74 episodes

Listen in as author Linda Sivertsen (aka Book Mama) brings together the world’s most beloved bestselling authors to chat about writing, publishing, deal-making, spirituality, activism, and the art of romancing creativity. Now streaming on American Airlines, these up-close conversations are a fan favorite, downloaded millions of times, and frequently profiled on “Best Podcast” lists (i.e., The Motley Fool’s “10 Best Podcasts for Women”) while gracing the "Popular Podcasts, Books" (formerly Literature) page of iTunes/Apple Podcasts nearly every day since the show's launch in 2015. Join Linda (herself an award-winning, bestselling author, writing coach, and ex-ghostwriter + magazine editor) and her celebrity co-hosts for deep, funny interviews w/ top authors on breakout success to staying power. Heart-centered encouragement, street-smart advice, and insider success (and failure!) stories for every writer and creative type. Biggest mistakes, best shortcuts, behind-the-scenes agent, press, and publishing stories help you gain the courage to get your book, blog, ballad, or biz birthed into the world. Guests include Jenny Lawson, Martha Beck, Elizabeth Gilbert, Patricia Cornwell, Marie Forleo, Van Jones, Cheryl Strayed, Nia Vardalos, Terry McMillan, Joel Stein, Deepak Chopra, Tom Hanks, Glennon Doyle, Abby Wambach, Candice Bergen, Meg Wolitzer, Austin Channing Brown, Dean Koontz, Ann Patchett, Maria Shriver, Steven Pressfield, Anita Moorjani, Tosca Lee, Brené Brown, Lee Child, Anne Lamott, Rob Bell, Dani Shapiro, Gabby Bernstein, Seth Godin, Danielle LaPorte, Marianne Williamson, Arianna Huffington, Mary Karr, Gretchen Rubin, #1 NYT Fantasy Authors (and besties) Tomi Adeyemi & Sabaa Tahir, US Poet Laureate Joy Harjo, and former WME super-agent Jennifer Rudolph Walsh. If you’ve ever wished you could sit down with your favorite writers over coffee to ask them how they do it, year after year, book after book, consider this your new, not-so-guilty pleasure. Take your dreams from idea to done with us. The Beautiful Writers Podcast. Where inspiration is constant, and swearing, optional (although highly appreciated). Find out more: https://www.beautifulwriterspodcast.com

Beautiful Writers Podcast Linda Sivertsen

    • Arts
    • 4.7 • 552 Ratings

Listen in as author Linda Sivertsen (aka Book Mama) brings together the world’s most beloved bestselling authors to chat about writing, publishing, deal-making, spirituality, activism, and the art of romancing creativity. Now streaming on American Airlines, these up-close conversations are a fan favorite, downloaded millions of times, and frequently profiled on “Best Podcast” lists (i.e., The Motley Fool’s “10 Best Podcasts for Women”) while gracing the "Popular Podcasts, Books" (formerly Literature) page of iTunes/Apple Podcasts nearly every day since the show's launch in 2015. Join Linda (herself an award-winning, bestselling author, writing coach, and ex-ghostwriter + magazine editor) and her celebrity co-hosts for deep, funny interviews w/ top authors on breakout success to staying power. Heart-centered encouragement, street-smart advice, and insider success (and failure!) stories for every writer and creative type. Biggest mistakes, best shortcuts, behind-the-scenes agent, press, and publishing stories help you gain the courage to get your book, blog, ballad, or biz birthed into the world. Guests include Jenny Lawson, Martha Beck, Elizabeth Gilbert, Patricia Cornwell, Marie Forleo, Van Jones, Cheryl Strayed, Nia Vardalos, Terry McMillan, Joel Stein, Deepak Chopra, Tom Hanks, Glennon Doyle, Abby Wambach, Candice Bergen, Meg Wolitzer, Austin Channing Brown, Dean Koontz, Ann Patchett, Maria Shriver, Steven Pressfield, Anita Moorjani, Tosca Lee, Brené Brown, Lee Child, Anne Lamott, Rob Bell, Dani Shapiro, Gabby Bernstein, Seth Godin, Danielle LaPorte, Marianne Williamson, Arianna Huffington, Mary Karr, Gretchen Rubin, #1 NYT Fantasy Authors (and besties) Tomi Adeyemi & Sabaa Tahir, US Poet Laureate Joy Harjo, and former WME super-agent Jennifer Rudolph Walsh. If you’ve ever wished you could sit down with your favorite writers over coffee to ask them how they do it, year after year, book after book, consider this your new, not-so-guilty pleasure. Take your dreams from idea to done with us. The Beautiful Writers Podcast. Where inspiration is constant, and swearing, optional (although highly appreciated). Find out more: https://www.beautifulwriterspodcast.com

    Solo Pod: My published books woke me up at 3 am with intel they wanted us to know . . .

    Solo Pod: My published books woke me up at 3 am with intel they wanted us to know . . .

