Writer Craft Podcast

About Writer Craft Podcast

Welcome to the Writer Craft Podcast, a show about creativity and craft. Remember when you told your sister stories in the night, snuggled under the covers of your waterbed? Or read books from the public library that delighted you? And now you've written your own novel. But will it change someone's life? Is it a good enough book? Does it even work on the story level? On the Writer Craft Podcast, we help authors stay motivated and inspired, finish their books, and show them how to analyze and diagnose areas of challenge in their manuscripts once it's written.

Publisher

Valerie Ihsan

Category

arts · business

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

28 Feb 2019

Latest episode

28 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

227 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   28 Oct 2026

   Reinvention Through Animal Wisdom and Writing, with Christine A. Baker (Ep225)

   Hello aligned authors! I'm Valerie Ihsan, and this is Episode 225 of the podcast and it's October 20, 2026 as I record this. Main Topic: "Reinvention Through Animal Wisdom and Writing" with Christine Baker Christine Baker is an award-winning storyteller, speaker, and lifelong animal lover. Her writing explores the quiet magic woven into everyday life — the resilience we discover in loss, and the extraordinary ways animals shape our journeys. PATREON: Thank you to my existing patrons for believing in my work offline and here in the podcast. If you are a patron, in either tier, you get all my content, always. You can support me and my dreams and my writing and my aligned author life for $11.11 USD, and I will be so so grateful. Truly. Heart to heart. Gratitude for your gifts. If you want coaching too (with TWO LIVE CALLS EACH MONTH, you can BACK me at $55.55/mo USD). You will NEVER find coaching sessions for less money than this. If you've ever wanted continued support for your writing and accountability for your projects, this is the way to do it. Become a patron of the arts and of me at Patreon.com/valerieihsan. And you can support my friend and colleague and Visiting Co-Host author Erick Mertz at Patreon.com/strangeairstories for short stories in the paranormal mystery genre. Announcements/Author Updates: What are you reading? Holy Fuck (https://bookshop.org/a/91279/9781735375199) by Amanda Frances Just finished: Creative Act (https://bookshop.org/a/91279/9780593652886) (Rick Rubin) Fiction: Unlikely Animals (https://bookshop.org/a/91279/9780593160244) (Annie Hartnett) (Main Topic): "Reinvention Through Animal Wisdom and Writing" with Christine Baker Animals help us reinvent ourselves by showing us how to let go and turn the corner and how to learn to play again and adapt. They teach us how to be human. Raising Artemis narrated by deceased cat. The animals are communicating with each other non-verbally. They are a bridge between the living and dead, human and non. Connecting ourselves to something else. The Artemis Circle (https://www.raisingartemis.com/artemis-circle) is a new Substack project: share stories about animals, feelings, connective tissue. Substack is good visibility for authors and for reaching a broader reader audience. Do you consider yourself an animal communicator or medium? It never occurred to me to be an animal communicator. It was like a language I didn't need to learn. I already communicated with them. You wrote nonfiction before this debut novel; Why take personal story of loss and write fiction? There's something about a novel for me... a big sandbox, and place where I can play. Wrote during covid. Wrote it to get back to self and retain animal lessons; love letter to my animals and to what role they played in my life. I'm a Pantser with the idea in my head as long as it takes before sitting down to write it all out. With Raising Artemis, the writing wasn't working this time around. Tripping up on Voice. Struggling with the first chapter. Rewriting over and over. Trying too hard. My cat Phoebe knocks over Lucy's picture (a previous pet). Phoebe gave me the answer. The cat had to be the narrator. Because a human perspective is limited. Writing it from the cat's perspective allowed me to give voice to the themes I wanted to write about and to open the doors to telling the story in a new and different way. Talk more about Voice. Your nonfiction book gives voice to female athletes, and your novel gives voice to animals. What does Voice mean to you and how do you use it in your work? Has to feel true, deep in my core. What it means to have a voice and use it for good. (how deeply we feel for our animals; love) Adjust the way we listen to animals. You mentioned finding purpose after loss and burnout. I stopped writing for two years after my compounded losses and subsequent burnout, but maintained a journal writing practice. I felt shame and guilt around saying I was a writer and not putting new words in a manuscript. ("How can I say I'm a writer without writing?") What did you do? Worked in marketing and PR; always wanted to say I Am a Writer; chronic migraines; sold first screenplay and then quit the marketing industry (other than some consulting). But still tripped up on the WRITER label. Humans are wired to tie our self-worth to our career choice and output. Living and exploring, experiencing, and journaling "doesn't count"; I found me again when writing ... Journaling slows me, centers, grounds, helps me see connections I've missed, allows Voice to not be silenced or censored. Expression of having the thought, and putting it on the page, and letting go. What about when you talk about "Reinvention as a Life-Long Spiritual Practice"? Journaling is at the center of that; I can let go of my expectations around my creativity process and have more fun with it. Don't like being stuck in one place in my mind; have so many other stories to tell; this is first step forward after all the sideways crab walking I've been doing. ** December 15th release; Preorder campaign: share receipt to get a special gift, 1st 100 people. RaisingArtemis.com (http://RaisingArtemis.com) ** Valerie's Linktree: https://linktr.ee/valerieihsan Erick's Linktree link: https://linktr.ee/erickmertzauthor Tools: ProWriting Aid: https://prowritingaid.com/?afid=9378 (affiliate li

