by Linda Sivertsen | Oct 18, 2020 | Beautiful Writers Podcast
An astrologer once warned me that India Oxenberg was in danger of being kidnapped. This was woo-woo California in the early ’90s, but I still knew to take him seriously. India was a wee babe when my family and I moved into Catherine Oxenberg’s Beverly...
by Linda S | Oct 7, 2020 | Carmel Writing Retreats
“This is the best food I’ve ever eaten!” said all four of my Carmel Writing Retreat participants during our week together in Carmel-by-the-Sea last month. Food’s no joke when you’re bringing worlds to life. It’s a comfort thing. But also a brain thing. Glucose powers...
by Linda Sivertsen | Oct 2, 2020 | Favorites, Writing, Marketing & Publishing Tips
Focus. Focus. “Hey, you! Yeah, YOU! FOCUS! “It’s just you and me here. “Leave everything else. Out. There. “I’m all you need right now. “Give me your attention. “And I’ll come to liiiiife.” This was me a few years ago when I wrote this post, my...
by Linda S | Aug 14, 2020 | Carmel Writing Retreats
Your book. Your love letter—to all you’ve been, done, and learned. You probably had a timeline in your head about when you’d have your samples and/or book proposal ready to pitch agents—YOU WERE DOIN’ IT! And then the world changed. Everything...
by Linda S | Aug 2, 2020 | Beautiful Writers Podcast
What do writers Trevor Noah, Ta-Nehisi Coates, Jay-Z, and Mira Jacob have in common? Chris Jackson, legendary publisher and Editor-in-Chief of One World, an imprint of Penguin Random House. He’s on today’s episode of the Beautiful Writers Podcast with Valarie Kaur,...
by Linda S | May 31, 2020 | Beautiful Writers Podcast
The world feels like it’s exploding. With Covid-19 and anti-racism protests raging through our streets, I had a sensitive, maybe even a bold question to ask Sue Monk Kidd and Ann Patchett, two longtime literary idols of mine. How are a couple of white women so...
by Linda S | May 14, 2020 | Book Mama Recommends
My beautiful writers, I want to talk about the things we don’t talk about—that which shall not be named. The unmentionable here is SHAME. The shame so many want-to-be authors have around not having the “right” credentials. It was my father—on his...
by Linda S | May 2, 2020 | Beautiful Writers Podcast
Hello! In a VERY special eco-edition of the Beautiful Writers Podcast, Jane Goodall—Ph.D., DBE, founder of the Jane Goodall Institute, and UN Messenger of Peace—is with us from the UK. I’m excited to celebrate the release of the Nat Geo film The Hope, showcasing...
by Linda S | Mar 31, 2020 | Beautiful Writers Podcast
Joy Harjo, Poet Laureate of the United States—the nation’s “official” poet—is here! She’s the first Native American to hold this position, and I’ve been a weepy mess since she agreed to chat with us. As someone who lived on raw land in...
by Linda S | Feb 29, 2020 | Beautiful Writers Podcast
Today on the #BeautifulWritersPodcast, two of my bestie New York Times bestselling author friends meet for the 1st time. (You know I love literary matchmaking.) Laura Munson is promoting her first novel, Willa’s Grove, while Terry McMillan is about to share with the...