello #AmWriters, Jess here. When Rosalie Haizlett emailed to introduce me to her work, I was intrigued. At the time, I was working on the marketing section of a book proposal, trying to thick- and thin-slice the book’s potential audience and explain why my fanbase as well as new readers might purchase this particular book I was describing. So when…

1
How Bad Can a Good First Draft Be? 18:16

1M ago18:16

18:16

Let me start by answering the question posed in the title: very bad. Very very bad. Terrible, even. Plotless meandering senseless drivel involving two-dimensional characters continually lifting cups of coffee to their lips and then never putting them down and suddenly, without warning, pumping gas instead. Although, to be honest, that last is never…

1
402: How Bad Can a Good First Draft Be? 18:16

1M ago18:16

18:16

Let me start by answering the question posed in the title: very bad. Very very bad. Terrible, even. Plotless meandering senseless drivel involving two-dimensional characters continually lifting cups of coffee to their lips and then never putting them down and suddenly, without warning, pumping gas instead. Although, to be honest, that last is never…

1
Nothing Sells Books. But Books Still Sell. 42:54

1M ago42:54

42:54

It’s EPISODE 401! That’s a lot of episodes. We’re proud. We’re also not done—and a couple weeks ago, a fellow writer decreed, in an email post that went rather viral, that No One Buys Books. We disagree. Instead, we offer the following less bleak but not entirely rosy corollary: Nothing Sells Books. But Books Still Sell. Coming at you in this episo…

1
401: Nothing Sells Books. But Books Still Sell. 42:54

1M ago42:54

42:54

It’s EPISODE 401! That’s a lot of episodes. We’re proud. We’re also not done—and a couple weeks ago, a fellow writer decreed, in an email post that went rather viral, that No One Buys Books. We disagree. Instead, we offer the following less bleak but not entirely rosy corollary: Nothing Sells Books. But Books Still Sell. Coming at you in this episo…

1
Trusting Your Gut on a Complicated Plot 37:30

2M ago37:30

37:30

Today, I (Jennie) am excited to welcome novelist Caroline Leavitt to the show. She's a very prolific author who's novels have landed on the New York Times bestseller list, the USA today bestseller list, and have been optioned for films, translated into many languages, contents for magazines, and won all kinds of awards. Caroline is also the co-foun…

1
400: Trusting Your Gut on a Complicated Plot 37:29

2M ago37:29

37:29

Today, I (Jennie) am excited to welcome novelists Caroline Lovett to the show. She's a very prolific author who's novels have landed on the New York Times bestseller list, the USA today bestseller list, and have been optioned for films, translated into many languages, contents for magazines, and won all kinds of awards. Caroline is also the co-foun…

1
399: 5 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Self Publishing 10:16

2M ago10:16

10:16

As a hybrid author with a long history of both self-publishing and traditional contracts, I’m often asked about this choice. How I decided to self-publish, and is it still a good idea? This is question for the ages! Or, well, since 2007. The answer is that it’s complicated. My own feelings about self-pub have surely evolved over the years. This Mar…

1
5 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Self Publishing 10:16

2M ago10:16

10:16

As a hybrid author with a long history of both self-publishing and traditional contracts, I’m often asked about this choice. How I decided to self-publish, and is it still a good idea? This is question for the ages! Or, well, since 2007. The answer is that it’s complicated. My own feelings about self-pub have surely evolved over the years. This Mar…

1
398: His Years of Writing Eloquently: The Return of A.J. Jacobs 56:07

2M ago56:07

56:07

He’s back! He’s back! One of my favorite writers, an early and generous mentor, the fantabulous A.J. Jacobs. We interviewed him last when his book, The Puzzler, came out, and he’s back to talk about his new book, The Year of Living Constitutionally: One Man’s Humble Quest to Follow the Constitution’s Original Meaning. Links from the Pod: A.J.’s web…

