THE INDY AUTHOR
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    • 171 - Outside-the-Box Content
    • 170 - Creating a Winning Workbook
    • 169 - The Do's and Don'ts of Working with Book Bloggers
    • 168 - How to Write from Trauma
    • 167 - Good Habits and Accountability Groups
    • 166 - Plotting with an Unreliable Narrator
    • 165 - Strengthening Your Fiction with a Premise
    • 164 - What Writers Can Learn from Short Fiction
    • 163 - Year End: The Writing Craft And The Publishing Voyage
    • 162 - Book Marketing Lessons from Beyond the Book World
    • 161 - Choosing Your Publishing Path
    • 160 - Mistakes Writers Make about Police Roles
    • 159 - Backstory: Mountaintop or Valley
    • 158 - What Writers Can Learn from Remote Workers
    • 157 - Literary Citizenship
    • 156 - Character Development Through the Pain and Promise of Life
    • 155 - The Benefits (and Costs) of Membership
    • 154 - From Screenplay to Novel and Back
    • 153 - The Importance of a Professional Photo and Video Presence
    • 152 - The Three Stages of Story
    • 151 - Setting Your Creative Horizons
    • 150 - Hands-off Merchandising for Authors
    • 149 - Using Vulnerability to Feed your Creativity
    • 148 - Making the Most of In-person Events
    • 147 - Writing for Audio
    • 146 - Managing Writing with a Full-time Career
    • 145 - Speech to Text and Back Again
    • 144 - Reaching the Right Readers through Email
    • 143 - Getting into the Mind of Your Audience
    • 142 - A New Era for Novellas
    • 141 - The Value of Collaboration
    • 140 - Troping Your Way to a Stronger Story
    • 139 - Mistakes Writers Make about Forensic Psychiatry
    • 138 - ROI for Authors
    • 137 - Using Podcasts to Support Your Book Launch
    • 136 - Looking Forward in Indy Publishing
    • 135 - The Importance of Specificity
    • 134 - How Horror is the Genre of Hope
    • 133 - Creating an AI-narrated Audiobook
    • 132 - From Big Idea to Book
    • 131 - The Color Wheel of Characterization
    • 130 - Outsourcing Your Content Creation
    • 129 - Moving for Creativity
    • 128 - Lessons from Filmmaking
    • 127 - Mistakes Writers Make about PIs
    • 126 - Estate Planning for Authors
    • 125 - The Seven Most Common Mistakes of Non-Fiction Authors
    • 124 - The Rise of Subscription Models
    • 123 - Building Engaging Worlds
    • 122 - Using Data to Guide Your Craft
    • 121 - Story Structure and Character Motivation
    • 120 - Draft2Digital Updates: Smashwords and Print
    • 119 - Metadata Is Your Brand
    • 118 - The Martial Art of Writing
    • 117 - Tracking Sales Data and How ScribeCount Can Help
    • 116 - Creating Community, Content, and Creative Energy
    • 115 - Exploring Kindle Vella
    • 114 - Making Smart Decisions about Your Distribution Strategy
    • 113 - What Authors Can Learn from Theater
    • 112 - Being the Captain of Your Author Voyage
    • 111 - Using Engines, Anchors, and Hazards to Define Character Voice
    • 110 - Making Meaningful Connections through Powerful Language
    • 109 - Wide Retailers and Aggregators
    • 108 - Writing Non-fiction from the Inside
    • 107 - Publishing Process #7: Selective Rights Licensing
    • 106 - Publishing Process #6: Promotion
    • 105 - Publishing Process #5: Marketing
    • 104 - Publishing Process #4: Distribution
    • 103 - Publishing Process #3: Production
    • 102 - Publishing Process #2: Design
    • 101 - Publishing Process #1: Editorial
    • 100 - Becoming a Relaxed Author
    • 099 - Connecting with Fans through Merchandising
    • 098 - Redefining Indy Success through Short Fiction
    • 097 - Taking the Long View
    • 096 - Emerging Tech for the Writing Craft
    • 095 - Finding and Being a Ghostwriter
    • 094 - Debunking Writing Myths
    • 093 - Valuing the Creative Process
    • 092 - Finding a Crew for Your Creative Voyage
    • 091 - Creating Stellar Side Characters
    • 090 - Bringing a Creative Endeavor to an End
    • 089 - The Both-ness of Compelling Characters
    • 088 - How to Receive and Give Critique
    • 087 - Looking Back and Forward at Indy Publishing
    • 086 - Overhauling Keywords
    • 085 - Optimizing Your Keywords
    • 084 - Using Content Legally
    • 083 - Six Rs of Maximizing the Value of Your Content
    • 082 - Perspectives on Writer's Block
    • 081 - Human-Centered Marketing
    • 080 - The Force of a Brand
    • 079 - Making the Most of Your Short Fiction
    • 078 - Living Your Best Creative Life
    • 077 - Behind the Scenes of My Book Launch
    • 076 - BookFunnel
    • 075 - Key Book Publishing Paths
    • 074 - Perspectives on Personal Branding
    • 073 - Author Websites
    • 072 - Mentoring and Collaborating with Interns
    • 071 - Provider Side of Author Services
    • 070 - Copyright for Authors
    • 069 - Writing Memoir
    • 068 - Handling Difficult Topics in YA Fiction
    • 067 - Mistakes Writers Make about the FBI
    • 066 - From Indy to Traditional
    • 065 - X-raying Your Plot
    • 064 - Children's Books
    • 063 - Wide for the Win
    • 062 - Point of View
    • 061 - Google Play
    • 060 - Mastering Action Sequences
    • 059 - Newsletter Swaps and StoryOrigin
    • 058 - Author Newsletters
    • 057 - The Pros and Cons of Pre-orders
    • 056 - Crowdfunding for Authors
    • 055 - Costs of Self-publishing a Book
    • 054 - Futurist Trends We Can Prepare for Now
    • 053 - Learn from TV and Movies
    • 052 - Building a Resilient Indy Business
    • 051 - Podcasting as Content Marketing
    • 050 - First Responders
    • 049 - Ruminations on Book Launches
    • 048 - Protagonist and Antagonist Voices
    • 047 - Backstory and Flashbacks
    • 046 - Writing Coroners
    • 045 - Exercise
    • 044 - Using Aggregators versus Direct
    • 043 - Killing Suspense
    • 042 - The Importance of Metadata
    • 041 - Writing Convincing Villains
    • 040 - Storytelling Lessons from Investigative Reporting
    • 039 Building a Writer Community
    • 038 - Graphic Novels
    • 037 - How Cozy is Cozy?
    • 036 - Frugal Tips for Writers
    • 035 - Police Procedures
    • 034 - Connecting through Video
    • 033 - Barriers to Creativity
    • 032 - Hybrid Publishing
    • 031 - ebook Pricing
    • 030 - Common Writer Wisdom: Is it Right for You?
    • 029 - Fostering Creativity through Digital Minimalism
    • 028 - Writing the Killer Query
    • 027 - Why to Stop Blogging
    • 026 - Weaving Your Day Job into Your Books
    • 025 - Mastering Book Descriptions
    • 024 - Three Hard Truths
    • 023 - Reaching New Readers through Translations
    • 022 - SEO for Authors
    • 021 - Building Communities in Podcasts and In Person
    • 020 - Working with Libraries & Bookstores
    • 019 - Judging a Book by Its Cover
    • 018 - The Importance of Masterworks
    • 017 - Story a Day
    • 016 - Drawing Back the Publishing Curtain
    • 015 - Five Things I Wish I Knew Before I Was Published
    • 014 - Collaborating on "Taking the Short Tack"
    • 013 - Writing in Time
    • 012 - Top Firearms Mistakes Writers Make ...
    • 011 - Making the Move to Full-Time Writer
    • 010 - Update from The Indy Author
    • 009 - Craft and Business of Short Fiction
    • 008 - Screenwriting
    • 007 - Faster Fiction
    • 006 - Importance of Storytelling
    • 005 - Image-intensive Books
    • 004 - Using Media Outlets
    • 003 - Small Press Publishing
    • 002 - Creativity Tips
    • 001 - Introducing The Indy Author
    • For Guests of The Indy Author Podcast
    • Podcast Guest and Topic Proposals
  • Services
    • Services - Author Consulting
    • Services - Podcasting for Authors
  • Podcasting for Authors
  • Short Fiction
  • Creating a Story Frame
  • Resources
  • Tools
  • Affiliates
  • The Craft
    • Getting Past the Fear of (First Draft) Commitment
    • Scalability
    • Professionalism
    • From Dead in the Water to Favorable Winds
  • The Voyage
    • Reading Your Work Aloud
    • Preparing to Request an Author Blurb
    • Navigating Indy
  • For the Armchair Sailor
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Episode 168 - How to Write from Trauma without Retraumatizing Yourself with Mary Adkins

