The Written Compass

When clients come to work with us, there is a common part of the journey that almost everyone experiences: fear. Often this fear can manifest as questioning and doubting ourselves and wondering “who am I” to share my words in a book?! 

In today’s episode, I share a story of how this showed up recently with a client as well as how you might work with and through this very common feeling as you are leaving a legacy with your words. Here are some highlights from the episode: 

• Noticing when you worry about shining too bright 
• There is no such thing as overpowering or dimming others light
• This fear is actually about you
• Your job is not to determine what others will say, how they will respond to your words, etc. 
• The freedom of releasing these expectations

If you want some help kicking things off, download my Embodied Book Writing Kickstarter: https://shanahartman.com/writingkickstart

As always, leave us a review so that more people see the podcast and get the writing support they need. Then, share your takeaways and this episode on IG, tagging me @shanahartman_ Remember, we are here to change the personal growth and biz strategy publishing world by activating our unique voices and stories.

If you are ready to see if working with Shana and her team is your next step for leaving your legacy and getting your core messages from business and life in an empowering book click this link to work with Shana!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In today’s episode, I share how transformative book writing is not only for yourself but for all that you desire in your life and your career or business. And here’s the kicker, it’s not about the book! The book is a vehicle for so many amazing opportunities! 

Here are some highlights from this episode:

• Book as Legacy (it lives on after you)
• Books as a way to reach more people and in an accessible way
• Books are your best referral partners
• Provides clarity of thought and a tool for growth

If you want some help kicking things off, download my Embodied Book Writing Kickstarter: https://shanahartman.com/writingkickstart

As always, leave us a review so that more people see the podcast and get the writing support they need. Then, share your takeaways and this episode on IG, tagging me @shanahartman_ Remember, we are here to change the personal growth and biz strategy publishing world by activating our unique voices and stories.

If you are ready to see if working with Shana and her team is your next step for leaving your legacy and getting your core messages from business and life in an empowering book click this link to work with Shana!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

My team and I are all about supporting our clients in finding the book they want to write. We have published personal growth books, business strategy books, lesson memoir books, and more! 

Lately, we are seeing our clients explore what feels like a new genre: interactive books. It’s a mix of longer, chapter writing combined with journal prompts and space for the reader to write. In today’s episode, I share more about what feels like a fun, new genre. 

Want help getting started? Head to this link!

As always, leave us a review so that more people see the podcast and get the writing support they need. Then, share your takeaways and this episode on IG, tagging me @shanahartman_ Remember, we are here to change the personal growth and biz strategy publishing world by activating our unique voices and stories.

If you are ready to see if working with Shana and her team is your next step for leaving your legacy and getting your core messages from business and life in an empowering book click this link to work with Shana!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Many folks who write a book want to be a #1 Best Seller! On KDP, this doesn’t necessarily mean what you think it does. In today’s episode, I share how we support our clients in achieving #1 and top 10 rankings on KDP! 

Highlights:

- it’s important to know what the KDP rankings actually mean

- it’s important to know your “why“ for wanting to be “ranked” 

- there are some key codes to crack to help you have the best rankings for you

We also have a new exciting resource to share! https://shanahartman.com/writingkickstart

Want help getting started? Head to this link!

As always, leave us a review so that more people see the podcast and get the writing support they need. Then, share your takeaways and this episode on IG, tagging me @shanahartman_ Remember, we are here to change the personal growth and biz strategy publishing world by activating our unique voices and stories.

If you are ready to see if working with Shana and her team is your next step for leaving your legacy and getting your core messages from business and life in an empowering book click this link to work with Shana!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

I love talking to folks about their writing ideas. I get giddy hearing them go from thought to thought, verbally laying down one powerful word after another. Then, something shifts. 

Almost like clockwork, they begin telling me all the things they need so they can actually write what they just shared. In today’s episode, I dive into what you really need to write vs what you think you need. 

I discuss some of the myths around writing tools, clarity of ideas, and using writing prompts. 

Want help getting started? Head to this link!

As always, leave us a review so that more people see the podcast and get the writing support they need. Then, share your takeaways and this episode on IG, tagging me @shanahartman_ Remember, we are here to change the personal growth and biz strategy publishing world by activating our unique voices and stories.