1
His Years of Writing Eloquently: The Return of A.J. Jacobs 56:08

2M ago56:08

56:08

He’s back! He’s back! One of my favorite writers, an early and generous mentor, the fantabulous A.J. Jacobs. We interviewed him last when his book, The Puzzler, came out, and he’s back to talk about his new book, The Year of Living Constitutionally: One Man’s Humble Quest to Follow the Constitution’s Original Meaning. Links from the Pod: A.J.’s web…

1
397: Starting Energy v. Finishing Energy: How the work gets done, start to finish. 40:24

2M ago40:24

40:24

We’ve been talking a lot lately about the how hard it is to finish a project and how different that energy is from the wonderful, euphoric, sometimes manic starting energy. Here’s some advice from Jess, Sarina, and Jennie on how authors manage their lives and relationships and work amid the ups and downs of writing projects. AmReading: Sarina: She’…

1
Starting Energy v. Finishing Energy: How the work gets done, start to finish. 40:24

2M ago40:24

40:24

We’ve been talking a lot lately about the how hard it is to finish a project and how different that energy is from the wonderful, euphoric, sometimes manic starting energy. Here’s some advice from Jess, Sarina, and Jennie on how authors manage their lives and relationships and work amid the ups and downs of writing projects. AmReading: Sarina: She’…

1
396: Daring to Kickstarter with Rachael Herron 51:30

3M ago51:30

51:30

If you do not already know Rachael Herron, host of the Ink In Your Veins Podcast (formerly known as How Do You Write) and author of 13-ish novels (including 2 thrillers under the not-exactly pseudonym RH Herron), soon-to-be two memoirs and a few assorted books as well as many many blog posts and essays about writing… well you’re lucky because now y…

1
Daring to Kickstarter with Rachael Herron 51:31

3M ago51:31

51:31

If you do not already know Rachael Herron, host of the Ink In Your Veins Podcast (formerly known as How Do You Write) and author of 13-ish novels (including 2 thrillers under the not-exactly pseudonym RH Herron), soon-to-be two memoirs and a few assorted books as well as many many blog posts and essays about writing… well you’re lucky because now y…

1
Episode: 395 Who Owns an Idea? 31:31

3M ago31:31

31:31

The idea for Sarina Bowen’s thriller, The Five Year Lie, is an incredible and suspenseful hook for a story – and she first heard it from a writer friend. In this episode, Jennie Nash interviews Sarina about the concept of who owns an idea and how this particular idea made its way through Sarina’s brain and onto the flap copy of her forthcoming book…

1
395: Episode: 395 Who Owns an Idea? 31:30

3M ago31:30

31:30

The idea for Sarina Bowen’s thriller, The Five Year Lie, is an incredible and suspenseful hook for a story – and she first heard it from a writer friend. In this episode, Jennie Nash interviews Sarina about the concept of who owns an idea and how this particular idea made its way through Sarina’s brain and onto the flap copy of her forthcoming book…

1
Flashback Friday: Writing While #Broken 38:36

3M ago38:36

38:36

Hey #AmWriters! It’s been almost three years since our interview with Jenny Lawson first aired, but we know the struggle is REAL - so we thought this is the perfect time to bring this episode back out for a listen. Whether you’re struggling with getting the work done or feeling like maybe you’re not really a writer, this episode may be just what yo…

1
394: Things Jess Learned This Month, Ep. 394 33:22

4M ago33:22

33:22

Hey hey Jess here! I had a couple of great learning opportunities this month, so in the interest of flattening learning curves, I took notes for all of you! First up, I took a call from a company interested in working with me to boost my platform, and I was curious about what they do and how they do it. While I won’t reveal what company I talked to…

1
Things Jess Learned This Month, Ep. 394 33:23

4M ago33:23

33:23

Hey hey Jess here! I had a couple of great learning opportunities this month, so in the interest of flattening learning curves, I took notes for all of you! First up, I took a call from a company interested in working with me to boost my platform, and I was curious about what they do and how they do it. While I won’t reveal what company I talked to…