January 10, 2023
I talk with Mary Adkins about HOW TO WRITE FROM TRAUMA WITHOUT RETRAUMATIZING YOURSELF, including choosing between memoir and fiction, having one driving theme in memoir, the emotional intensity and physical experience of returning to trauma, balancing the needs of the writer and the reader, and the healing power of writing. I want to let you know in advance that the trauma Mary discusses is having suffered multiple miscarriages in one year, so be aware if that might be a triggering topic for you.
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Mary Adkins is a writing coach, podcast host, and founder of The Book Incubator, a 12-month program to write, revise, and pitch your novel or memoir. She is author of the novel WHEN YOU READ THIS, PRIVILEGE, and PALM BEACH, which was described by Associated Press as “like a sandy beach, equal parts beautiful and uncomfortable.” Her books have been published in 13 countries, and her essays and reporting have appeared in the New York Times, The Atlantic, Slate, and more. A graduate of Yale Law School and Duke University, she helps aspiring authors finish their books with joy and clarity.
"There's this saying that I had heard before, and that I had always thought it sounded very smart and now I don't agree it, which is,  write from your scars, not from your wounds. And I think it's all  kind of BS. My understanding of that adage is that it's to protect people from retriggering themselves, retraumatizing themselves by writing about something that's raw. But I think that it doesn't distinguish between writing and publishing." —Mary Adkins
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The Indy Author Podcast is #MadeWithDescript
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Links

