Brave Words is for those who are fed up of procrastinating, self-sabotaging and fearing failure or success and want to take consistent, tiny steps towards their big creative dreams.
Is that you? Or, would you like it to be you? Or maybe you just like reading about the behind-the-scenes journey of a writer. Or, you’d like to know where writers gain their inspiration.
Whatever the reason, I’d love it if you came and joined me.
Hi, I’m Helen, and I’ve been writing online in one form or another for nearly twenty years. I’ve now found my home here on Substack, and I’ve been writing about creativity, confidence and my writing journey in these newsletters since 2022.
Previously, this newsletter was called The Anxious Writer. I would describe myself as an unconfident writer, a procrastinator, a self-sabotager, you name it, I was it.
But I’ve decided I no longer want to define myself by those negative terms. I may struggle with them at times but equally I consistently show up, I keep going, I’ve produced a huge body of work here on Substack, my blog, Instagram and YouTube, I’ve created a workbook about journaling, I’ve written a novel that is currently awaiting it’s final edit, and I’m querying literary agents with my non-fiction book proposal.
So I’ve decided to reframe my outlook and to call this newsletter Brave Words. It’s all about consistently showing up, taking tiny steps, finishing projects and moving closer towards our writing dreams.
What to expect from Brave Words.
All subscribers will receive my monthly Stories From My Desk newsletter, where I share book recommendations, film/TV/plays/YouTube recommendations and news of what I’ve been writing and creating.
In addition, I’m writing a behind-the-scenes junk journal diary for all subscribers called Crumbs From the Writing Desk, which will document my writing journey. This will be weekly or fortnightly, depending on how much writing I’ve been doing.
I intend to write and publish a big, meaty essay every other month, such as this one I wrote about Agatha Christie. These essays involve research and push me, gently, out of my comfort zone. So I live up to the name of this newsletter.
Behind the paywall is where the really juicy stuff happens. I’m currently querying agents for non-fiction and working on editing my novel. I write introspective, honest and vulnerable essays about my creative process or my writing journey, alongside the behind-the-scenes aspects of my projects, planning and my creative thought processes.
MASTERCLASSES
I am in the process of developing live monthly masterclasses via Zoom for paid subscribers, with the first one arriving mid to late summer called Becoming Creatively Confident. Replays will be available.
Paid subscribers also get access to a replay of my Your Writing Notebook Masterclass (see below).
MASTERCLASS: Your Writing Notebook
A one hour masterclass about how your writing notebooks can provide creative ideas and content in addition to helping you with your creative direction, goals and strategy.
The price of an annual subscription is £20. That’s just £1.66 per month. I would love to have you here for an entire year so you can really make an impact on your creative life.
If you’re looking to kick the fear to one side, to shove procrastination away, to gain momentum, steal some inspiration and take those tiny steps towards your creative dreams, then this is most definitely the place for you.
