Author Archive

[Podcast #229] Brave Writer Student to Professional Author: Millie Florence

Brave Writer Podcast

At age 20, Brave Writer alum Millie Florence has already published three books! She joins the podcast today to talk about:

  • her writing process,
  • her publishing experience,
  • and what she learned in her Brave Writer classes.
Millie Florence
Millie Florence

Plus, we geek out about Minecraft Story Mode and our favorite middle grade novels!

Show Notes

Millie’s Writing Process

Millie considers herself to be more of a “plotter” than a “pantser” these days. That means she likes to sit down and plot out her story before diving into writing (versus writing by the seat of her pants). She actually enjoys the revision process–which makes sense when you realize that just means she gets to spend more time with the incredible characters she has created.

Millie’s Publishing Experience

When Millie wrote her first book at age 13, she had two goals regarding the publishing process:

  1. She wanted it to go quickly because she wanted to still be a child when the book got published,
  2. And she wanted to learn everything she could about the publishing process.

So Millie decided to self-publish with her parents and family friends acting as the beta readers. But Millie has gone the publisher route as well, and is now starting her publisher’s marketing tour for her book “Beyond Mulberry Glen.”

Millie is an absolute delight. It’s fun to hear about her Brave Writer memories, adventures in Minecraft Story Mode, and her take on the world of books.

We’re very proud to count her among our alumni.

Resources

Connect with Julie

Connect with Melissa

Produced by NOVA Media

Brave Writer Podcast

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Love and Trying – Part Two

Brave Writer

There’s no tactic that ensures a child will match a parent’s fantasy. There’s only love and trying, over and over—until the child knows they are loved, and the parent knows the child is a unique, wholly separate person.

If you missed Part One, here it is.

The Trying: every tip, trick, and attempt to grow your child into a kind, mature, responsible adult.

The Love: your pleasure and pride in your children.

Children Grow Away from You

Children grow away in fury, in peace, in their own way, at their own pace.

We send them into their futures with our favorite souvenirs:

  • confidence,
  • an education,
  • kindness,
  • diligence,
  • a sense of humor,
  • our beliefs,
  • our hopes and dreams.

They sort through the gifts and purge the ones they don’t want. They keep the ones they value. They grab some you didn’t want for them.

They become their own people. You get to be their witnesses. You will try again and love them again in this new way.

And that’s how it is for everyone.

There’s only love and trying.

Those two are enough to get you (and your kids) all the way there.

This post is originally from Instagram and @juliebravewriter is my account
so come follow along for more conversations like this one!

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[Podcast #228] Self-Compassion with Dr. Diana Hill

Brave Writer Podcast

We often practice compassion for others, but hesitate when it comes to compassion for ourselves.

Friend of the podcast Dr. Diana Hill joins us today to talk about her newest book, The Self-Compassion Daily Journal, and give us some practical tips for practicing self-compassion.

Dr. Diana Hill
Dr. Diana Hill

We talk about:

  • the science of stress in the body,
  • being a connected part of nature,
  • wearing jeans that fit, and much more!

This conversation is packed with nuggets of wisdom and insight.

Show Notes

What Is Self-Compassion

According to Dr. Hill, there are three components of self-compassion: Mindfulness, kindness, and common humanity. When we apply these components to how we talk to ourselves, we become more grounded and focused on what matters to us. Without self-compassion, when we face challenges we tend to either shut down or flood ourselves with stress hormones.

Self-Compassion Practices

Self-compassion is a practice. It requires ongoing attention and development. Dr. Hill gives specific practices that can help you build self-compassion. The practices involve touch, posture, breathing, mantras, drawing, and grounding techniques. No one technique works for everybody, so it’s important to be aware of what works for your specific body and mind.

Self-Compassion for the Body

The physical body is integral to self-compassion. As women, we are socialized to be very self-critical about our bodies. As busy adults, we ignore basic physical signals telling us what our body needs. So we end up in tight jeans, holding our pee for way too long. Dr. Hill explains that respecting the rhythms of your body, understanding that you are part of the natural world, is fundamental to practicing self-compassion.

In the words of Dr. Hill, “Compassion isn’t just soft and squishy kindness. It’s also courageous. It’s standing up for yourself. It’s self-respect. It’s being strong. It’s encouraging. So you can hold your spine and your back a strong and stable source for yourself.” May we all practice that.

Resources

Connect with Julie

Connect with Melissa

Produced by NOVA Media

Brave Writer Podcast

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Try It: Powerful Descriptions

Try It Powerful Descriptions

That’s amazing!

Imagine you’ve just seen an astonishing sight like a dolphin flying through the air.

  • How would your body react? Try it! 
  • How would you express that physical reaction in words?

Powerful Descriptions

Today’s Try It prompt is from Week Four of Just Beyond the Very, Very Far North Dart. Duane the polar bear and his friends are astonished at the actions of their friend Handsome!

Eyes widened as mouths and beaks fell open all at the same time.

(Oh, my! I could not believe what Handsome did either! I gasped!)

Choose another emotion to experiment with—keep it light and get bodies moving.

  • Ask: How does your body react if something makes you angry or delighted or scared?
  • Act out the feeling, noticing what your body does.
  • Find words that capture that physical response. (Write them on a whiteboard—then play with them.)

The Complete List of Try It Activities

Brave Writer

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Tea with Julie: Writing Voice

Brave Writer

“Tea with Julie” is a weekly emailed missive that enhances your life as an educator, parent, and awesome adult. From time to time, we’ll share some of our past topics here on the blog.

In this Tea with Julie series (linked below), I talk about writing voice. Writing voice is the sound and feel of the writing—the way you recognize one author over another, or the way one sort of writing connects with you while another type doesn’t. Authors with strong writing voices are those who stand out in a crowd of writers, those you return to because you want to hear what they have to say.

Honestly, your kids are naturals. If you support their self-expression by capturing it for them (jotting down their hot takes, their little narratives, their jokes), they come to trust their writing voices.

It’s when you ask them to sound like someone else—Aesop, some adult writer, the format prescribed in the writing assignment—that we lose the heart of their message and their natural, rich vocabulary.

I hope you enjoy your exploration of the magic of “voice.” In our world of echoes, we need powerful voices. You’re raising them!

Writing Voice

Glad you’re here! This is your time for tea and a break from the breakneck pace of your important life.

Some Tea with Julie messages have been
shared on the Brave Writer Podcast!

Growing Brave Writers

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