Calling all lovers of true tales about the sea! This week I'm talking with Eric J. Dolin, bestselling author of numerous books that explore some aspect of American history, generally as it relates to the sea. His latest book is "Left for Dead: Shipwreck, Treachery, and Survival at the Edge of the World." Eric has a really interesting through line that started with him studying to be a marine biologist, then morphed into studying environmental policy, and includes a big list of cool, interesting jobs, including curatorial assistant in the mollusk department at Harvard's Museum of Comparative Zoology.We covered:- Eric's winding path to writing, which started with wanting to be Jacques Costeau as a kid, wended through getting three degrees in marine biologist, and ended with him working in government jobs (managing a fishery, for example) while saving up to make the leap to writing full-time- How winning awards can keep you going, even when you're not selling as many books as you'd like- HOT TIP: Eric's new book, "Left for Dead," would make a great Father's Day gift!- How "people are overly impressed with writers", and that recognition can also keep you going- The skills he developed as a student that help him write books- How researching his current book generally leads to the idea for his next book- The secret cove in Marblehead where Eric gets his reading done during the summer- How reading books from the 1800s and early 1900s (as part of his research) changes his languageVisit Eric at ericjaydolin.com.For full show notes, visit katehanley.substack.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this final section of my conversation with "Lessons from the Climate Anxiety Counseling Booth," Kate Schapira, we cover:- Finding ways to bring her work to groups that are already gathering for another reason (hint: need to a professional development speaker or workshop leader to talk on working with climate anxiety?)- Using the concept of cross-pollenization as a guiding principle- The writers whose work has changed Kate's life- The books, beverage, and songs that Kate can't get enough ofFor full show notes, with links to everything Kate and I discuss, visit katehanley.substack.com. And to get each interview in one ad-free episode delivered straight to your inbox or podcast feed, visit katehanley.substack.com and become a paid subscriber. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this second part of my conversation with Kate Schapira, author of "Lessons from the Climate Anxiety Counseling Booth," we cover the squishier parts of writing, including:- The process of deciding just how vulnerable to be in your writing- The emotional difference between writing poetry and writing prescriptive non-fiction- How her inner critic is a salty SOB- How a writing group holds you accountable to write despite what your inner critic is telling you- A peek inside the mechanics and beauties of Kate's writing group- The illusion of innocence (WOW this really blew my mind open)- Trying to be a good person vs. trying to have a good effectFor full show notes, with links to everything Kate and I discuss, visit katehanley.substack.com. And to get each interview in one ad-free episode delivered straight to your inbox or podcast feed, visit katehanley.substack.com and become a paid subscriber. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week I'm talking with Kate Schapira, author of "Lessons from the Climate Anxiety Counseling Booth," which takes readers through the practical skills and emotional shifts needed to navigate our way to a more livable future.Kate is also the author of six books of poetry, and her prose has appeared in The Rumpus, The Toast, and other places. She lives in Providence, Rhode Island, where she teaches nonfiction writing at Brown University. And fun fact about Kate, she has never met a tide pool that she didn't like.In this episode we covered:- How her grief over climate change inspired her to set up a table at a park in downtown Providence with a sign that said "Climate Anxiety Counseling Booth" and start talking to folks- How that act of inspiration/desperation became a book- The kinds of things people talked to her about at the booth- Why she consciously chose NOT to pursue writing as a career path (it's her...side hustle? side passion that sometimes pays a little?)- How to create a little more space when it feels like the walls of worry about the future are closing in- The four-word mantra that helps her stay creative- The genius (and new-to-me) concept of 'productive dissociation'For full show notes, with links to everything Kate and I discuss, visit katehanley.substack.com. And to get each interview in one ad-free episode delivered straight to your inbox or podcast feed, visit katehanley.substack.com and become a paid subscriber. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In part three of my conversation with multiple New York Times bestselling author Jacquelyn Mitchard, author of "A Very Inconvenient Scandal" and "The Deep End of the Ocean," among many other titles, we talk about how having writer friends is so important, even if you "jealous them", the vision of the future that's fueling her to keep writing, and the recent books that made her swoon.- The writers--and books--that make Jacquelyn jealous (a word that she uses as a verb, as in, "I'm jealousing her."- Her love for British crime shows, including the ones that are currently keeping her up way too late- The BBC podcast she's addicted to- The beauty of enjoying nature--through a window- The saying on the mug that she brought home from the Erma Bombeck conference that is her current motto- The songs Jacquelyn listens to when she needs a pick-me-up- The meal "that's probably 2,000 calories per bite" that she would ask for if someone said they would make her anything she wantedFor full show notes, with links to everything Jacquelyn and I discuss, plus bonus photos!, visit katehanley.substack.com. And if you'd like to receive these episodes ad-free, become a paid subscriber at katehanley.substack.