1
393: I want to sell books. But I'm also writing what I want to write. Episode 393 with Jo Piazza 45:50

4M ago45:50

45:50

You KIDS. If you’re not already following Jo Piazza, queen of the highly suspicious influencer side-eye, what even are you DOING on Substack and Instagram? Go follow her now. We’ll wait. Okay, now listen while we talk about Jo’s many-booked career that includes freelancing, narrative non-fiction, journalistic memoir (the kind where a reporter manag…

1
I want to sell books. But I'm also writing what I want to write. Episode 393 with Jo Piazza 45:50

4M ago45:50

45:50

You KIDS. If you’re not already following Jo Piazza, queen of the highly suspicious influencer side-eye, what even are you DOING on Substack and Instagram? Go follow her now. We’ll wait. Okay, now listen while we talk about Jo’s many-booked career that includes freelancing, narrative non-fiction, journalistic memoir (the kind where a reporter manag…

1
392: How to Be a Good Literary Citizen: Volunteer at a Writing Conference 32:25

4M ago32:25

32:25

Whenever I see a writer on social media incessantly talking about their own work, their own book, and their own launch, the thing that comes to mind is this: “They’re not being a good literary citizen.” Being a good literary citizen is, among other things, showing up for the community you are a part of, uplifting other writers, and doing what you c…

1
How to Be a Good Literary Citizen: Volunteer at a Writing Conference 32:25

4M ago32:25

32:25

Whenever I see a writer on social media incessantly talking about their own work, their own book, and their own launch, the thing that comes to mind is this: “They’re not being a good literary citizen.” Being a good literary citizen is, among other things, showing up for the community you are a part of, uplifting other writers, and doing what you c…

1
Flashback Friday: How Do You Write a Non-Fiction Book in less than a Year? 51:45

4M ago51:45

51:45

Hey #AmWriters, Jess here! There's a very specific reason I wanted to re-up this coaching call with Emily Edlynn. I did an interview with AJ Jacobs day before yesterday, but it's not going to drop until May. I love AJ Jacobs, I know you love AJ Jacobs, and I’m really excited for you to hear our interview - but in that interview we talked about writ…

1
Why You Should Take a Plot-walk 41:56

4M ago41:56

41:56

✍️ Writers: when you’re stuck on a plot, go outside and take a walk with a friend. You’ll still be stuck, but you will get your steps in for the day, and have someone to b***h to. Follow us for more plotting tips. Here all week. Sometimes Sarina and I take an ordinary walk. Most times, actually. But sometimes, part way up the first hill, Sarina say…

1
391: Why You Should Take a Plot-walk 41:56

4M ago41:56

41:56

✍️ Writers: when you’re stuck on a plot, go outside and take a walk with a friend. You’ll still be stuck, but you will get your steps in for the day, and have someone to bitch to. Follow us for more plotting tips. Here all week. Sometimes Sarina and I take an ordinary walk. Most times, actually. But sometimes, part way up the first hill, Sarina say…

1
390: Coaching call with author, educator & speaker Katie Kinder 48:34

5M ago48:34

48:34

Jess here. I love love love coaching calls, and opt to talk rather than trade emails when someone needs a comprehensive education in speaking career building. I met Katie at a recent speaking event and she grabbed my attention on stage right away. She had that…something that speakers need on stage to hold the attention of a large audience. Katie wa…

1
Coaching call with author, educator & speaker Katie Kinder 48:35

5M ago48:35

48:35

Jess here. I love love love coaching calls, and opt to talk rather than trade emails when someone needs a comprehensive education in speaking career building. I met Katie at a recent speaking event and she grabbed my attention on stage right away. She had that…something that speakers need on stage to hold the attention of a large audience. Katie wa…

1
389: How to Create a Substack that Delivers (for you and your readers) Episode 389 with Dan Blank 57:29