If you are ready to see if working with Shana and her team is your next step for leaving your legacy and getting your core messages from business and life in an empowering book click this link to work with Shana!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

I am celebrating 100 episodes of The Written Compass. In the episode, I discuss what I have learned, what myself and my team are celebrating, and I share the amazing books we have published. 

Highlights on what I learned: 

• do it before you are ready
• Let it be messy
• Trust yourself 
• Stay the course

Celebrating the books and authors we have supported… 

• 13 books published—name books
• Supported over 40 authors in their writing journey
• Hosted 4 writing retreats
• Hosted our first book launch event and supported 4 others from our clients
• We have expanded our program offerings to everything from $27 offerings to $50k
• Hundreds of readers impacted by these amazing authors and their books, speaking gigs, social sharing, workshops, book events, and more! 

What’s next: 

• Deeper abundance
• More authors sharing their important words—goal of 100 books published by 2028 (when I turn 50!) 
• Joy… I am committed to creating a multi-million dollar company that supports joy and helps other prospers

Here all the books mentioned in the episode and links to support the authors by buying their books: 

Juliet Kuehnle Who You Callin' Crazy?: The Journey from Stigma to Therapy

Hannah Setzer I'll Pray for You: And Other Outrageous Things Said to Disabled People

Melissa Panara Life is Written in Pencil: Finding Your Best Life in Plans B through Z

Laura Wieck The BodyMind Method: A 4-Part Framework for Embodied Entrepreneurs to Grow their Income and Impact

Halinka Prevett Vulnerably Authentic: A Journey to Being Ok

Wendy Mersch Learning to Receive

Tonya Reid US Hairways

Karen Taylor Learning to Respect My Strut

Claiming Coach: Navigating the Gap Between Completing Your Coach Training and Landing Your First Paid Client

Capturing the In-Between

Unveiling the Secrets: An Encyclopedia by Women for Women (and those who love them)

This is the Year You Write Your Book: A Year-Long Planning Guide to Support Your Writing

Loving Yourself from the Inside Out: Healing Holistically from Physical & Emotional Pain

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In today’s episode, I share 10 powerful and inspiring writing prompts to get you out of your head and into your words! Some are my own, some are borrowed, all are going to support you in going from blank page to writing flow. 

I have them all written down, but I dive further into each in the podcast. Try one and see what shows up! 

1. “The scariest moment is always just before you start.” -Stephen King Write down everything you are scared of right now about the writing you are trying to do or just scared of in general. 
2. “Almost all good writing begins with terrible first efforts. You need to start somewhere. Start by getting something -- anything -- down on paper. A friend of mine says that the first draft is the down draft -- you just get it down.” Anne Lamont Shitty First Drafts 
3. What can you “just get down” today, right now? 
4. Close your eyes. Imagine a reader is enjoying every word you are about to write. They are delighted, giddy, and heart-filled because they are reading the very words they didn’t know they needed (and you didn’t even know you could write). Breathe that vision in, pick up your pen or pencil, open your document, and write those words. 
5. When was a moment you felt most alive, most present, most YOU. Capture that moment as though you are reliving it, give the play-by-play and the color commentary. 
6. Set a word count or time goal for your writing today… 500 words, 15 minutes… the number doesn’t matter. Make a decision and write until you hit the word count or the timer goes off! 
7. What questions have you been pondering lately? Write a list of all the questions and curiosities you have had lately. 
8. What songs are inspiring you lately or are your go-to songs for inspiration? Play that song while you write. Bonus: write down the lyrics and write about how each line impacts you. 
9. Find a poem or page from something you are reading or an intriguing social media post, read it out loud to yourself, then set a 10 minute timer and write whatever shows up. 
10. Meta-writing: write about everything you are thinking right now. YES, right now! Go back and “mine” that writing for anything that feels important to explore further. 
11. Knowing there is no right or wrong, what would you LOVE to write about right now? Who would you love to write for? What would you love to say (that maybe you never have before)? Write this just for you. 

As always, leave us a review so that more people see the podcast and get the writing support they need. Then, share your takeaways and this episode on IG, tagging me @shanahartman_ Remember, we are here to change the personal growth and biz strategy publishing world by activating our unique voices and stories.