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this second part of my interview with the brilliant and hilarious Jacquelyn Mitchard, we talk about the squishier side of creativity–the thoughts, ideas, and attitudes that affect your work, even if you're not fully conscious of it, including:- The specific reader Jacquelyn imagines as she writes- Why she's devoted to social media, and why she thinks of it like having a hamster- How some of her books have 'missed the mark' (but she's not going to tell you which ones)- The pep talk that gets her through those moments of feeling like a pretender- The small rewards Jacquelyn uses to congratulate herself for getting another few good sentences down on paper- The John Prine lyric that sums up her views on aging- What she learned from growing up on the West side of Chicago (and the viewpoint of her father's that she outright rejects)For full show notes, with links to everything Jacquelyn and I discuss, plus bonus photos!, visit katehanley.substack.com. And if you'd like to receive these episodes ad-free, become a paid subscriber at katehanley.substack.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week I am thrilled to be talking with Jacquelyn Mitchard, the New York Times bestselling author of 23 novels for adults and teenagers. Her newest novel is "A Very Inconvenient Scandal," and her first novel, "The Deep End of the Ocean" was the first selection of the Oprah Winfrey book club and has sold more than 3 million copies and been translated into 34 languages.We covered:- How losing her husband in her late thirties put her on a quest to publish a novel "to prove that I could have a second act"- How, when Oprah called, she deleted the messages because she felt it must have been a friend pranking her- How she would most definitely NOT write even if she didn't get paid- How the hardest part of the work is coming up with the idea- How Jacquelyn's dreams help her write her books- How she writes her book one sentence at a time, from start to finish, like building a skyscraper- The realities of being chronically sleep deprived- The difference between copying and stealing- Living on the Cape, yet hating the beach- Why she only ever has one cup of coffeeFor full show notes, with links to everything Jacquelyn and I discuss, plus bonus photos!, visit katehanley.substack.com. And if you'd like to receive these episodes ad-free, become a paid subscriber at katehanley.substack.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the final installment of my interview with generous and prolific writing goddess Sari Botton (she publishes Oldster Magazine, Memoir Land, and Adventures in Journalism on Substack, authored And You May Find Yourself: Confessions of a Late-Blooming Gen X Weirdo, Goodbye to All That, and Never Can Say Goodbye, and was the essays editor at Longreads), we talk about what's coming up next for her, as well as her favorite shows, books, songs, time, and food.- What projects she’s dreaming about creating next- The two things she knows she needs to shift (including a great tip for folks with Sephardic Jewish heritage!)- Plus, Sari’s favorite show, the last book she devoured, her go-to karaoke song, and her ideal dinner (hint: it’s shellfish heavy)If you want to hear these interviews in one, ad-free episode, become a paid subscriber at katehanley.substack.com. Full show notes available there, too. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In part two of my interview with Sari Botton, founder of Oldster Magazine and author of And You May Find Yourself: Confessions of a Gen X Weirdo, we dive deep into the inner stuff, including:- Her favorite part of sharing her work with the world- How she navigates the ethics of including other people in her personal writing- How her inner critic loves to tell her she doesn’t haven’t permission to write about what she wants to write about—and how she gets past it- How getting older, and developing arthritis, is making her re-think some things, including her beloved wooden clog collection- Her personal role models- That thing that just won’t remove itself from Sari’s bucket list, even though she’s trying to move past itIf you want to hear these interviews in one, ad-free episode, become a paid subscriber at katehanley.substack.com. Full show notes available there, too. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sari Botton is the author of And You May Find Yourself: Confessions of a Late-Blooming, Gen-X Weirdo and Goodbye to All That: Writers on Loving and Leaving New York. She's also the creator of Oldster, a Substack newsletter devoted to exploring the joys of getting older. (Her Oldster questionnaire was a direct inspiration for my starting this podcast.)Sari was my first ever guest on Finding the Throughline--I'm replaying her episodes this week.- The continuing ed class she took as a 20-something that lead to her personal writing career- The thing her uncle told her when she was 10 that sparked a lifelong fascination with growing older- Why she loves Substack—as both a writer and a reader- The thing about trusting your instincts that Shalom Auslander first told her in 2010 that it took her 10+ years to believe- The incredible power of writing annoying, non-work stuff down on your to-do list (even if you’re already done it)- What she does to cheer herself up and clear her head- Her morning routine (including what exactly goes in her mug)If you want to hear these interviews in one, ad-free episode, become a paid subscriber at katehanley.substack.com. Full show notes available there, too. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices