Follow Your Curiosity

Amber Petty helps creatives get bylines and build audiences. She's written for the New York Times, Parade, Bustle, and others, and her clients have been published in outlets like the New Yorker, Washington Post, New York Times and many more. Amber talks with me about how she moved from teaching singing to teaching freelancing, how easy it is to downplay our accomplishments when we really should give ourselves credit f...

This might be the most functionally important pep talk ever—and you may even know it already! It bears repeating, though, and I tell you why in this super-short episode.

Want more tips? Check out with all my previous Creative Pep Talks in this playist!

Could you leave a review? It's really easy, and it helps SO much. Thanks! 

If you'd like to stay up to date on things like my courses and also get podcast and event updates, and my l...

Andrew Darlow is a New Jersey-based photographer, inventor, author, and digital workflow coach. For over 25 years he has helped people preserve, protect and back up their irreplaceable photos, videos and other digital files. His photography, tips and reviews have appeared in many publications and media outlets, including: People magazine, Animal Planet, Reader’s Digest and Professional Photographer Magazine. He is the author of fo...

What's your truth? Do you know? You might not—we're often not taught how to tell what's true for us, and instead, we're told what should be true for us. So why should we care, and how do we find out? I'll give you some suggestions in this short episode.

Want more tips? Check out with all my previous Creative Pep Talks in this playlist!

Could you leave a review? It's really easy, and it helps SO much. Thanks! 

If you'd like to stay ...

Amy L. Bernstein is a multi-genre novelist, award-winning journalist, speechwriter, playwright, poet, and nonfiction book coach. Her new book is Wrangling the Doubt Monster: Fighting Fears, Finding Inspiration. Amy teaches a variety of writing workshops and is a frequent guest on podcasts to discuss writing, publishing, and creativity. Amy joins me to talk about the difference between writing for hire and writing fo...

Sometimes we don't act on ideas because we're convinced we can't sustain them long-term. Here's why you should take a chance—and how taking the leap on creative pep talks worked out for me. 🎉 Spoiler: This is pep talk ONE HUNDRED!!! 🎉

Want more tips? Check out this playlist with all my previous Creative Pep Talks!

Could you leave a review? It's really easy, and it helps SO much. Thanks!

If you'd like to stay up to date on thing...

My guest today is Wendi Gordon, a mental and spiritual health writer, speaker, and coach. Wendi writes for various digital media outlets, including her own “Changing Lives” newsletter, where she shares her mental and spiritual health struggles and the resources and practices that have helped her change her life to help others change theirs. Wendi talks with me about how she chose to become a pastor, the art of writing...

Jennae Cecelia is a best-selling author and poet known for her poetry books, Uncaged Wallflower, The Sun Will Rise and So Will We, and Healing for No One But Me. Her mission as an author is to comfort and encourage people. In addition to writing, she is focused on helping other authors learn how to successfully put their writing out into the world. Jennae joins me to talk about how she got her start with poetry, inclu...

I'm just back from this year's Gallifrey One Doctor Who convention, and it's reminded me of the importance of being brave. How? Why? I'll tell you in this short episode.

Want more tips? Check out this playlist with all my previous Creative Pep Talks!

Could you leave a review? It's really easy, and it helps SO much. Thanks!

If you'd like to stay up to date on things like my courses and also get podcast and event updates, and my la...

Horror author Mark Morris has written and edited around fifty novels, novellas, short story collections and anthologies. His script work includes audio dramas for Doctor Who and a Doctor Who spinoff series, Jago & Litefoot, and the Hammer Chillers series. His most recent work includes a new novel, That Which Stands Outside, and a 30th anniversary short story collection, Warts And All. Mark’s work has won numerous ...

It's incredibly counterintuitive, and can even be difficult, but one of the most important things you can do when the world is falling apart is have fun. I explain why in this super short episode.

Want more tips? Check out this playlist with all my previous Creative Pep Talks!

Could you leave a review? It's really easy, and it helps SO much. Thanks!

If you'd like to stay up to date on things like my courses and also get podcast a...

Photographer and author Autumn Carolynn’s relationship with wanderlust started early in her life, with a semester abroad in England. From there, she’s held a variety of travel-related positions, including flight attendant and travel agent, and all of them have allowed her to pursue photography around the globe. During the pandemic, she combined her photography with her travel stories, and the result is “Traveling in W...

When there are a lot of things you could work on, which one do you choose? My answer is always the same, and very simple, though it's not always obvious or easy to follow thanks to the way a lot of us are taught: follow your energy! I explain why—and why ignoring the call of that energy can undermine us over time—in this short episode.

Want more tips? Check out this playlist with all my previous Creative Pep Talks!

Could you leav...

Robert Constant works in higher education fundraising by day, but his side passion is writing children’s books. He is the published author of two children’s books, Hey Tuskegee! and Hello Grandma!, both of which have spent time on Amazon’s bestsellers lists for their category. Robert talks with me about how your creative dream may change your life—and it may change someone else’s, too; that you don’t have enough energ...

I recently sat down with my dear friend, author Cindy Lynn Speer, to talk about perfectionism and how it seeps into us through the culture in insidious ways we don't even recognize—and how it affects us in similarly sneaky ways. We also talked about how making bad art can help us undo those lessons and free us from the voices of the inner critics that have been installed in our heads so we can loosen up, create more freely and have...

What if the question of your creativity is more about how you define the term than whether or not you have any? I explain in this short episode.

The second round of my Make Bad Art course starts on January 20! If you think you might be defining yourself out of your creativity, MBA is a great place to recalibrate that definition and come home to yourself. We had a fabulous time time in the first round, with moments of creative insig...

Les Watson’s passion for and expertise in self-management and productivity comes from over 30 years of experience as a trainer, speaker, facilitator, and coach in self-management, motivation, and communication. He is the author of Get Back An Hour In Every Day and facilitates the acclaimed Creating Success Program.

Les talks with me about identifying your tendency and how it can cause trouble as you mana...

Every so often, do something the old-fashioned way. I'll tell you why (and how I came to this discovery) in this short episode.

Make Bad Art returns on January 20, 2025! Join us to ditch perfectionism, get out of your own way, create more, and have more fun doing it.

Want more tips? Check out this playlist with all my previous Creative Pep Talks!

I'd love to hear your feedback, questions, and experience with these ideas! Send me a ...