    What happens when your dream comes true after years of work? What happens when that dream twists into what feels like a career-killing nightmare?

    In this episode, I'm telling the truth like never before—solo, my first in nine years—and it's the most real, vulnerable, and perhaps ill-advised show I've ever done.

    Catch it quick before my Vulnerability Hangover kicks in, and I decide to take it down . . .

    Book Mama, over and out. I love you, my book family. Doin' the hard work so you don't have to—or something like that.

    Write on!
    Linda xo

    • 1 hr 4 min
    Dr. Jody Carrington: Self-Pub Superstars, Part 2

    Dr. Jody Carrington: Self-Pub Superstars, Part 2

    I can't with this soulmate client. I'm pressed for words to share how much I love this woman, author, and communicator. I promise you've never met anyone like Dr. Jody Carrington. I call her Canada's Brené Brown (mixed with some Jerry Seinfeld), so that's close. But, well. Just see for yourself.

    When I met Jody at one of my Carmel retreats at the start of her writing career, it only took two minutes to know that I was sitting with a superstar. I'd never before encouraged someone to forgo traditional publishing and run straight into self-publishing, but that was the vibe. Within months, Jody had sold so many pre-orders for Kids These Days: A Game Plan for (Re)Connecting with Those We Teach, Lead, & Love that she funded her first two printings. A quarter of a million books later and a second in the series (Teachers These Days: Stories and Strategies for Reconnection), Jody was approached by a top-five publisher for her latest book, Feeling Seen: Reconnecting in a Disconnected World.

    Jody is a mama, a wife, a speaker, and a connector. She's a first responder, the rare psychologist who cherishes going into schools AFTER a school shooting to soothe hearts and minds. Her capacity for caring for her people (and other people's people) is unending. Plus, she has the most delightful potty mouth while simultaneously making you laugh and cry. 

    I could write my own book on her countless accomplishments and benefits, and I will. I want to get this posted now before a day of appointments. But for now, I'll close by saying that if you want to write, speak, and touch the masses, you couldn't be in better hands. 
    Welcome.  

    • 54 min
    Hal Elrod: Self-Pub Superstars, Part 1 of 2

    Hal Elrod: Self-Pub Superstars, Part 1 of 2

    Ever feel like you need a miracle to realize your big dreams? Let me introduce you to my miraculous client and friend Hal Elrod, author of The Miracle Morning: The Not So Obvious Secret Guaranteed to Transform Your Life Before 8 AM. With over 3.5 million books sold, you'd think he'd have started with a top-five publisher. Instead, he launched a worldwide movement (the book series, a daily app, and a documentary featuring some of your heroes) on his own, self-publishing after his first two agent rejections! Say what? I'd just gotten started sending him out! But thankfully, Hal followed his instincts.

    It's been a show highlight for me to cover the topic of self-publishing—something I haven't yet done here. Stay tuned if you've ever thought you couldn't make a fortune being your own publisher. Hal (and Dr. Jody Carrington, the author in the second episode) have wildly exceeded anything I thought possible without a traditional publisher's support, earning millions of dollars and more importantly, having a massive impact. 

    As you're about to hear, Hal has repeatedly stared death in the face, overcoming nearly insurmountable tragedy. But you wouldn't know it by his attitude or his gratitude. Luckily, his miraculous mindset is fast, fabulous, and, in many ways, foolproof. 
    Welcome.

    • 41 min
    Jenny Lawson & Laura Belgray, TMI Queens: The Art of the Overshare

    Jenny Lawson & Laura Belgray, TMI Queens: The Art of the Overshare

    It's open books all the way with these two TMI queens and their no-holds-barred, hilarious ways. They're the perfect duo to break my 6-month hiatus from the show. What a hoot to be back with three-time New York Times best-selling memoirist Jenny Lawson (Broken, Furiously Happy, and Let's Pretend This Never Happened) and her blogtastic comedic twin, Laura Belgray, joining us here while on book tour for her debut memoir, the national bestseller, Tough Titties: On Living Your Best Life when You're the F-ing Worst.

    Y'all, this one's a mood booster! And a total love match, as you'll see. If you're in the mood to laugh and shake off the funk from your Doomscrolling, this is the show for you.

    This may be Laura's first book, but she's one of the most successful career writers I know, starting in TV writing for NBC, HBO, USA, Nick at Night, Nickelodeon, TV Land, VH1, and others. Let's just say the girl gets around. Her blog and newsletters at Talking Shrimp are wildly popular (addictive!), as are her programs, like Inbox Hero and The Copy Cure, Laura's creation with Marie Forleo.

    Join us as we dig into wisdom on crafting headlines, run-on sentences that hypnotize, avoiding husbands as beta readers, and how having children is like living with an undercover agent tapping all your phones. We also dish on hiding during Zoom calls, editing drunk, getting mailed boxes of dildos in the mail (like you do), blowjobs Laura gave in the early 90s, t*****s that grow back after reduction surgery, and the ghost living under Jenny's house.

