Wrapping Up the Year, Thinking about the Next
The TCL ICYMI for 2022 + new episode next week!
It’s the last day of November. I’m curious how NaNoWriMo went for those of you who did it (or your version of it). My take on it went…not exactly how I planned, but I do feel more connected to my writer self than I have in a while, and that’s a win.
I don’t know about you, but I’m still slowly coming back around to remembering who I was and how I lived before March 2020, and that includes how I see writing and myself as a writer, which in some ways is synonymous with how I see myself as a person in the world.
Things have changed; there’s no way around that. I’ve changed, the business has changed, and the world has changed. And while I’m clear on what it used to be and how it feels now, I don’t yet totally know what it’s changing to, or what I’m aiming for next.
That question has been an impetus for the Pivots, Comebacks and Reinventions series of the pod, which—yes, is continuing! I’ll have a new episode for you next week and then probably one more after that for the year. (🎙️Sneak peek: in the next episode, I talk with a previous guest about the thing we rarely say about writing—that it’s okay to quit.🎙️)
The Podcast in 2023
One of my questions for the future is: what’s next for the podcast? When I restarted it in 2020, I made a goal of getting to 100 episodes. We’re coming up on 84. Of course, there actually have been 100 already when you figure in the minis, the Launch Box, and the subscriber eps from that little experiment. But I’d like to get to 100 interview episodes and then—maybe—do some pivoting and reinventing of my own as far as podcasting.
I’m curious if you have a dream format of a writing podcast that doesn’t exist. Maybe your dreams will coincide with mine and we can make it happen.
And now…the This Creative Life year in review!
In 2022, the universe of This Creative Life expanded. Here’s how:
Andrew DeYoung and I made the second half of The Launch Box series in which we tracked the ramping up and release of our spring titles. A dedicated series like this with a recurring co-host was all new for me, and I really enjoyed it. I hope you did, too!
This Creative Life, the book, happened. It started in October 2021 when I—somewhat impulsively—made a cover for it and posted to Instagram that it was coming in 2022. I knew if I didn’t make a public promise, I’d never do it. Then I had to put it together! Learning all the self-publishing platforms and processes was very empowering for me. It was more work than I expected with a number of moving pieces to manage, but I have no regrets.
Along with that, I launched a dedicated site for all things This Creative Life. I ran some Book Funnel promos to grow this newsletter subscriber base (so glad you’re here!) and experimented with ads. (Ads are a different and very annoying topic for another time.)
In August, I happened upon some free studio space to finally get the This Creative Life audiobook recorded. Another (time-consuming!) learning experience that I’m glad to have under my belt but don’t plan to repeat any time soon. Phew. [By the way, the ebook (all platforms) and audiobook (some platforms) are still discounted through December 21!]
Of course, during all this, I saw my first middle grade book, A Song Called Home, published and have been working through edits on my second one. More learning!
🙏 Thank You…
…to all of you who have subscribed, shared, reviewed, rated, left comments, emailed me comments, and downloaded the podcast. Thank you to those of you who have thrown in some money to help support. I received around $350 in donations this year, which covers the podcast hosting fees for a year, so thank you again! (If you want to chip in, you can use: PayPal, CashApp, Venmo. or ko-fi.)
I’ll be back in your inbox or feed next week with episode 84.
This Creative Life is a book, a newsletter, and a podcast from me, Sara Zarr, about reading between the lines of a writing life. The newsletter and podcast are free; buying the book (and leaving a great review!) helps support them and me. Sharing the newsletter is a big help, too!