Mary's Links:
maryadkinswriter.com

Craft Talk Book Club
https://twitter.com/AdkinsMary​
https://www.facebook.com/maryadkinswriter
The Body Keeps the Score
by Bessel van der Kolk https://amzn.to/3hDU95m (Matty affiliate link)

Email: mary@maryadkinswriter.com

Related Episodes:
Episode 149 - Using Vulnerability to Feed your Creativity with Annmarie Kelly-Harbaugh
Episode 069 - Writing Memoir with Beth Kephart

Matty's Links:
Affiliate links
Events

I hope you enjoyed my conversation with Mary! Have you incorporated a traumatic experience from your own life into your writing—fiction, memoir, or other non-fiction? I’d love to hear whatever you’d be comfortable sharing.
Please post your comments on YouTube--and I'd love it if you would subscribe while you're there!

NOTE: After several years of trying to cover the costs of producing the podcast with earnings from patronage and sponsorships, I finally had to acknowledge that, for now at least, The Indy Author Podcast is more a labor of love than an income stream. ​As a result, I needed to find ways to reduce my expenses, and the expense I finally decided to eliminate was the editing of the transcript. ​

However, it's valuable for me to know that you were looking for it! If you miss the transcript, please click here to drop me a note!

If you'd like to become a patron of The Indy Author, please click here.

