Much of what we do as writers is focused on the here and now. There’s that blog post to write, that client chapter, those emails to answer, that marketing plan to think about, that cover design to approve. All good things, to be sure!

It’s easy to lose sight of the forest because we’re so focused on the tree, isn’t it?

On today’s episode, I had the honor of sitting down (on Zoom, of course) with two good friends, Ariel Curry and Liz Morrow, to reflect on the long-term journey of building our careers as authors.

Ariel Curry is a writer, editor, & book coach at Ariel Curry Editorial with over 10 years of experience in traditional publishing. She lives in Chattanooga, TN, with her husband, foster children, two rescue dogs, a kitten, and a beehive. You can connect with her at https://www.arielcurry.com.

Liz Morrow is a traditionally-published ghostwriter for entrepreneurs, thought leaders, and business experts. She specializes in personal and professional development and memoir. When she’s not writing, you can find Liz listening to long-form podcasts, rewatching “The Office” and drinking margaritas with friends. She lives in Greenville, SC with her husband, two children, and goldendoodle. You can connect with her at https://www.wellwrittenco.com.

Ariel and Liz have teamed up to create the Hungry Authors brand, which includes an excellent podcast by the same name as well as their upcoming book, Hungry Authors: The Indispensable Guide to Planning, Writing, and Publishing a Nonfiction Book. You can find out more visiting https://hungryauthors.com, and I encourage you to pre-order the Hungry Authors book via the link above, which goes to Bookshop.org. By doing so, you’ll help support indie bookstores.

Ariel, Liz, and I wanted to explore the long-term journey of building an author career in this conversation. Some of the topics include:

• What kinds of things each of us is working on now.
• Our long-term career goals.
• How we got started as writers.
• Some of our challenges right now.
• How we balance client work vs. our own author brands.
• How to balance a writing career with parenthood.

We actually used this episode on both of our podcasts, so if you’re a listener of Hungry Authors, this conversation might sound familiar!

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Today’s episode is sponsored by Karen Hunsanger, an incredible editor known as “The Word Wizard.” I’ve worked with Karen many times, and she is your secret weapon for crafting the highest-quality book possible. Visit the link above for a free sample edit.