If you are ready to see if working with Shana and her team is your next step for leaving your legacy and getting your core messages from business and life in an empowering book click this link to work with Shana!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

I was talking to an amazing artist and writer recently. This woman had been working on her book for years. She was struggling with what so many aspiring writers do: overwhelm. 

We have such an unhealthy fascination with doing things on our own, stretching ourselves too thin, and wondering why the things we really value are not actually happening. In this episode, I unpack the sneaky ways overwhelm is killing your writing and publishing dreams. Here are the highlights: 

1. Time to reevaluate and reconnect with your values
2. Working against yourself and you work best
3. Thinking you need to figure it out yourself

As always, leave us a review so that more people see the podcast and get the writing support they need. Then, share your takeaways and this episode on IG, tagging me @shanahartman_ Remember, we are here to change the personal growth and biz strategy publishing world by activating our unique voices and stories.

If you are ready to see if working with Shana and her team is your next step for leaving your legacy and getting your core messages from business and life in an empowering book click this link to work with Shana!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

I was on a recent coaching call with a client and she was elbow-deep in some powerful, healing, and messy personal writing. But, she felt stuck in writing “the book.” This got me really curious about how we often compartmentalize the “messy” parts of our writing journey and process versus writing that is polished, ready for publication, and “forward facing” as my client called it. 

As we begin a new year, I reflect on 2023 in this episode to really explore the question: What if the MESS is the way forward… with your writing and publishing goals and life? I look forward to hearing your thoughts! 

As always, leave us a review so that more people see the podcast and get the writing support they need. Then, share your takeaways and this episode on IG, tagging me @shanahartman_ Remember, we are here to change the personal growth and biz strategy publishing world by activating our unique voices and stories.

If you are ready to see if working with Shana and her team is your next step for leaving your legacy and getting your core messages from business and life in an empowering book click this link to work with Shana!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this episode, I share all the different ways myself and my team support people just like you on whatever their writing journey may be! Our mission: 

We envision a world where all voices are heard and all experiences are valued. We believe writing is a pathway to connecting with self and honoring our experiences. We encourage the sharing of our voices with the world because we believe it promotes community connections and collective healing. Through embodied writing experiences, Synergy Publishing Group guides and supports writers, scribblers, and storytellers on their unique journeys to leave a legacy with their words.

Have a listen, see which ones might fit you, and click the link below to get started! 

As always, leave us a review so that more people see the podcast and get the writing support they need. Then, share your takeaways and this episode on IG, tagging me @shanahartman_ Remember, we are here to change the personal growth and biz strategy publishing world by activating our unique voices and stories.

If you are ready to see if working with Shana and her team is your next step for leaving your legacy and getting your core messages from business and life in an empowering book click this link to work with Shana!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this episode, I had the pleasure of sitting down with the amazing, direct, powerhouse that is Karen Taylor! Karen is one of our amazing authors who has participated in our two collaborative books at Synergy Publishing Group: Capturing the In-Between and Unveiling the Secrets. Her first solo author debut book, Learning to Respect My Strut, is due out just before the new year! 

In this episode, we discuss: 

• It’s never too late to start your writing journey
• Powerful self-talk will support the ups and downs of your writing process
• What everyone needs to know to just do the darn thing and write your book! 

Karen is an English instructor and Writing Center Coordinator at a local community college near her home in Western North Carolina. Karen’s writing explores how women can better understand their inherent power, experience their right to freedom, and find their own strut. She is a mother of three sons, one biological, the other two acquired, of which she is fiercely proud. She calls herself humorously inappropriate, and when not writing, she can be found loving on dogs and enjoying the beach. You can connect with Karen on Instagram @_karen_taylor

As always, leave us a review so that more people see the podcast and get the writing support they need. Then, share your takeaways and this episode on IG, tagging me @shanahartman_ Remember, we are here to change the personal growth and biz strategy publishing world by activating our unique voices and stories.

If you are ready to see if working with Shana and her team is your next step for leaving your legacy and getting your core messages from business and life in an empowering book click this link to work with Shana!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In Episode 92 I did some fun exploring of what work and living and writing gets to look like. Hopefully that episode supported you in realizing you are basically always writing. So, in today’s episode, I offer some practical steps on how to capture your continuously creative self. These are the very tricks and tools our clients use to help them go from what feels like a slew of random ideas to beautiful published books! 