When AI transcription improves to the point that it doesn't require the time and expense of a human edit, or once my earnings from the podcast enable me to cover the costs of a human editing, I will resume that offering!
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Alliance of Independent Authors
© 2013-2023 William Kingsfield Publishers
  • Home
  • About & Contact
  • Podcast
    • 171 - Outside-the-Box Content
    • 170 - Creating a Winning Workbook
    • 169 - The Do's and Don'ts of Working with Book Bloggers
    • 168 - How to Write from Trauma
    • 167 - Good Habits and Accountability Groups
    • 166 - Plotting with an Unreliable Narrator
    • 165 - Strengthening Your Fiction with a Premise
    • 164 - What Writers Can Learn from Short Fiction
    • 163 - Year End: The Writing Craft And The Publishing Voyage
    • 162 - Book Marketing Lessons from Beyond the Book World
    • 161 - Choosing Your Publishing Path
    • 160 - Mistakes Writers Make about Police Roles
    • 159 - Backstory: Mountaintop or Valley
    • 158 - What Writers Can Learn from Remote Workers
    • 157 - Literary Citizenship
    • 156 - Character Development Through the Pain and Promise of Life
    • 155 - The Benefits (and Costs) of Membership
    • 154 - From Screenplay to Novel and Back
    • 153 - The Importance of a Professional Photo and Video Presence
    • 152 - The Three Stages of Story
    • 151 - Setting Your Creative Horizons
    • 150 - Hands-off Merchandising for Authors
    • 149 - Using Vulnerability to Feed your Creativity
    • 148 - Making the Most of In-person Events
    • 147 - Writing for Audio
    • 146 - Managing Writing with a Full-time Career
    • 145 - Speech to Text and Back Again
    • 144 - Reaching the Right Readers through Email
    • 143 - Getting into the Mind of Your Audience
    • 142 - A New Era for Novellas
    • 141 - The Value of Collaboration
    • 140 - Troping Your Way to a Stronger Story
    • 139 - Mistakes Writers Make about Forensic Psychiatry
    • 138 - ROI for Authors
    • 137 - Using Podcasts to Support Your Book Launch
    • 136 - Looking Forward in Indy Publishing
    • 135 - The Importance of Specificity
    • 134 - How Horror is the Genre of Hope
    • 133 - Creating an AI-narrated Audiobook
    • 132 - From Big Idea to Book
    • 131 - The Color Wheel of Characterization
    • 130 - Outsourcing Your Content Creation
    • 129 - Moving for Creativity
    • 128 - Lessons from Filmmaking
    • 127 - Mistakes Writers Make about PIs
    • 126 - Estate Planning for Authors
    • 125 - The Seven Most Common Mistakes of Non-Fiction Authors
    • 124 - The Rise of Subscription Models
    • 123 - Building Engaging Worlds
    • 122 - Using Data to Guide Your Craft
    • 121 - Story Structure and Character Motivation
    • 120 - Draft2Digital Updates: Smashwords and Print
    • 119 - Metadata Is Your Brand
    • 118 - The Martial Art of Writing
    • 117 - Tracking Sales Data and How ScribeCount Can Help
    • 116 - Creating Community, Content, and Creative Energy
    • 115 - Exploring Kindle Vella
    • 114 - Making Smart Decisions about Your Distribution Strategy
    • 113 - What Authors Can Learn from Theater
    • 112 - Being the Captain of Your Author Voyage
    • 111 - Using Engines, Anchors, and Hazards to Define Character Voice
    • 110 - Making Meaningful Connections through Powerful Language
    • 109 - Wide Retailers and Aggregators
    • 108 - Writing Non-fiction from the Inside
    • 107 - Publishing Process #7: Selective Rights Licensing
    • 106 - Publishing Process #6: Promotion
    • 105 - Publishing Process #5: Marketing
    • 104 - Publishing Process #4: Distribution
    • 103 - Publishing Process #3: Production
    • 102 - Publishing Process #2: Design
    • 101 - Publishing Process #1: Editorial
    • 100 - Becoming a Relaxed Author
    • 099 - Connecting with Fans through Merchandising
    • 098 - Redefining Indy Success through Short Fiction
    • 097 - Taking the Long View
    • 096 - Emerging Tech for the Writing Craft
    • 095 - Finding and Being a Ghostwriter
    • 094 - Debunking Writing Myths
    • 093 - Valuing the Creative Process
    • 092 - Finding a Crew for Your Creative Voyage
    • 091 - Creating Stellar Side Characters
