I do my best writing in my head while I’m in a yoga class or on a walk. In other words: my best writing ideas come to me at the times when it’s hardest to write them down! This may sound like a problem, but you don’t need ideal conditions for your writing practice to be successful. All you need to develop your writing is making this commitment: “I am a writer.”
Betsy Rapoport works to help writers bring their ideas to life and use their authentic voice while telling their story. She tells writers who work with her, “I don’t care if you think you’re not a good writer. I’ll make you better.”
Betsy was executive editor at Random House, having worked on numerous best sellers by Martha Beck, Carrie Fisher, Dean Ornish, and more. She now works as a coach and leads writing workshops and retreats. She joins me in this 2014 episode to talk about the writer’s journey, how to use your authentic voice, and how to stop judging yourself and your work.
My conversation with Betsy includes many tips and nuggets of information about writing, but our talk centers around one principle: Sit your butt down and write!
Once your writing practice has begun to develop, you’ll start asking yourself how you can develop your authentic voice. The answer, my friends, is trust in yourself and the process and a lot of “sit your butt down” time. Listen in to learn how to stop getting in your own way and discover what is possible for you.
Your voice matters! Make sure you subscribe to the show and leave a review in Apple Podcasts. Tell me what you love and why you’re here and maybe you’ll hear a shoutout to YOU in a future episode!
LISTEN HERE
WHAT YOU WILL DISCOVER
- What the journey of a great writer really looks like
- How to move through the muck + mire of the early stages
- Eagle vision + mouse vision
- How to cultivate your writing practice
- How to commit to the process
- How to have faith in the process
- How to cultivate your authentic voice
- How to stop judging yourself and your writing
RESOURCES FOR YOU
- Betsy’s website
- Fisher bullet space pen
- Evernote
- Martha Beck’s Leaving the Saints
- Get my new on demand workshop: Trusting Yourself
- Sign up here to receive Friday Podcast updates, Sunday Love letters, and Wisdom Wednesdays.