2. 

   20 Oct 2026

   Finding Your Voice Within Your Writing Process, with David Barnett (Ep224)

   Hello aligned authors! I'm Valerie Ihsan, and this is Episode 224 of the podcast and it's October 15, 2026 as I record this. Main Topic: Finding Your Voice Within Your Writing Process, with David Barnett PATREON: Thank you to my existing patrons for believing in my work offline and here in the podcast. If you are a patron, in either tier, you get all my content, always. You can support me and my dreams and my writing and my aligned author life for $11.11 USD, and I will be so so grateful. Truly. Heart to heart. Gratitude for your gifts. If you want coaching too (with TWO LIVE CALLS EACH MONTH, you can BACK me at $55.55/mo USD). You will NEVER find coaching sessions for less money than this. If you've ever wanted continued support for your writing and accountability for your projects, this is the way to do it. Become a patron of the arts and of me at Patreon.com/valerieihsan. And you can support my friend and colleague and Visiting Co-Host author Erick Mertz at Patreon.com/strangeairstories for short stories in the paranormal mystery genre. Announcements/Author Updates: What are you reading? Holy Fuck (https://bookshop.org/a/91279/9781735375199) by Amanda Frances Just finished: Cultish : The Language of Fanaticism (Amanda Montell) Creative Act (https://bookshop.org/a/91279/9780593652886) (Rick Rubin) Fiction: Unlikely Animals (https://bookshop.org/a/91279/9780593160244) (Annie Hartnett) (Main Topic): David Barnett (http://thebarnett.co), a former lead singer in a mediocre rock band, is releasing his award-winning debut memoir, "Foxtail" (November 9, 2026). It chronicles the story of a young man troubled by the world around him and his desperate search for peace. Intermixed with musings on music and pop culture, Barnett explores whether the selves we create to survive the fire are the very ones destined to burn us down. At age 16, with his home life shattered following his mother's breast cancer diagnosis, David Barnett's lust for the limelight took over, and he set out to create his own rock band. As he escaped into the underground music scene – with substances and temptations awaiting him – he underwent a fundamental shift in perspective, ultimately fracturing his relationship with his childhood best friend, the quintessential "golden boy" who possessed a latent rebellious streak. In a high-intensity, coming-of-age memoir rooted in 90s counterculture that defined the turn of the 21st century, Barnett traverses treacherous terrain as he conducts an honest autopsy of his failed ambitions and the collateral damage he's caused. He subverts the traditional "addiction memoir" genre by playing with timelines and exploring concepts through an atemporal lens. Ranging from his transformative first experience with drugs to the disruptive nature of ego, "Foxtail" takes readers on a journey through the pains of adolescence and the heavy music that became his salvation. Featuring lyrics from bands and artists like Slayer, Static-X and Lil' Keke, music serves not just as a background soundtrack, but as a holy text throughout, making this sonically-saturated story perfect for those who find sanctuary in music of any genre. 1. You talked of a synergy and co-creation during concerts (crowds); How do you get that from writing? Flow state of performing on stage. Catch the current of creativity. Just singing without the guitar gives me an altered state of consciousness. Writing completely different: riding white-water rapids. ADHD worked for this type of writing. Version of outlining: bullet points in head. During a "boat jam" (metaphor), write a tangent. Ends up using the "interludes" in different points of the book. 2. What was the inception of this book? Music always a big part of my life. Goldies 103.5 in Austin. Stumbled into writing. 27 Club (musicians that have died at the age of 27). Turned 28 and knew done with music. Went to school. Writing became life-affirming and exploration. Reflection, excavation, exploration. Heal. Notion to write the book came four years later. October 2018 lost a friendship and used writing as an exercise to exorcise the anger demons. Heard the arrogance in the rough draft. (Written in a year during FT course load.) Finished by 2020. Refined my skills and became more humble until I could make it good. Crafting skills along the way. Loving the process made the revision process not demoralizing. Healthy way to channel neurodivergence into something productive and fun. College helped him with processing trauma. Alters the way in which reality is perceived. 3. Say more about Finding Voice: Hit a plateau, finding voice and locked in to the authentic, (it's a process. Rewrite five times. Excavation. Seeking with pure intentions. Voice = who you are but cultivating vocabulary. What is the exact word? Synonyns.  TIP for finding your voice. There are no exact synonyms. Subtle nuances. Find the right word that is TRUE. Nurture your voice by expanding your vocabulary, better equipped to explain your circumstances. 4. Say more about "whether the selves we create to survive the fire are the very ones destined to burn us down." Gave up purpose for living. Irony not lost of me. Blamed the universe for failures. Anger/arrogant/entitled "fatal flaw" ... profound darkness and sadness. Struggle with ego. Archetype of Rock Star (ego) (front man job divorced from the creative process.) Became a parody of myself. Burned out. Thebarnett.co (http://Thebarnett.co) FB account: David Barnett (https://www.facebook.com/rooster.illusion.3/) Release party Nov 7; heavy metal spoken word show; EVENT BRITE link; $25 includes the book and the show in Austin, TX. Valerie's Linktree: https://linktr.ee/valerieihsan Erick's Linktree link: https://linktr.ee/erickmertzauthor Tools: ProWriting Aid: https://prowritingaid.com/?afid=9378 (affiliate link)

