Follow Your Curiosity

Replay: Uncovering Forgotten Histories with Rahna Reiko Rizzuto

I've been under the weather, so here's an interview worth revisiting. I'll be back next time with a brand-new conversation!

Author Rahna Reiko Rizzuto wrote the way many of us do as a child and teen, but didn’t truly turn to writing until she discovered, at the age of 30, that her Japanese-American mother, and her family, had been stripped of everything and put in an internment camp during World War II. The book she produced in her quest to understand these events, Why She Left Us, won the National Book Award. Her two subsequent books, Hiroshima in the Morning and Shadow Child, continue to explore themes of war, race, and historical blindness. Reiko also teaches writing; we met when she became my first faculty advisor in the Goddard College MFA program in 2007. We talk about Reiko’s start as a writer, including that pivotal discovery and the quest to learn more, her time in Japan just before and after 9/11 as she sought to learn from survivors of the Hiroshima bombing—and how 9/11 changed their willingness to speak—and how she taught herself to write and teaches her students those same techniques.

Episode breakdown:

[00:00:00] Introduction

[00:02:45] Family of writers encouraged reading, faced criticism.

[00:10:50] Multiracial Hawaiian culture with loose boundaries.

[00:15:19] Uncovering the family's history in the Japanese internment.

[00:23:33] Discovering the art of crafting a book.

[00:28:33] Learning from students' questions.

[00:37:37] Writing to convey human consequences of historical events.

[00:40:32] Nonfiction book about survivors of atomic bomb.

[00:48:58] Passion for teaching and nurturing writers' stories.

[00:56:07] Best job, supportive colleagues, successful publication.

[01:03:09] Caregiving, love, loss, hoarding: a personal journey.

[01:06:48] Open the portal, practice showing up.

Please leave a review and in it, tell us about how discovering a part of your history changed you.

Want more? Here are some handy playlists with all my previous interviews with guests in writing and publishing.

Check out the show notes at fycuriosity.com, and join the conversation on Threads and BlueSky!

If you'd like weekly updates, plus a chance to see where my curiosity is leading me, check out my new (free!) Substack newsletter.

Give Yourself Permission to Play

When was the last time you let yourself play? Why are you holding yourself back?

In less than four minutes, I'm sharing the biggest creative problem I see in the world, why it's so damn heartbreaking, and why I want to help you bust out of it--for free. (Hint: it's also a big part of why I started this podcast.)

Give yourself permission to play on May 5 here. Or join us on May 11 here. It's totally free, and you're welcome to bring a friend if you like (just have them register, too, so I have an accurate head count)!

See you there!

CPT #80: Choose Courage

It's so easy to keep doing the same thing, or even to actively avoid taking the unknown path. The courageous option is usually the one with the bigger payoff, though. I look at the difference in this short episode.

Join me for a free "Permission to Play" workshop on May 5, 2024 (repeated on May 11, 2024) at 1pm eastern! It’s easy for adults to forget that it’s okay to play, and that lack of play can keep us stuck! Join us for approximately 90 minutes so you can reconnect with your playful inner kid and feel your creative energy flowing again.

Register: May 5 or May 11

 

Could you leave a review? It's really easy, and it helps SO much. Thanks!

Want more tips? Check out this playlist with all my previous Creative Pep Talks!

Read this week's poem, which is called One Step.

Art and Commerce with Domenic Sciortino

Domenic Sciortino is a creative powerhouse. By day, he’s a barber. Much of the rest of the time, he’s an artist, musician, and now, a talent buyer for a local entertainment venue in Pennsylvania. Dom was one of my first guests on the podcast, and I’m thrilled to have him back to talk about the intersection of art and commerce, with stops at creative courage (specifically, the courage to fail in and with a crowd), why you should always aim to please yourself first with your creative work (even if you want to sell it), the effects of ignoring our creative call, and just what happens behind the scenes of the performing arts—especially on the money side.

If you missed Domenic's first episode, give it a listen!

Read this week's article, which is a longer look at the potential perils of combining art and commerce. Check out my piece on lapsed creatives, too!

Episode breakdown:

00:00 Introduction

1:04 Creating art in various forms, sometimes successful.

