Jen’s Picks of the Week

Hello fellow writer!
Can you believe July is almost over? It has been a beautiful summer here in Michigan where I live with my family and our ever growing population of animals. And because the weather has been so fantastic, I have been spending a lot of time outside working on projects. Okay, more like supervising my husband work on the projects I come up with, but hey…I’m still outside!I love to listen to stuff while I work outside….music, podcasts, my children playing. And I hear a lot of great stuff that I think you’ll find beneficial (not my kids playing. They’re cute, but not sure you’ll gain anything from listening to them argue over who gets the tree swing next.) 

So, here is a list of what I listened to the past week that I think you might find beneficial…

Podcasts Writing Literary Fiction This week on the Creative Penn Podcast, Joanna Penn talks with Roz Morris about what Literary Fiction really is. I found this conversation interesting, because as a genre writer who has zeroed in on her niche, I never know how to speak on writing that doesn’t fit a genre. Roz is very insightful, so if you are a writer who doesn’t ‘write to market’, this episode might be for you! Mentorship The God Hears Her Podcast discusses mentor relationships in one of their recent episodes. While not writing related, I found it very helpful. Having been involved in both healthy and unhealthy writing groups, I know how important it is to avoid the latter. Elisa and Eryn give advice on being a mentor and on being a mentee, as well as warning signs that a mentorship is unhealthy. You can listen to the episode here. Book Lab This suggestion actually comes from the show’s friend Piper Dow. She suggest we take a ‘peek’ at the latest Book Lab episode from the Self-Publishing Show. I say ‘peek’ because although you can listen to this podcast in the traditional sense, you really need to watch the episode on YouTube because of the visuals (book covers, etc) included in Episode 287. Music I came across Talking to Jesus a few weeks ago in a Facebook post, and at first, I thought the name was cheesy. But honestly, this song really gets to me right now. It’s simple, relaxed beat and lyrics really make me stop and ask “Are my kids seeing me talk to Jesus?” Take a listen here. My Kids Oh, so you wanted to hear from them, too? Okay, if you insist. Here’s the latest quote from my precious darlings…“Mom…can I play on your phone?”Okay, enough shenanigans for today. I hope this list is helpful. If you have a suggestion I could share next time, reply to this email and let me know. I’d love to hear what you’re listening to! But, remember, write first !Blessings ,Jen

P.S. My kids really are great, and if you could have listened to my littlest read me her birthday wish list this morning before work, you would have enjoyed it. She’s so sweet.

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