In the past, I've published blog posts to announce each podcast episode. But I haven't done that lately. So today I'd like to go back and introduce you to some of the episodes you may have missed if you don't subscribe to the podcast itself.
You can learn more about, or listen to, the six most recent episodes below:
Ep. 23: Creative Teams for Professional Writers
Guest: Jake Poinier
Jake and I chat about the importance of building a creative team around your writing business. This might include working with designers or other creative professionals as a freelancer (either for joint referrals or subcontracted projects). If you're a blogger, we talk about working with other creative pros such as web designers. And for indie authors, your team might include people such as editors and cover designers.
Ep. 24: Sticking to Self-Imposed Writing Deadlines
In this episode I tackle a community question about the writing deadlines we set for ourselves. A reader emailed me talking about their habit of starting projects but not finishing them. They found they struggled to take their self-imposed deadlines seriously. I offer some tips on adding pressure to self-imposed deadlines so you're more likely to stick to them.
More info.
Ep. 25: Brainstorming Story Ideas in Real-Time
Guest: Kate (my sister)
This is a special episode unlike others I've done. When I'm feeling unsure about a story idea or some element of one, I often call my sister, Kate. We think a lot alike, so when I'm missing something, she's good at filling in the blanks or helping me plug plot holes (and vice versa).
Rather than a typical episode where a guest and I chat about an industry issue or I answer questions, in this one Kate and I brainstorm story ideas and let you listen to the process in real-time. While it's not exactly how our typical conversations go (not possible when we're trying to keep listeners in mind and we're cramming several ideas into a single call instead of fleshing one out fully), it's not too far off.
We may do a follow-up of this episode later this year. We'll be recording future calls like these (not intended for the show), and the plan is to go back and let you listen to a full "normal" conversation after the resulting story is picked up by a publication. (It doesn't make sense for me to share actual working stories before that point.)
Ep. 26: Freelance Writing Niches & Specialization
Guest: John Soares
John and I chat about freelance writing niches and other types of specialization. We look at the importance of specializing, share our own stories about how we chose our specialties, and tackle some common objections to specialization. We also explore the possibility of having more than one niche or specialty, with John explaining his own dual-specialization in very different niches.
Ep. 27: An Open Letter on Trust, "Experts," and Blogging
This episode is an audio version of a recent blog post. While touching on current events in the US and UK political scenes, the core of the episode deals with the issue of trust and experts vs pseudo-experts (and the latter's prevalence in blogging recently).
Ep. 28: The Importance of Owned Media
Guest: Lori Widmer
Lori and I follow up on our previous show (dealing with The Huffington Post and the issue of media outlets not paying contributors) by talking about the importance of owned media. We focus largely on why writers should build their own media platforms rather than relying solely on rented media (such as guest posting and social media accounts).
If you want to catch up on even older podcast episodes, you can find them on the main Podcast page. You can also contact me through that page's contact form if you'd like to ask a question or suggest a topic for a future podcast episode.