    I'm so happy you're here. Write on!
    PS. This convo was such a blast that I RAN back into the recording studio to cover a new topic here—Self-Publishing—with two clients who've made millions via self-publishing (which brought the big publishers to them). You'll want to emulate our strategies, whether you're self-pubbing or not!

    • 1 hr 5 min
    Mark Manson: The subtle art of movie making & selling millions of books

    Mark Manson: The subtle art of movie making & selling millions of books

    Three #1 New York Times bestsellers. Nearly twenty million books sold. One of the most popular self-development blogs in the world. What more could Mark Manson take on? As of this week, movie stardom.

    Suppose you're a fan of Mark'sThe Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck (or his follow-up book, Everything's F*cked: A Book About Hope). In that case, I predict you'll LOVE how Universal Pictures depicts this beloved counterintuitive approach to living a good life from page to screen.

    It was a blast for me to have Mark on the show finally. As you'll see, despite his success, he's still a humble guy. Quick to laugh and talk freely about the crap we creatives all experience. Including some extreme things few of us will face that he and I share. As a former ghostwriter (who co-authored a NYT bestseller with a man who experienced a tragic public fall), I've wanted to take Mark aside and ask him a few things confidentially. Why Mark? He was Will Smith's writer for Will, the 2021 memoir Oprah called the best memoir she'd ever read. You know, before the slap. 

    I didn't intend to ask Mark anything about that on the record. Still, I'm glad I got the vibe to take the chance. Same for other topics, from the difficulty of recording our audiobooks to the weirdness of becoming well-known to keeping a marriage strong when one or both people are workaholics. Can I get an eff-yeah!

    Happy New Year, friend. Thank you for another great year of shared book love. May 2023 bring us all a whole lot more magic than mayhem.

    Linda xo (aka Book Mama) 

    • 42 min
    How to Write a Book (& Actually Finish It!), a MarieTV Replay

    How to Write a Book (& Actually Finish It!), a MarieTV Replay

    Marie Forleo is back on the show! HER show, actually. Say what? In a rare move for each of us, this is a replay of my recent appearance on MarieTV while touring for my latest book, Beautiful Writers. Since  Marie and I LOVE this episode and 80% of the population say they want to write a book, we're doubling up to help you beat those odds. You can also catch us on video on YouTube if you'd prefer to see and hear us.

    Whether it's your first time listening to this episode or you're here for a refresh, let's dig into these mindset-changing concepts to get you in your writerly flow. Topics covered include:

    — How to finish your manuscript like a pro.

    — Marie’s “hackathon” method to write her book proposal in 48 hours.

    — The #1 trick to writing faster and having more fun.

    — What successful authors have in common.

    — How to banish “writer’s block” for good.

    — The secret to landing a huge book deal. (It’s not what you think!)

    — A story on writing the hard stuff about others, with nearly unbelievable magical results.

    And so much more. I'm excited to have you finish the year strong with us.
    Write on! xo

    PS. See you back here in a few weeks with Mark Manson, on tour for his new film, based on the #1 NYT bestseller, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck, where amongst other things, we talk about the totally f*cked up impossibleness of recording our audiobooks (something I'm doing now). Fun and funny stuff! :)

    • 40 min

Customer Reviews

4.7 out of 5
552 Ratings

552 Ratings

Kara BD ,

You feel Linda’s heart

I truly believe you feel the genuine heart of Linda as she interviews people, and her latest solo episode is no different. I am always drawn to genuine people who use their magical gifts in this world to put themselves out there. This podcast is here to serve us, to help us, to inspire us… and to remind us to believe in the dream within. 🩷❤️🩷❤️

MRJtrauma ,

An aspiring writer’s best friend

The authors interviewed are always so interesting, but Linda’s curiosity and care makes the conversation even moreso. When I first started to wonder if I could write a book she interviewed Austin Channing Brown who talked about reading her work out loud—it made so much sense to me— the best editing advice I’d ever heard. Haven’t missed an episode!!

MsCarrieSings ,

Such beauty in a Podcast

As a novice writer, I love listening to all the Beautiful writers who discuss their ideas, creativity, and what the writing process is for them. I soak up every episode! This is a must listen for anyone interested in reading, writing or both!

Top Podcasts In Arts

Fresh Air
NPR
The Moth
The Moth
99% Invisible
Roman Mars
Snap Judgment Presents: Spooked
Snap Judgment
The Magnus Archives
Rusty Quill
The Recipe with Kenji and Deb
Deb Perelman & J. Kenji López-Alt

You Might Also Like

Magic Lessons with Elizabeth Gilbert
Elizabeth Gilbert and Maximum Fun
Bewildered
Martha Beck and Rowan Mangan
The Gathering Room Podcast
Martha Beck
We Can Do Hard Things
Glennon Doyle and Audacy
Good Life Project
Jonathan Fields / Acast
Pulling The Thread with Elise Loehnen
Elise Loehnen and Audacy