Danielle Krage interviews Dr Eric Maisel. Eric is the author of more than 50 books - many focused on creativity and the creative life - including Fearless Creating, Deep Writing, The Power of Daily Practice and The Magic of Sleep Thinking. He also writes the ‘Rethinking Mental Health’ blog for Psychology Today and is a regular contributor to Mad in America.
In this conversation, Eric shares insights and practical strategies for writers engaged in a creative process, that by its very nature is likely to include anxiety, doubt and uncertainty.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction and Background
00:55 The Role of Anxiety in the Creative Process
06:19 Using Breathing and Incantations to Center and Ground
07:36 Accessing Flow State in Small Increments of Time
09:58 The Importance of a Morning Writing Practice
11:54 Harnessing the Power of Sleep Thinking
13:50 Embracing Mistakes and the Doubt in the Creative Process
15:17 Existential Intelligence and the Search for Meaning
25:44 Pushing Back Against Authoritarianism and Mental Health Labels
30:38 Overcoming Self-Censorship and Negative Thoughts
35:56 Strategic Goal Setting and Productivity
38:05 Upcoming Books and Projects
Links
You can find the transcript at:
And Danielle’s socials here:
https://twitter.com/daniellekrage
https://www.instagram.com/dekrage
https://bsky.app/profile/daniellekrage.bsky.social
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