The Confident Fiction Author
Hey there my fellow author, I’m Sarah Elisabeth Sawyer, an old soul kind of writer living my dream as a full-time author and authorprenuer.
But I didn’t start out living a confident creative lifestyle. I struggled with the fears and the mental and emotional barriers that so often plague writers at all stages of their author career.
But the truth is that, with the right knowledge, tools, and training, you can overcome those barriers. I’m here to teach you how I’ve developed a lifestyle that’s allowed me to publish 19 books (and counting).
Each week as you tune into the Confident Fiction Author podcast, you’ll get clarity on the steps you need to take to advance your writing career. Whether it’s developing your ideal writing routine, tackling new skills like dictating your fiction, or overcoming the obstacles life throws your way, this podcast will help you live a more confident, creative lifestyle.
Free resources for you:
The Confident Fiction Author Toolkit: https://www.fictioncourses.com/toolkit
Dictation + Scrivener Power Combo: https://www.fictioncourses.com/dictation
Dictation for Authors: Tools and Tips of the Trade: https://www.fictioncourses.com/dictation
5 Stereotypes to Avoid When Writing about Native Americans: https://www.fictioncourses.com/stereotypes
Episodes
32 episodes
#32: The Broken Emoji: Writing Through the Mess of Being Human
You know that weird thing your phone does—when you write a word and it offers you an emoji instead? That happened once when I wrote the word broken. It offered to change it to a sad or angry face which caught me off guard.But it’s a true re...
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16:52
#31: Managing Reader Expectations: What Every Author Should Know
Have you ever met a fan of your work and walked away wondering… Was I a letdown?I’ve been there (more than once). It’s a weird space to navigate. As fiction authors, we pour years of emotion, imagination, and experience into our...
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25:50
#30: How to Become a Reader Again
If you’re a fiction author who hasn’t felt like a reader in a while… you’re not alone.Between writing deadlines, life demands, and constant distractions, it’s easy to fall out of the habit of reading for joy. But if you want to write...
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17:41
#29: How to Make Mental Adjustments in a Crisis to Keep Writing (Part 2)
Let’s face it: crisis doesn’t knock—it crashes in.Maybe it's a family emergency, a health scare, or some other chaos that pulls you away from your writing desk. I’ve been there recently—seven intense weeks deep after a car accident—a...
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20:58
#28: Should You Hire a Sensitivity Reader?
Most authors are concerned about getting it wrong when writing about other cultures or anything they've not personally experienced, including disabilities and traumas.When it comes to cultural differences especially, many authors are fe...
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18:37
#27: Burn the Candle: A Gentle Nudge Toward an Abundant Writing Life
There’s a candle on my stove that I once treated like treasure. I’d light it only on “special” days—afraid that once I'd burned it down, I'd lose that treasure.One day, I realized something simple but powerful:I could burn the ca...
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17:44
#26: How to Dictate Your Next Novel
If you're a regular listener of my podcast, you know I love to dictate my fiction, and you know I love to teach my fellow authors how.And that's the key.I heard so many authors gush about the huge wordcounts they were racking up...
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44:00
#25: 4 Ways You Can Borrow a Skilled Author's Confidence
In January of this year, I flew an airplane. As in, a real airplane.How?Because I was able to borrow a skilled pilot’s confidence.And I needed to borrow it, because I had no confidence in my ability to even try (I know, ...
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31:18
#24: Healthy Living, Healthy Writing: 3 Ways to Take Care of Yourself as an Author
Are health issues holding you back from living your best creative lifestyle?When I first started teaching authors how to dictate their novels, I thought the main reason authors would want to learn dictation would be to write faster. ...
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19:41
#23: Take a Break: How to Rest as an Author
Remember the days when places of business were closed on Sundays? That was in my lifetime. In the days before pay at the pump when you had better make sure your tank was on full Saturday because the gas stations were closed on Sundays....
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24:15
#22: From Camera-Shy to Confident: Planning an Author Photoshoot Session
Be honest—when was the last time you updated your author headshot? If the answer is “I don’t remember” or “I had bangs back then,” it’s probably time for a refresh.As fiction authors, we want to show up with confidence—whether it’s for ...
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22:53
#21: Can Fiction Writing Be Effortless?
If you’ve spent any time writing fiction, you might be laughing at the idea of it being effortless. After all, there is: Writer’s block.The struggle to find the right words.The frustration of making stories come ...
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27:43
#20: How Your Morning Routine Could Make You a Better Writer
I want to start off with acknowledging that you may not be a morning person. That's okay! When I read the book, "Miracle Morning" by Hal Elrod, he shared that some 75% of his readers come into his book as declared not-morning people. That chang...
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24:42
#19. How (Not) To Quit Writing - Preventing or Recovering from Burnout
Time for a deep breath. Then come in close, my friend. The past few weeks on The Confident Fiction Author podcast, we've talked a lot about decluttering your life to make room for creativity, and flat-out quitting on projects becaus...
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29:02
#18: How to Know What to Quit, When, and How
Have you heard the saying, "Mama didn't raise no quitter?" I think we all grow up hearing, “Don’t be a quitter!” But what if there were times and circumstances when quitting was a good thing? The truth is, you most lik...
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25:02
#17: How to Apply the 80/20 Rule to Your Author Career
In a world of information overload and analysis paralysis, what if I told you there was a formula to help you decide which things were most worth your time? I’ve said it before: creative confidence starts with clarity. But how can y...
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22:54
#16: The Art of Downtime - Three Rs for the Author Life
This week's podcast episode is a deep dive into three Rs of the author life.Because living a confident fiction author lifestyle is not just about confidence in your productivity…it's also about feeling confident in your downtime!<...
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32:42
#15: Decluttering Your Author Life to Make Room for Creativity
What if I told you the key to doing more is actually doing less? You may be struggling to find time to sit down and write… or you may feel scattered and distracted when you do sit down to write. Maybe you’ve carved...
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40:27
#14: Break Free from Overwhelm: Mastering Essentialism for Your Author Life
You’re likely familiar with the concept of "minimalism." While I’m not a die-hard minimalist myself, I am working to pare down my possessions...and also get to just the essentials in my author life.Today I'm covering 19 ways to practice...
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28:45
#13: Get it Together by Getting it Going
What if I told you there’s one method you can use to overcome any obstacle? Since you listen to this podcast, you’re probably at least a little bit of a perfectionist. You like goal-setting, self-improvement, and learning the best ...
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25:42
#12: Is Dictation Considered AI-Assisted Writing?
When it comes to technology, we always tend to feel a little behind. But with the advent of generative AI, discussions within the author community are bursting with passionate debates and the topic is even banned in some writing groups....
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22:28
#11: Revising Your Author Mindset – Eliminate Limiting Beliefs, Embrace Liberating Truths
The first few weeks of a new year can be tough, especially for authors. We're feeling the creative slump after the holidays, and we feel our goals and New Year's resolutions already bearing down on us.What if there was an easier way to ...
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19:23
#10: 5-Minute Fiction: New Habit for the New Year
As an inconsistent writer, I've still managed to publish 19 books, but I've never been satisfied with my lack of daily fiction writing. My 5-Minute Fiction habit has changed that and brought the joy of fiction writing back into my life....
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23:14
#9: Increase your reading speed by 40% with this one method (without speed reading)
The holidays are a great chance to do mega tons of reading, and you most likely have books on your Christmas wish list!But what if there was a way to actually read those books you want to before ringing in the new year? I have a method ...
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29:16