An obsession with sand dollars, the catharsis of dance, and getting to be a student again: these are some of the things that make Molly Wizenberg feel alive. Molly--the bestselling memoirist, James Beard Award-winning essayist, and teacher of personal narrative writing--joins therapist and artist Carter Umhau to talk about how her relationship to writing has helped her become herself and allowed her to see the particularity of what it is she's been trying to say all along. Pulling from the same personal reflection, thoughtfulness, attention to detail, and cracking humor that makes her a phenomenal writer Molly shares some major wisdom about life itself as she speaks about the creative process behind her writing.
Some of the things we talk about in this episode...
- learning to metabolize life through writing
- what it looks like to write for a witness versus just for one's self
- imposter syndrome and high standards
- another reason to admire David Byrne of The Talking Heads
- why teaching makes both of us feel high
- and, do the people you most admire know what they're doing?
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CONNECT WITH MOLLY WIZENBERG:
Molly's Newsletter: I've Got A Feeling https://mollywizenberg.substack.com/
Molly's upcoming workshops: https://www.mollywizenberg.com/upcomingworkshops
Find Molly on Instagram @molly.wizenberg
Listen to Molly's podcast: Spilled Milk. It can be found wherever you get your podcasts!
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CONNECT WITH CARTER:
How to Be Alive is hosted and created by me, Carter Umhau—an artist, writer, and licensed therapist.
Register for my signature Artist’s Way workshop to join an intimate cohort of people seeking to get closer to themselves through creativity.
https://www.carterumhau.com/artists-way-course-page
My website: www.carterumhau.com
Subscribe to How To Be Alive, the newsletter.
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Music by Aaron Davidson.
Editing by Hans Anderson.
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DISCLAIMER: While this podcast is hosted by a therapist, this episode and no other is intended to be therapy nor should it be considered a replacement for therapy.
Get full access to How to Be Alive at carterumhau.substack.com/subscribe
