I have a minor addiction to podcasts. But let’s be serious, on demand radio is pretty cool. In my podcast cache, I have a little gem I like to listen to called “Magic Lessons” hosted by Elizabeth Gilbert. If that name sounds familiar to you, it’s because it kind of should. She was a journalist until her memoir Eat, Pray, Love hit shelves. She was also invited to give a TED Talk if you’re into that kind of thing (and I am) which can be easily found online. She now spends her time podcasting, writing, and meeting speaking engagements.

So here is why I think this podcast is such a great tool to check out if you’re a writer.

Gilbert begins each episode with a phone call from someone who is trying to hone their own creative muscle. They have a conversation discussing the artist’s medium, their life, their passion for this work, and – ultimately – what is that they have been struggling with lately. This is where we run into the first thing I love about this podcast. These callers all sound like me. They sound like you. These are people with day-jobs, kids, to-do lists, and a number of other things that have distracted them from their creative practice. I relate to so many of the struggles that these people call in about. And it’s nice to know that as an artist, I’m not alone in those struggles. Gilbert gives the caller some words of affirmation and advice regarding their issue and she will also offer them a challenge or a goal that she promises she will call to follow up with them on.

The next episode will be another phone call, only this time it’s with someone who not only has had the same struggle as the previous caller, but who has reached their personal level of success from their creative work. And that’s the second thing there is to love about the podcast – you get to hear candid conversations about the challenge of working with your creativity from people who have managed to do it. Some names are more or lesser known than others, but each artist is someone whose work has merited recognition. They have also had obstacles to overcome and they are only all too willing to share how they overcame them.

This tool is basically for anyone who feels like they never have time to do what they love for any reason or circumstance; this is the not-so-subtle nudge in the direction of your goals.

– Elkid M.

Prompt:  Someone you dislike asks you to lunch. You have just made a pact to be brutally honest in your life. What do you say?

This week’s prompt: brought to you by 642 Tiny Things To Write About