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The Seven Conflicts That Keep You from Your Work – 021

October 28, 2015 by kirstenoliphant@gmail.com 5 Comments

Lately we have had a lot of obstacles in my household. Namely: stomach flu and then pneumonia and vacation (which was fantastic and is only an obstacle in terms of work productivity). These got me thinking about the four literary conflicts we all learned in school and how those might translate into the modern world and our modern work. Before I dive into the seven conflicts that keep us from our work, a few quick things.

1. Sign up for the Quick Fix if you haven’t already! I have a sweet giveaway coming up that you don’t want to miss.

2. Subscribe to my live training because I have an AWESOME one coming up. Two words: special guest & bundle.

3. If you haven’t listened to the last five episodes, I have had STELLAR guests. Here are some quick links to those.

how to cultivate your perfect audience Facebook

introverts-and-writing-facebook

is-blogging-dead-facebook

list-building Facebook

leverage Facebook groups featured

Now, let’s talk obstacles and conflict!

Listen to Create If Writing – Episode 021

My Publishing Journey 

The long and short of my story is that I went to graduate school and got my MFA in Fiction, left with a mostly completed novel. Got an agent who loved the manuscript and sent it to publishers who loved the manuscript…and then they didn’t buy it. This is basically the death toll for a manuscript in terms of traditional publishing, but the publishers did want to see more from me.

My first agent got pregnant and passed me off to a second agent who also got pregnant and retired and convinced her husband (also an agent) to read my work. Which…I still haven’t sent him. He is still out there, waiting, and I touch base with him every so often. But because of two obstacles, I haven’t worked on my newest manuscript, which is 80% done. Those obstacles? Kids and the mental space they take away from my ability to really write fiction and FEAR. I’ve already gotten so far in publishing and had all these things line up only to fall apart. It makes me a little gun-shy.

This got me thinking about conflicts and obstacles. It brought back memories of the literary conflicts—you know the ones! Man vs nature, man vs society, man vs man, and man vs self. Some of the conflicts I thought of fit into those categories, but I decided to make my own that are a little more specific to our modern life.

So many obstacles can keep you from your creative work! See this list of 7 conflicts that interrupt the creative process.

The Seven Conflicts that Keep You from Your Work

1. Man vs Relationships. For me, this is my kids. I DO have enough time to work, but it’s more that I really dive down deep when I write fiction and it’s hard for me to surface and be a decent person and mom. This could be friends, a spouse, or some other relationship that cuts down on your work productivity.

2. Man vs Distractions. For me, this is Facebook. I open my computer and if I even glance at Facebook, I snap back to attention two hours later, unsure of who I am, where I’ve been, and what’s happening in my life. I also get sucked into trying to watch TV and work at night. Not REAL writing, but scheduling things and photo editing. I can do those things while watching the Vampire Diaries, but I am not nearly as effective or fast.

3. Man vs Technology. Though both distractions I mentioned were technically technological, I mean here things like your computer crashing, your phone screen breaking, or programs failing to work correctly. I feel sometimes like all my tech conspires against me.

4. Man vs Ability. Often I run into something I want to do online, but CAN’T. Then I’m faced with the choice to either hire someone or learn it myself. An example of this is launching the podcast. I literally launched from conception to first three episodes in two weeks. (Read how HERE.) But every time I edited and produced, I ran into issues that I couldn’t fix. So I went from YouTube videos to hiring an editor to taking a session with Meron Bareket that solved all my problems. But it took TIME. Sometimes we dream and just don’t have the ability to achieve our dreams. Just ask all those tone-deaf American Idol hopefuls.

5. Man vs Busyness. Do I need to explain this one? We are busy people. The end.

6. Man vs the Bank. Sometimes we have the flexibility to work undeterred by the need to pay bills. I am in a great position in that I don’t HAVE to do the work I do. I would LIKE to make a full-time income, but for the moment, I can work in the off hours while my hubby brings the bacon. And the eggs. And the coffee. No, we don’t have a huge budget, but we have enough. This can be a big issue for people who are side-hustling while working a full-time job. We have to eat. And live places. So the bank matters and can be a legit conflict.

7. Man vs Self. This is the big one. Some of the others we cannot change. We can’t control if our computer crashes. We cannot choose when or how our kids get pneumonia. We will always need to pay bills. But we DON’T always have to be subject to our own fears or our self-doubt. Even though we do have control here, I think this is sometimes the BIGGEST conflict or obstacle to our creative work.

 

YOUR TURN! What are the conflicts that keep you from your creative work? Which of these seven is your main conflict with getting your creative work done?

Related Links

Claudia Emerson’s Late Wife
Michael Parker’s If You Want Me to Stay
Craig Nova’s The Good Son
The NaNoWriMo Site
Danny Nguyen Photography

Filed Under: Inspiration, Show Notes, Writing

Introverts and Online Writing with Demian Farnworth of CopyBlogger -019

October 14, 2015 by kirstenoliphant@gmail.com 6 Comments

In episode 18 I got to talk with Darren Rowse of Problogger and this week I’m talking with Demain Farnworth of Copyblogger. I loved this conversation where we talk about being introverts, what unique things we can bring to the table when there ISN’T anything really new, and what drives us crazy about the world we’re in right now. You can find Demian at the Rough Draft podcast, The Lede podcast, writing on Copyblogger, writing on his blog The Copybot, and on Twitter.Demian Farnworth of Copyblogger

Here are some of my favorite posts/episodes from Demian:

Shakespeare’s 5 Rules for Making Up Words to Get Attention
The Perfect Anatomy of a Modern Web Writer
A Creative Email Trick for Becoming a Plain Spoken Writer

Listen to Create If Writing – Episode 019

To listen to the podcast on iTunes, find it HERE and if you are not an iOS user, then you can listen via the Stitcher Radio app (which is free!).

Quotable

“I think the internet is particularly built for introverts.” <- AGREE!!

Big Ideas

  • The internet is particularly built for introverts because it requires less of the draining in-person connection and it also easier to send an email and face that possible rejection than an in-person one.
  • The hedgehog idea is what is your passion, what is economically viable, and can you get better at doing that passion. You want to find something you love to do and can improve.
  • Damian does a lot of experimenting, asking “I wonder if?” about his content. He tries things to see what traction he can get.
  • You have to adapt and see what works and where you go organically and find what works for YOUR audience. No two audiences are the same.
  • My goal is to find and deepen the relationship with people who want to follow me and go all the places I go.
  • You probably aren’t going to bring anything new to the table except for YOU and your voice.
  • The only thing that really changes over time is the filter: we take information and themes and express them through our voice and our perspective.
  • It’s getting easier and easier to be publishers of content, which is an exciting thing. It’s easier to create and to consume content. There are so many tools for us to do that in unique ways.
  • Trying some of the new formats like Periscope or Blab or podcasting is all about finding a new audience and connecting in a new way.
  • The downside  internet can really bring out the worst in people. People read 1/10th of something and respond as though they know.

Relevant Links

Quiet by Susan Cain
How to Move Your Audience from Infatuation to Love – The Lede Podcast
Why Introverts Make Good Writers

What I Want to Know from YOU: 

Are you an introvert or extrovert? How does that impact (or does it?) your creativity and your work?

Are you an introvert? Read how this may affect your writing and the way that you utilize the internet.

 

*This post contains affiliate links! These give me essentially a referral fee for purchases you might make after clicking through a link at NO extra cost to you. Thanks for supporting my work!

Filed Under: Inspiration, Platform, Show Notes, Writing

Aaron Mahnke from Lore Podcast on Storytelling – 015

September 16, 2015 by kirstenoliphant@gmail.com 3 Comments

I love a good story. And I love a good SCARY story. You don’t have to be a scary story fan yourself to enjoy this episode where I interview Aaron Mahnke from Lore Podcast. (But you DEFINITELY want to be a scary story fan if you listen to Lore.) Aaron is a writer of scary stories himself. (Find his books HERE.) I love the story of how he came to create Lore. You can read it in his words on his blog, but the short of it is that he had been trying to created a freebie for his email list. In his words:

I believe people innately hunger for story. We enjoy a well-told, well-written tale. It allows us to escape for a moment and live in someone else’s world, a world where problems have solutions (most of the time) and  things make sense (again, mostly). Story is in our DNA and it’s our legacy. 

So much YES. A giant thanks to Marianne Tolosa from The Lipstick Campaign for recommending this podcast to me! Find Aaron on Twitter (as Lore and as himself Aaron), Instagram, the Lore Podcast website, or his author page. Buy his books HERE or subscribe to Lore HERE. An interview with Aaron Mahnke from Lore Podcast

Listen to Create If Writing – Episode 015

My Favorite Quote: 

“Sometimes folklore is paint on top of a just a messy human situation and we tell it through the lens of a fairy tale or scary story because humans really can’t be the monsters.”

Big Ideas

  • Aaron has been doing the self-publishing routes and Lore came out of Aaron creating a freebie for his email list.
  • His journey in starting Lore, like so many stories I’ve heard, was sort of a happy accident, or an organic creation that sprung out of something his other work.
  • Each podcast episode takes about 30 hours to create, start to finish.
  • Reading out loud reveals how some words sound next to other words. <- This is great for editing the written word, not just spoken words! 
  • Aaron uses Evernote to save ideas, links, and photographs as he researches and prepares topics.
  • The podcast has helped him to find the time to write because it has allowed him to be freed up from his other design work.
  • To get his most recent novel finished, he committed to writing 2000 words a day and then wrote those words. Every. Day.
  • Aaron is a plotter, not a pantser. Plotters tend to more comprehensively outline and plan things out while pantsers traditionally write by the seat of their pants. (Let me know in the comments which YOU are!)
  • Lore was NOT started as a way to market books, though it’s a very natural connection that makes sense. I think the difference is in the quality of Lore.
  • In terms of podcast ads, he keeps to sponsors that make sense also with the podcast itself and with the audience. He also puts them at the end to be less obtrusive to the content itself.podcast storytelling wide

Want to Start a Podcast?

We talked about starting podcasts and the technical bits to that. If you are thinking about starting a podcast, I’ll be having a series here very soon, but here are some other links! (And I would HIGHLY recommend paying someone to edit. I’ve used Christopher Wright and he was affordable, fast, and did  a GREAT job. It’s worth the money. Trust me.)

We talked about the different kinds of production and planning for podcasts. Aaron writes out a script and then reads it in a way that is very natural and not forced. For my interviews (and in the intros and outtros) I tend to write a few outline-y notes and then go off-the-cuff so it sounds more natural.

Pat Flynn’s Free Podcast Course
John Lee Dumas’ Free Podcast Course
Aaron Mahnke on How to Get Your Podcast into the Top 20
How to Start a Podcast in Two Weeks
So You Want to Start a Podcast?

Relevant Links

Home Work – Aaron Mahnke’s other podcast about working from home
The Wake – graphic novel that’s inspiring Aaron this week

What I Want to Know from YOU

Do you listen to Lore & love scary stories like I do? (We can still be friends if you don’t.)
Are you a plotter or a pantser when it comes to writing? (I’m a pantser who sometimes plots.)

How might a podcast relate well with your other writing, or at least free up some time to get writing done? Is this a good way to build your author platform? Listen to this interview with Aaron Mahnke to find out what a successful podcaster AND writer has to say.

Filed Under: Podcasting, Show Notes, Writing

Kevin Kaiser on the Work Behind Art – 011

July 29, 2015 by kirstenoliphant@gmail.com 2 Comments

Kevin Kaiser is hard to describe. People always say that behind every great man there is a great woman (which is a phrase I actually hate- a much longer discussion), but I think Kevin is proof that behind every great success, there are other hidden people and work that you may never see. Kevin is one of those people, a true creative and also marketing strategist who has been a ghostwriter and a person behind the people. He truly lives in that place where creativity and business intersect.

Listen to Create If Writing – Episode 011

kevin kaiser

Some great posts from Kevin:
Get Low (about Wu Wei, which he talks about in the interview)
5 Things Star Wars Taught Me about Creativity and Life 
3 Essentials to Building Influence

You can find Kevin on Twitter, Facebook, or on his site.

At a Glance

  • Kevin defines creativity as the ability to connect the dots.
  • If you want an audience, you can’t JUST write.
  • In today’s landscape, you are competing against everybody and nobody. There are so many choices. Your only limitation is your imagination.
  • Relationship is the premium, the thing that is the most valuable.
  • How do you get attention when there are so many messages? Confidence and trust of an audience.
  • If you have a short-run view of things, success a voting machine. You work for the likes and the shares, but it’s a veneer and doesn’t last. If you are looking at the long-run of things, success is a weighing machine. What has substance and resonates will LAST.
  • Keeping a job while you do your art can be a competitive advantage. You don’t have the stress of people waiting on you for food.
  • Let go of the need to be validated. That’s when things will loosen up. Let the work be what it will be.
  • Creativity doesn’t depend on us. Be an antenna for the inspiration that is all around us. The most necessary thing is to be open and present.
  • We should think about life in terms of apps verse operating system. Apps come and go, but an operating system helps us make sense of the world in a clear way.
  • The number of relationships you need to make a living is smaller than you think. 10,000 followers (thinking email list) shows a real connection. Consider that 1/2 to 2% will BUY.
  • Think of platform as building trust and gathering people.
  • Viral posts are shared because people like sharing things that validate something in themselves. There is a psychology to sharing.
  • You can’t fake authenticity. If you try to fake it, you will lose trust. Since relationship is the underlying factor, you will lose the most important thing.

 

My Big Takeaway

“The artist’s primary responsibility is to be the champion for the work.” <- THIS. I feel like that quote sums up the whole of platform-building and some of the audience growth.

“Writer’s block doesn’t really exist. Writer’s block is a story we tell ourselves when we are afraid.” Mind=blown.

Behind every beautiful song, painting, or book, you will always find a lot of invisible work. How artists can balance the creative process with the creative outcome.

Relevant Links

StorySellerU (will be opening again in the fall)
Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Advice for Starting Your Own Mastermind Group  from Cliff Ravenscraft of the Podcast Answerman
Transcending Fear in the Creative Process from Atlantic Monthly

One of the things Kevin said that I loved was that to aim really low. Aim to get 10 new followers this week, not 100. Be methodical and work for a slow build. Overnight successes don’t last. True successes have done the hidden work that other people don’t see.

What I Want to Know from YOU

Kevin and I talked about deadlines and stress. For some (like me), a deadline can make you totally freeze. For other people, that stress gives a hyper focused flow. How do YOU react to deadlines?

Filed Under: Inspiration, Show Notes, Writing

Ed Cyzewski on Hybrid Publishing – 010

June 24, 2015 by kirstenoliphant@gmail.com Leave a Comment

Special thanks to Josh Mills of Unbroken Light for the podcast music!

In these days of publishing with so many viable options, how do you decide if you should pursue commercial (traditional) publishing or publish independently? Or should you think about hybrid publishing?

(Note: There is hybrid publishing in the sense that agencies or publishers are doing a sort of half-commercial, half-indie publishing, but I am using it here in the sense of doing BOTH traditional and indie publishing.)

You will NOT get an answer for that question in this episode with Ed Cyzewski. What you WILL get is an inside look at his experience as a hybrid author. Among others, he has commercially published Coffeehouse Theology and A Christian Survival Guide as well as Pray, Write, Grow and Creating Space independently. He has an active blog and shares great content (as well as humorous quips) on Twitter. Do join his email list, if for nothing other than his pet rabbit. (You’ll see.) Go stalk him. Tell him I sent you.

Listen to Create If Writing – Episode 010

ed cyzewski

Some of My Favorite Posts from Ed: 

Are Independent Authors Just Control Freaks with Issues? 

Why You Should Join the Book Lovers Email List (<- MY title, not his)

When Commercial Christian Publishing Was Bad for My Soul

Commercial or indie publishing? Why writers might consider both.

At a Glance

  • Writing about what you really care about helps you find readers who can get on the same page.
  • Blogs so often evolve as YOU evolve. That’s okay!
  • Your blog writing can be a great place for discovering what your readers want to read.
  • With traditional publishing, often you have a year to prove yourself and if you don’t make the sales, you can be considered damaged goods. This (clearly) comes with an enormous amount of pressure.
  • Even the tactics that publishers will use to promote books (WHEN they use them) won’t work for everyone.
  • A lot of the things that you might think will help you sell books will NOT. In Ed’s first experience, interviews in magazines, on radio spots, and media tours sold very few copies.
  • The secret is to be relentlessly helpful and make lasting connections.
  • Your email list should be about authentic connections and establishing relationships with your potential readers.
  • Prayer and writing often involve similar steps and can develop one another, becoming a life-giving cycle. (More on that in his book Pray, Write, Grow!)
  • Writing is a gift, but also a marketable skill. Carve out the writing time and keep shifting things in your life to keep the creative life up. Don’t necessarily do this by taking away your financial safety net!

Quotable and My Big Takeaway: 

“You can’t afford to NOT independently publish and make all your mistakes first.”

Relevant Links

Write, Publish, Repeat by Sean Platt and Johnny B. Truant
Your First 1000 Copies by Tim Grahl (find his site HERE)
Falling Upward by Richard Rohr
The Examen App

What I want to know from YOU:

How did this conversation affect your desire to publish traditionally or independently? What has your experience been with either? Let me know in the comments!

Filed Under: Platform, Show Notes, Writing

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Hey, I'm Kirsten!

(Rhymes with BEER-sten.) I am the author of Email Lists Made Easy for Writers and Bloggers and the host of the Create If Writing podcast. My goal is to help writers, bloggers, and creatives like YOU turn readers into raving fans and learn to make a living doing what you love...without being smarmy. Questions? kirsten at kirstenoliphant.com

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