5M ago57:29

57:29

Wanna start—or fix—your email/Substack? We GOT YOU. Dan Blank is, truly, THE GUY when it comes to helping writers identify our audience, find ways to reach them and also feel great about the process. Before you do anything else, go subscribe to his Substack. I’ll wait. The Creative Shift by Dan Blank Helping writers and creators share their work an…

1
How to Create a Substack that Delivers (for you and your readers) Episode 389 with Dan Blank 57:29

5M ago57:29

57:29

Wanna start—or fix—your email/Substack? We GOT YOU. Dan Blank is, truly, THE GUY when it comes to helping writers identify our audience, find ways to reach them and also feel great about the process. Before you do anything else, go subscribe to his Substack. I’ll wait. Ok, those Substack links are BIG. But brace yourself, there’s more of them. In t…

1
What’s on the Cutting Room Floor? 30:45

5M ago30:45

30:45

Deciding what to leave in and what to take out is something every writer has to face; from the moment they start conceiving of an idea to the moment when it goes to press. What strategy do you bring to those decisions? In this episode, I (Jennie Nash) chat with book coach and author Suzette Mullen about the scenes she left out of her forthcoming me…

1
388: What’s on the Cutting Room Floor? 30:44

5M ago30:44

30:44

Deciding what to leave in and what to take out is something every writer has to face; from the moment they start conceiving of an idea to the moment when it goes to press. What strategy do you bring to those decisions? In this episode, I (Jennie Nash) chat with book coach and author Suzette Mullen about the scenes she left out of her forthcoming me…

1
Ep 387: The Art of Manifesting for Tired and Skeptical Authors 11:06

5M ago11:06

11:06

I think of myself an analytical person. Fine, a cynical one. So when my friends began talking about manifesting as a way to improve one's writing career, I struggled to wrap my head around it. Even if I was privately fascinated. First, let’s define our terms. Manifesting, in this context, refers to the practice of thinking aspirational thoughts wit…

1
387: The Art of Manifesting for Tired and Skeptical Authors 11:06

5M ago11:06

11:06

I think of myself an analytical person. Fine, a cynical one. So when my friends began talking about manifesting as a way to improve one's writing career, I struggled to wrap my head around it. Even if I was privately fascinated. First, let’s define our terms. Manifesting, in this context, refers to the practice of thinking aspirational thoughts wit…

1
Episode 386: Under the Weather Productivity 41:46

6M ago41:46

41:46

“It doesn’t have to be good, it just has to happen” - Seth Godin, The Practice “F*ck it, I feel like sh*t” - Jess Lahey Hi everyone! Jess here. We actually managed to get Sarina, Jennie, KJ and Jess together for an episode even though Jess and KJ have been under the weather. All December and January, the group text thread has been moaning and groan…

1
386: Episode 386: Under the Weather Productivity 41:45

6M ago41:45

41:45

“It doesn’t have to be good, it just has to happen” - Seth Godin, The Practice “F*ck it, I feel like sh*t” - Jess Lahey Hi everyone! Jess here. We actually managed to get Sarina, Jennie, KJ and Jess together for an episode even though Jess and KJ have been under the weather. All December and January, the group text thread has been moaning and groan…

1
Ep 385: What I Think About When I Think About Job Offers 32:30

6M ago32:30

32:30

Jess here. We have talked about the lure of shiny objects, those glowing opportunities on the horizon that may (or may not) be worth the potential downsides. We have all fallen victim to the hypnotic glare and some of us have even been blinded and temporarily lost our way. So how do you decide whether a job offer is a shiny object, a worthy endeavo…

1
385: What I Think About When I Think About Job Offers 32:29

6M ago32:29

32:29

Jess here. We have talked about the lure of shiny objects, those glowing opportunities on the horizon that may (or may not) be worth the potential downsides. We have all fallen victim to the hypnotic glare and some of us have even been blinded and temporarily lost our way. So how do you decide whether a job offer is a shiny object, a worthy endeavo…

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