Here are the highlights

• Work with yourself: you are not suddenly going to develop this strict habit of writing everyday at 5am if you aren’t a morning person and have never written consistently before. Try different things and see what works for you. Be consistently flexible! 
• Push your beliefs on what counts as writing: writing doesn’t always have to involve pen and paper or a computer. Feel into the moments when ideas are running through you and start to test the best ways to capture those ideas for yourself 
• Tried and true practical tools our clients use to get their thoughts down: Voxer, Otter.ai, writing sprints, a community of support, and more  

As always, leave us a review so that more people see the podcast and get the writing support they need. Then, share your takeaways and this episode on IG, tagging me @shanahartman_ Remember, we are here to change the personal growth and biz strategy publishing world by activating our unique voices and stories.

If you are ready to see if working with Shana and her team is your next step for leaving your legacy and getting your core messages from business and life in an empowering book click this link to work with Shana!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Often coming up with ideas for writing is presented as this thing we don’t yet have and must come up with, and then we can write! In this episode, I get curious about how we can actually tap into the bazillion ideas we have swirling around through the practice of gratitude. Join me as I walk you through some fun questions and writing prompts that can help you tap into the spirit of gratitude while also supporting your writing! 

As always, leave us a review so that more people see the podcast and get the writing support they need. Then, share your takeaways and this episode on IG, tagging me @shanahartman_ Remember, we are here to change the personal growth and biz strategy publishing world by activating our unique voices and stories.

If you are ready to see if working with Shana and her team is your next step for leaving your legacy and getting your core messages from business and life in an empowering book click this link to work with Shana!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

I have been leaning into what “work” gets to look like these days. Am I working when I am on a walk with my dog? Am I working when I take my son and I to dinner? Am I working when I take a nap? And since my work revolves around writing, I thought it would be fun to do an episode exploring the “art of writing,” which for me and those of you who have a desire to write a book, lends itself to exploring the “art of living” as well. 

In this episode, we’ll explore: 

• Redefining work
• Redefining writing and how we write 
• Exploring what’s possible when we draw blurry lines between working, writing, and living

I’m excited to see what shows up for you today! 

L.P. Jacks' quote referenced in today's episode can be found here.

As always, leave us a review so that more people see the podcast and get the writing support they need. Then, share your takeaways and this episode on IG, tagging me @shanahartman_ Remember, we are here to change the personal growth and biz strategy publishing world by activating our unique voices and stories.

If you are ready to see if working with Shana and her team is your next step for leaving your legacy and getting your core messages from business and life in an empowering book click this link to work with Shana!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In today’s episode, I keep the spooky Halloween spirit going and talk about why we often feel so scared to write! I dive into some of the ways that I coach people through naming the fears, how our body responds to these fears, and what might support you in moving with and through the fear (yes, my dear, the fear is gonna be there no matter what!). 

Some highlights from the episode are: 

• Normalizing fear as a part of our writing process
• Exploring the meaning we are giving to the fear showing up
• Where the fear comes from
• What is really going on when we get scared and nervous about our writing 
• How to work with and through the fear and keep writing

As always, leave us a review so that more people see the podcast and get the writing support they need. Then, share your takeaways and this episode on IG, tagging me @shanahartman_ Remember, we are here to change the personal growth and biz strategy publishing world by activating our unique voices and stories.

If you are ready to see if working with Shana and her team is your next step for leaving your legacy and getting your core messages from business and life in an empowering book click this link to work with Shana!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In today's episode, I share my experiences in receiving royalties from my books. I have published traditionally with a big publishing house and self-published. In the episode, I break down: In today's episode, I share my experiences in receiving royalties from my books. I have published traditionally with a big publishing house and self-published. In the episode, I break down: 

• The differences in royalties I receive from my traditionally published vs self-published book
• How to decide which is the aligned path for you

As always, this sharing is not about which is right/wrong, but which is more aligned with you and your publishing (and beyond) goals). 

As always, leave us a review so that more people see the podcast and get the writing support they need. Then, share your takeaways and this episode on IG, tagging me @shanahartman_ Remember, we are here to change the personal growth and biz strategy publishing world by activating our unique voices and stories.

