The Monthly RED FERN 🌿 Summary | May Edition
Recommendations, reads & my own goals & projects from the month of May. Plus the behind-the-scenes thoughts from my writing business.
This is the third in my series of monthly articles which brings you not just the books, podcasts and videos I’ve been watching over the past month but also my own goals and the progress or struggles with my writing and writing business. The latter is for paid subscribers only. If you’re interested in my writing journey (which this month shares how I’ve discovered the secret of growing as a writer - but don’t get excited there’s no secret sauce just patience, consistency and hard work) then upgrade your subscription below.
Books
Once more I’ve not read any fiction (it’s a post-burnout hangover, I think) although I have just ordered Regrettably, I’m About to Cause Trouble by Amie McNee. I thoroughly enjoyed The Rules Upheld by No One by Amie back in 2021 - it became one of my favourite books of that year.
I am reading non-fiction, though. Burnt Out by Selina Barker is my non-fiction book of the month. In her introduction she talks about how technology was supposed to make our life easier “but instead we are feeling more exhausted, more under pressure and more stressed out than ever before.” She also talks about feeling like she’s in a “constant race against time” and how everything feels urgent. Something I can very much relate to. I look forward to dissecting the book in a couple of essays later this month.
Television
I’m back to re-watching old episodes of The Big Bang Theory. I do this when I’m wiped out, or emerging from a tough time. I read somewhere that we do this because (and I’m paraphrasing here) we know what’s going to happen and know there will be no sudden shocks. It’s comforting, reassuring. And I love me some Sheldon Cooper.
Substacks
If you are interested in TV recommendations then go take a look at
. Claire’s Substack has a vast array of programmes to watch and books to read and her writing is gorgeous.Another ‘stacker whose writing I thoroughly enjoy is
from . I was thrilled to discover that she was on here. Amber is one of those writers who has been writing on the internet for years*. I even have a copy of her book My Blogging Secrets: A guide to becoming a pro-blogger which she published back in 2017. I love that Amber writes about everything and anything. She doesn’t stick to a niche, she doesn’t write to sell products or services - but just, writes. Refreshing and amusing.*No age-related disrespect here. Just that Amber is one of the original bloggers with valuable knowledge and incredible skills.
I also love this inspiring article (below) from
. It’s all about Sasha “accepting being a beginner again. Being bad. Trying a thing, taking a risk, experimenting and relinquishing control. It meant putting my creative self, which often feels like my most vulnerable self, out into the ether in a new way and not knowing how it would be received.” Sasha - I’m loving your courage and look forward to following your journey.Podcasts
I need some podcast recommendations. I love podcasts about the creative process, or ones about writing and creating online or women doing their own thing in mid-life (but not ‘how to write’ ones). I currently listen to The Rebel Author Podcast, The Just Bloody Post It Podcast, The Unpublished Podcast, The Secret Library Podcast and Penny Wincer’s Not Too Busy To Write Podcast. If you have any you think I’d enjoy please let me know.
My own writing & content
As I talk about in my latest podcast with Claire, the month of May was a pretty good one for me in terms of my writing. Not only did I pick up my non-fiction book proposal for the first time in six months but I also wrote three pieces that resonated a lot with subscribers and gained a lot of traction (for me) on Notes.
The Fear of Your Writing Being Misunderstood and Attracting Negativity (read quickly if you haven’t already as this will be archived for paid subscribers from tomorrow - 3rd June).
Then I wrote two pieces inspired by Austin Kleon’s book, Show Your Work. Show Your Work is a book about promoting your creativity and finding an audience online without allowing the marketing side to take over your creative life. The Four Points That Really Inspired Me from Show Your Work by Austin Kleon was my first piece and pulled out the wisdom from Austin Kleon that I really identified with. (Free subscribers have until 20th June to read this.)
Are You Neglecting Your Writing in Favour of Growing a Following? was a piece inspired both by Austin Kleon’s book and Amie McNee’s podcast. I wanted to share my experiences from when I would put content creation on Instagram before writing my book as I thought growing a platform was a priority. But there is a way of growing by concentrating on your core work and taking aspects of that to grow your platform. (Free subscribers have until 22nd June to read this.)
I also wrote a couple of really honest and vulnerable posts for Paid Subscribers. This is What Recovering From Burnout Looks Like and an essay documenting the journey behind writing a book proposal: The Journey of a Book: Returning to the Proposal After Six Months!
One Year Anniversary
I will have been writing on Substack for one year on 7th June. If you’d like to hear about my journey and behind-the-scenes thoughts (including the mindset issues that constantly plague me when writing essays plus the growth of my subscribers) then I’m writing a big juicy piece all about it. I’m also hoping to go live on Zoom on Wednesday 7th at 6.30 pm UK time. This is for Paid Subscribers only. You can read more in this post: Want to hear about the behind-the-scenes of my Substack?
I’m now inserting a paywall because what I’m going to write next is a little more vulnerable so is for paid subscribers only. It’s about the behind-the-scenes of my writing and writing business.