3. 

   15 Oct 2026

   Childhood POV in Memoir, with Anthony Aleman (Ep223)

   (Main Topic): Anthony Aleman (https://barlesspress.com/) was born in 1988 and raised on the fourteenth floor of a South Bronx housing project at the height of the crack wars. He spent much of his childhood in foster care and group homes. He wrote BARLESS because the truth needs telling no matter how ugly it gets, and because no one is broken - every warrior carries scars. It is his first book, told in the voice of the boy who lived it. He founded Barless Press, and lives in Rockland County. My guiding principle became: I wanted readers to feel what I felt, not read what I went through. (How did that work for you in reality? Did you use it as a writing prompt, or as an editing tool?) Write chapter at a time and edit: If I'm rushing past something, I stop and look inside. It becomes a therapeutic session. No one was a villain, even if as an adult, I can maybe see there was. I tell the truth at that time, new emotions not allowed in the book. Betraying the child if I did that. Disconnected from the story as an adult. Trauma was most solidified memories, but the mundane days are a blur; disassociate Support people checking in with you as you were writing. Trust the reader, they understand the immersion, I started questioning whether things I had always considered parts of my personality might actually have begun as ways of surviving childhood. Shrinking and hiding is surviving, a bad situation is okay. As an adult, introvert? No. Maybe I'm not. Response was shocking. Horrified (them) vs. normal (me). Comes in different forms. Anxiety, Mom story (FB analytics, mom viewed new story, paranoid that she'll come kill me); relax, It opened old wound. Dove deeper "I'm going in there!" Followed curiosity, and be delicate, why am I feeling this way? Is  it logical? Sometimes that leads you to the best writing. Connect the dots between the childhood and the adult; somebody else wrote it. Who wrote this? My inner me. Out of body experience. After leaving the Bronx, to wild nomad, the next memoir installment. How to be human? Don't overthink it. Just say it, you can delete it later. IG @barlessamemoir https://barlesspress.com Valerie's Linktree: https://linktr.ee/valerieihsan

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

YouTube views

1,461

Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

2 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

2 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 68 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

77

Social presence

0

YouTube

68

Engagement

81

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Guest appearances

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Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

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