If you are ready to see if working with Shana and her team is your next step for leaving your legacy and getting your core messages from business and life in an empowering book click this link to work with Shana!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

I cannot wait to share this week’s episode of The Written Compass Podcast with you!!!!

It was my absolute pleasure to sit down with Tonya Reid. Tonya has been a client of ours for over a year now, and I am.so.proud of where her writing journey has taken her!!! A hairdresser by trade, Tonya has always had a knack for entertaining and storytelling behind the chair. After raising her blended family of 4 boys with her husband Billy Reid and stepping away from her bustling hair salon, she is enjoying having a damn minute to herself to get all the stories and lessons from her amazing journey on paper. Being off-the-charts extroverted and passionate about supporting others' dreams, she is a powerful speaker and consultant as well. 

On this week’s episode, Tonya and I laugh through the entire episode as she shares details about her own contribution to Unveiling the Secrets (our collaborative book) and more! 

You can connect with Tonya on Instagram @thetonyareid

Get a copy of her brand new book, US Hairways: Snippets from a Hairdresser's Journey, here!

As always, leave us a review so that more people see the podcast and get the writing support they need. Then, share your takeaways and this episode on IG, tagging me @shanahartman_ Remember, we are here to change the personal growth and biz strategy publishing world by activating our unique voices and stories.

If you are ready to see if working with Shana and her team is your next step for leaving your legacy and getting your core messages from business and life in an empowering book click this link to work with Shana!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Many writers don’t think about the interior formatting of their book! Today I asked the amazing designer and published author, Melisa Graham, to give us the nitty gritty on all the things you need to consider for the inside of your book. 

We discussed what Melisa considers the top 4 elements involved when formatting the beautiful pages of your book:

1. Your readers’ expectations based on the genre, your previous work, etc.
2. Your desires for your readers’ experience as they read your book
3. The cover and fulfilling the expectations it creates
4. The technical stuff like licensing high-resolution images, your printer’s specifications, etc.

Whether you are DIY publishing or getting support, you’ll want to know all of these! 

To connect with Melisa, follow her on IG @1smelisa

As always, leave us a review so that more people see the podcast and get the writing support they need. Then, share your takeaways and this episode on IG, tagging me @shanahartman_ Remember, we are here to change the personal growth and biz strategy publishing world by activating our unique voices and stories.

If you are ready to see if working with Shana and her team is your next step for leaving your legacy and getting your core messages from business and life in an empowering book click this link to work with Shana!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Meet the Authors of Unveiling the Secrets: Kristin Bowen & Melisa Graham!

In today’s episode I’m thrilled to slowly introduce you to some of our amazing authors for our most recent collaborative book, Unveiling the Secrets: An Encyclopedia by Women, For Women (and Those Who Love Them).

Today I had the pleasure of speaking with authors Kristin Bowen and Melisa Graham. In this episode, we discuss:

1. What led the authors to join in on a collaborative book

2. What their experience was like to write in community with others

3. What they are taking away from their process

Also, they share sneak peeks from their writing!

To get your copy of the book, head to Amazon: Unveiling the Secrets: An Encyclopedia by Women for Women (and Those Who Love Them) 

To connect with Kristin, follow her on IG @kjacks99. 

To connect with Melisa, follow her on IG @1smelisa

As always, leave us a review so that more people see the podcast and get the writing support they need. Then, share your takeaways and this episode on IG, tagging me @shanahartman_ Remember, we are here to change the personal growth and biz strategy publishing world by activating our unique voices and stories.

If you are ready to see if working with Shana and her team is your next step for leaving your legacy and getting your core messages from business and life in an empowering book click this link to work with Shana!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

"What do I have to say that is different from anyone else?" This is a common stumbling block when writing your book and sharing your messages in business and life. In today's episode, I share how what makes you unique IS your legacy, and I break down 3 secrets for identifying that uniqueness, that difference: 

1. Connection

2. Love

3. YOU

I can't wait to hear what resonates and what makes you uniquely you. 

As always, leave us a review so that more people see the podcast and get the writing support they need. Then, share your takeaways and this episode on IG, tagging me @shanahartman_ Remember, we are here to change the personal growth and biz strategy publishing world by activating our unique voices and stories.

If you are ready to see if working with Shana and her team is your next step for leaving your legacy and getting your core messages from business and life in an empowering book click this link to work with Shana!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.