Announcing The Nourished Writer class!
A new class inspired by this very newsletter
Hi there!
This newsletter has been a lot of things for me over the past year. I’m so very thankful to each of you who have joined me on this journey. (A journey I plan to continue!)
I’ve found a place to think out loud here. A place to commiserate with my fellow writers. A place to celebrate the little wins and a place to process the stumbles. And now this newsletter has provided a new thing—tangible inspiration!
Spending time talking about what it means to be truly nourished as a writer, having great conversations with y’all in the comments, and hearing stories from you…it all got me thinking about what I could do to help writers not fall into some of the traps so many of us have struggled with. Or, if someone’s already found themselves struggling, how to make things better.
That’s how this new class was born. (Along with some other things that I hope to share soon!)
So, if you’d like to dive deeper into what it means to be a nourished writer, the beta version of the class with start on January 7th. All the details are below. Space is limited since it’s a beta class, so enrollment will be closed once it’s full.
Hope to see some of you there!
THE NOURISHED WRITER: SELF-CARE FOR THE WRITING LIFE
CLASS DETAILS:
Being a writer is a "dream job." It's that type of career that many of us fantasized about when we were kids, making up stories while we lay in bed, creating characters from nothing, conjuring up whole new worlds in the dark. Being a writer seemed downright magical.
So, for those of us who actually reached out and grabbed that dream, it can sometimes be a shock when not every aspect of it is laced with pixie dust. Turns out, writing is hard work. Writing is deadlines. Writing is a business--with all the complicated things business entails. And if we're not careful, the writing life can start to look less like a dream and more like a nightmare.
Why trust me?
After 13+ years in the business and 25+ published books, I've seen both sides, and I've learned the hard way that if you don't take care of yourself and find balance in your writing life, it can wear you down and burn you out. So, I've created this class because crying under our desks during deadline time, unshowered, eating potato chips and gummy bears, and trembling from overcaffeination should not be the norm.
Wait, is that not standard operating deadline procedure for you? Then maybe you need another class. ;) But for those of you who were like, "Well, yeah, but my snacks of choice are Doritos and Red Bull," then read on...
The term “self-care” has devolved into a marketing pitch for facials and pedicures, so that's not going to be what we're talking about here. What I'm talking about in this class is true nourishment. Physical, mental, and emotional/spiritual nourishment. Writers who have depleted themselves trying to keep up with this career and their home life and day jobs and and and need more than a pedicure and a massage to feel good again. We need nourishment in all forms if we’re going to make it long-term in this job (and in life) so that's what I'll be covering in this class.
What We'll Cover:
Physical health and the specific challenges for writers (food, movement, ergonomics, vitamin deficiencies, hormones, etc.)
Mental health (pressure on writers, post-publication blues, comparison, identity as a writer, losing your reading life/hobbies, struggling with focus, etc.)
Handling writing industry stressors (deadlines, contracts, pressure for speedy publication, promotions/marketing, bad reviews, etc.)
How to set healthy boundaries in your personal and professional life
How to create a sustainable, long-term writing career
Plus, ample opportunity for Q&A
Format:
LIVE VIDEO PRESENTATION - Roni will open the class with a live video and slide presentation (roughly 1-1.5 hours) on January 7 at 11 AM (central). This is the full workshop and there will be time for questions during and at the end. (The live video call will be via the Zoom app/website. Students will not be on camera or audio but will be able to use the chat box for questions. The video will be recorded and posted within the class if you can't make it during the live time.)
A PRINTABLE PDF of slides with space for notes - The slide presentation will also be provided as a PDF with room to make notes so that you can download and keep the information. This will give you the opportunity to go over the information at your own pace if you missed anything during the lecture.
A LIST OF HELPFUL LINKS & RESOURCES - these will be provided so that you can find extra resources or deep dive into any particular aspect we covered
LIVE Q+A VIDEO CALL - Questions can be submitted to Roni during the week after the initial lecture. Roni will then do a live Q+A to answer class questions on Jan. 14.
CLASS DISCUSSION - Within the class, you will have the opportunity to interact with the instructor, your fellow writers, potentially find beta readers/critique partners, and learn from each other via the comments section and a class discussion thread
Sounds like a wonderful class.
So excited for this class! It’s easy to think of creativity as a lifeline to mental and physical health, when it’s an extension of health itself in a lot of ways. It’s helpful to take the idea of magic out of creativity and realize it’s a different type of work. Making that mental transition can be tricky, and I’m really looking forward to this class showing how to take care of yourself when you actually need to apply a work method to your creative self.