“How can we tell the difference between fears worth listening to and all the others?”
Karen Thompson Walker is a New York Times bestselling author. She wrote her first book The Age of Miracles while she was still working as an editor in NY on the subway to and from work. The Age of Miracles has been translated into 27 languages, and was named one of the best books of the year by People, O: The Oprah Magazine, and Financial Times, among others. Her new book The Dreamers illuminates the mundane moments of life through the lens of a small-town catastrophe (a sleeping epidemic). Her TEDTalk (called “What Fear Can Teach Us”) has over two million views.
Highlights
In this episode, we talk about when to use anxiety and fear to your advantage, what Karen’s daily writing process looks like, and how she balances her input (reading) and her output (writing).
Behind the Scenes
I met Karen at a local bookclub and got to know her for a few months before I knew about any of her accomplishments or accolades. I found it fascinating that she didn’t lead with these things, so we began this episode by discussing how she views her success and how it defines her personally.
Who Should Listen?
If you’re struggling to stay consistent with your creative habits, or paralyzed by the fear of sharing your work with a larger audience, have a listen.
Questions
- How do you view your success and how does it define you personally?
- How can we tell the difference between the fears worth listening to and all the others?
- Are any of the decisions you make now determined by your past self or future self?
- Do you write with one person in mind, or for an imaginary audience?