The Art of Starting Over: Getting Back Into Your Writing Flow (Ep198)
Release Date: 09/03/2025
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The Art of Starting Over: Getting Back Into Your Writing Flow (Ep198)
Aligned Author Podcast
✨ Writer Craft Podcast | Episode 198 🎙️ The Art of Starting Over: Getting Back Into Your Writing Flow 📅 Recorded on September 3, 2025 🎧 Hosted by & 💬 Episode Summary Welcome back, Writers and Crafters! In this soul-nourishing episode, Valerie and Erick explore what it really takes to return to your writing routine after a break. Whether you've been away for weeks or months, we offer compassionate strategies, creative rituals, and mindset shifts to help you gently restart your writing life—without falling into guilt, shame, or perfectionism. ✨ Main Topic: “The Art...
info_outline✨ Writer Craft Podcast | Episode 198
🎙️ The Art of Starting Over: Getting Back Into Your Writing Flow
📅 Recorded on September 3, 2025
🎧 Hosted by Valerie Ihsan & Erick Mertz
💬 Episode Summary
Welcome back, Writers and Crafters! In this soul-nourishing episode, Valerie and Erick explore what it really takes to return to your writing routine after a break. Whether you've been away for weeks or months, we offer compassionate strategies, creative rituals, and mindset shifts to help you gently restart your writing life—without falling into guilt, shame, or perfectionism.
✨ Main Topic: “The Art of Starting Over: Getting Back Into Your Writing Flow”
🔥 Key themes: creative rhythm, return rituals, reframing productivity, embodied discipline, and more.
💡 In This Episode:
Segment 1: Author Updates & Announcements
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Valerie shares updates from the road: memory-making, travel, and rental-ready logistics
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Plans for a free masterclass on hybrid memoirs coming in October 🎉
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Erick's gearing up for speaking at a writing conference and Ghost Story Weekend in Newport with Wordcrafters
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Running ads, finishing client work, and preparing for a busy season
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📚 What We're Reading:
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Valerie:
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- Creative Act (Rick Rubin)
- High Hopes by Anne Abel (coming to the podcast in October!)
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In progress: Four Thousand Weeks (Oliver Burkeman), The Year of the Puppy (Alexandra Horowitz), The Teller of Small Fortunes (Julie Leong)
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Erick:
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Segment 2: Resources, Tips & Tidbits
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🔍 Tidbit of the week: Umarell — an Italian word for retired men who watch construction sites 👀
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Bonus tips for mindset shifts and productivity hacks
Segment 3: Main Topic - The Art of Starting Over
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Restate your writing goal: has it changed or evolved?
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Rebuild with rhythm, not rigidity
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Try a "return ritual": a gentle Artist's Way-style reentry (oracle cards, candles, morning pages, or altar time)
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Give it time:
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3 days to wrap your mind around restarting
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3 weeks to settle into a new rhythm
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Replace guilt with grace. You're not behind—you're beginning again.
🧰 Resources & Recommendations
💚 Get 48% off your first subscription of Magic Mind (mental performance + sleep shot)
Claim it here → magicmind.com/VALERIE20
Use code VALERIE20 at checkout
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🧠 Writing Tools We Love:
👉 ProWriting Aid (affiliate link)
Perfect for editing and polishing your writing with AI-backed insights.
🌱 Join Our Communities
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🖋️ Valerie's Patreon → patreon.com/valerieihsan
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