    • 090 - Bringing a Creative Endeavor to an End
    • 089 - The Both-ness of Compelling Characters
    • 088 - How to Receive and Give Critique
    • 087 - Looking Back and Forward at Indy Publishing
    • 086 - Overhauling Keywords
    • 085 - Optimizing Your Keywords
    • 084 - Using Content Legally
    • 083 - Six Rs of Maximizing the Value of Your Content
    • 082 - Perspectives on Writer's Block
    • 081 - Human-Centered Marketing
    • 080 - The Force of a Brand
    • 079 - Making the Most of Your Short Fiction
    • 078 - Living Your Best Creative Life
    • 077 - Behind the Scenes of My Book Launch
    • 076 - BookFunnel
    • 075 - Key Book Publishing Paths
    • 074 - Perspectives on Personal Branding
    • 073 - Author Websites
    • 072 - Mentoring and Collaborating with Interns
    • 071 - Provider Side of Author Services
    • 070 - Copyright for Authors
    • 069 - Writing Memoir
    • 068 - Handling Difficult Topics in YA Fiction
    • 067 - Mistakes Writers Make about the FBI
    • 066 - From Indy to Traditional
    • 065 - X-raying Your Plot
    • 064 - Children's Books
    • 063 - Wide for the Win
    • 062 - Point of View
    • 061 - Google Play
    • 060 - Mastering Action Sequences
    • 059 - Newsletter Swaps and StoryOrigin
    • 058 - Author Newsletters
    • 057 - The Pros and Cons of Pre-orders
    • 056 - Crowdfunding for Authors
    • 055 - Costs of Self-publishing a Book
    • 054 - Futurist Trends We Can Prepare for Now
    • 053 - Learn from TV and Movies
    • 052 - Building a Resilient Indy Business
    • 051 - Podcasting as Content Marketing
    • 050 - First Responders
    • 049 - Ruminations on Book Launches
    • 048 - Protagonist and Antagonist Voices
    • 047 - Backstory and Flashbacks
    • 046 - Writing Coroners
    • 045 - Exercise
    • 044 - Using Aggregators versus Direct
    • 043 - Killing Suspense
    • 042 - The Importance of Metadata
    • 041 - Writing Convincing Villains
    • 040 - Storytelling Lessons from Investigative Reporting
    • 039 Building a Writer Community
    • 038 - Graphic Novels
    • 037 - How Cozy is Cozy?
    • 036 - Frugal Tips for Writers
    • 035 - Police Procedures
    • 034 - Connecting through Video
    • 033 - Barriers to Creativity
    • 032 - Hybrid Publishing
    • 031 - ebook Pricing
    • 030 - Common Writer Wisdom: Is it Right for You?
    • 029 - Fostering Creativity through Digital Minimalism
    • 028 - Writing the Killer Query
    • 027 - Why to Stop Blogging
    • 026 - Weaving Your Day Job into Your Books
    • 025 - Mastering Book Descriptions
    • 024 - Three Hard Truths
    • 023 - Reaching New Readers through Translations
    • 022 - SEO for Authors
    • 021 - Building Communities in Podcasts and In Person
    • 020 - Working with Libraries & Bookstores
    • 019 - Judging a Book by Its Cover
    • 018 - The Importance of Masterworks
    • 017 - Story a Day
    • 016 - Drawing Back the Publishing Curtain
    • 015 - Five Things I Wish I Knew Before I Was Published
    • 014 - Collaborating on "Taking the Short Tack"
    • 013 - Writing in Time
    • 012 - Top Firearms Mistakes Writers Make ...
    • 011 - Making the Move to Full-Time Writer
    • 010 - Update from The Indy Author
    • 009 - Craft and Business of Short Fiction
    • 008 - Screenwriting
    • 007 - Faster Fiction
    • 006 - Importance of Storytelling
    • 005 - Image-intensive Books
    • 004 - Using Media Outlets
    • 003 - Small Press Publishing
    • 002 - Creativity Tips
    • 001 - Introducing The Indy Author
    • For Guests of The Indy Author Podcast
    • Podcast Guest and Topic Proposals
  • Services
    • Services - Author Consulting
    • Services - Podcasting for Authors
  • Podcasting for Authors
  • Short Fiction
  • Creating a Story Frame
  • Resources
  • Tools
  • Affiliates
  • The Craft
    • Getting Past the Fear of (First Draft) Commitment
    • Scalability
    • Professionalism
    • From Dead in the Water to Favorable Winds
  • The Voyage
    • Reading Your Work Aloud
    • Preparing to Request an Author Blurb
    • Navigating Indy
  • For the Armchair Sailor
  • Events
  • For Libraries
  • Blog
  • William Kingsfield Publishers
  • Patrons of The Indy Author
  • Press Kit
  • Enter