Hi!
It’s BE BRAVE FRIDAY!
And it’s been a week in our family full of kid drama (they are totally okay; they just had a hard week at school) and me doing my annual stress out of:
WHY DO I WORK FOR MYSELF? WHAT IF I MAKE NO MONEY.
I do this every single year. The truth is that I’m actually super lucky. I get to make content all the time (sometimes I even get paid for it), write books, and help other people write their own stories. And I still have a house and food, so you think I’d chill out, breathe deeply, and not worry so much about supporting my family, right?
Wrong.
Full admission: Every month, I look at my sheet where I keep track of income and think, “What if I make no money this month?” And anxiety creeps into the palms of my hands and makes them tingle. This anxiety is even worse at the beginning of a new year, and guess what? It’s the beginning of a new year.
Logically, I know that I’m fine. That I could transition to another type of job if I stopped making money, but I still get that creeping anxiety that tells me, “Do more! Do more! Do more, Carrie. Don’t waste time.”
Sigh.
Does this happen to you?

IN OTHER THINGS LESS ANXIETY-FILLED
In an effort to not overwhelm you and your email (those of you who subscribe), I’ve made podcasts a different kind of post rather than automatic-to-the-inbox posts. That way you can click on the links of the ones that interest you.
And hopefully they will! I’ve started a bunch of new things this year and I’m hoping that you’ll like them and that they’ll take me in new, exciting directions.
CARRIE DOES POETRY
This brand-new podcast starts of with a quick poem by me, read by me. “Santa’s Apology.”

DOGS ARE SMARTER THAN PEOPLE
This week in Dogs are Smarter Than People, we talked about how addictions are taking over our lives.

WRITE BETTER NOW
And on the brand-new Writer Better Now, we talk about how to use foreshadowing in the opening of your story.

Over on Medium and my social media, I post motivating daily thoughts from my animals. On Medium (and only on Medium), I post poems that I’ve written (usually) every weekday. You should check it out!
My little, creepy book baby is out in the world because who doesn’t want sad, quirky, horror with some romantic bits for the holiday season?
It’s a young adult novel (upper) called WHEN YOU BRING THEM BACK, please buy it!
It’s super fun.