08:29 Billy Joel forgets lyrics, crowd sings instead.

11:23 Sudden insight into creative life force experience.

16:42 Passion leads to happiness and less spending.

24:28 Robots creating art due to cheaper labor.

31:19 Promo highlights importance of arts education.

37:08 Artists deserve better pay and more transparency.

40:05 National touring artist fees are usually non-negotiable.

43:22 Wilco: Warner pushed Americana band, Tweedy went ambient.

50:27 Scarcity and marketing.

53:56 Existence and purpose: the struggle is worthwhile.

59:26 Don't judge yourself by professional standards.

 

Check out the full show notes at fycuriosity.com, and connect with me and fellow creatives on Substack.

Please leave a review for this episode and in it, tell us about your experience with art and commerce.

If you enjoyed our conversation, I hope you’ll share it with a friend.

Want more? Here are some handy playlists with all my previous interviews with guests in music and visual arts.

CPT #79: Other People's Opinions

One of the hardest things to do when we've created something is to leave room for other people to see it through their own lens. I share some thoughts on why it's a good idea to step back, and how to know which opinions are worth listening to, in this short episode.

Could you leave a review? It's really easy, and it helps SO much. Thanks!

Want more tips? Check out this playlist with all my previous Creative Pep Talks!

Read this week's article, which is on Failure and Regret.

 

 

Celebrating Five Years of FYC with Nancy Norbeck

On January 3, 2019, I took a huge leap and launched the Follow Your Curiosity podcast. Five years later, to no one’s amazement as much as mine, I’m still going strong. I wanted to look back at what I’ve learned since 2019, so I asked my friend Domenic Sciortino, who interviewed me back then, to come back and do it again. Together, we look at how the show got started, what initially gave me the idea for a podcast, what curiosity is, who my “dream guest” might be, why you should start where you are, and more. 

Episode breakdown:

00:00 Amazed by 5-year podcast journey, started spontaneously.

06:34 Audio editing discovery: listen while doing tasks.

08:19 Podcasting with a full-time job.

12:41 To run ads, or not to run ads?

15:37 Curiosity is asking questions, being connected, wanting to know more.

19:51 Prepare questions but have a natural conversation.

20:56 Explore unexpected places in conversation, be flexible.

27:02 Embracing uncertainty.

29:36 Sometimes things just fall into place.

32:13 Go-to interview example of the podcast.

36:33 Emphasis on untold stories, expanding podcast.

38:02 Creating 1 on 1 program to reconnect creatively.

42:21 How a story about Sam Neill led to the podcast idea.

45:04 Choosing authenticity over conforming to others' expectations.

47:44 Overcoming doubts, starting small leads to success.

I really would love to hear from you! The easiest way is to connect on Substack, but you can also drop me a note here, or on Instagram, Twitter, or BlueSky.

Check out the full show notes at fycuriosity.com, and connect with me and fellow creatives on Substack.

Please leave a review for this episode and in it, tell us about a time when you took a leap to try something new.

If you enjoyed our conversation, I hope you’ll share it with a friend.

 

CPT #78: Lapsed Creativity

What happens when we let our creativity lapse? You may think there's no effect on us, but you'd be wrong. I explain in this short episode.

Read my article on lapsed creativity here. If you recognize yourself here, I'd love to hear your story and learn from your experience. If you can spare 30 minutes, contact me and we'll set something up!

Want more tips? Check out this playlist with all my previous Creative Pep Talks!

Please leave a review, and in it, tell us about a creative dream of yours.

Join my free creative community, The Spark! We celebrate each other's creative courage, and I'll be sharing programs for subscribers and listeners there in the coming months. https://fycuriosity.substack.com

Finding Fulfillment in Writing with Raquel Drosos

Raquel Drosos started writing when she was five, and has rarely stopped. As a teenager, she wrote and published three young adult novels under her maiden name, Raquel George. Games of Chance is her first book for adults.  She also blogs about parenting and the creative process. Raquel talks with me about the intersection between acting and writing, plotting vs. writing by the seat of your pants, the moment when your characters come to life in your head (which is not a sign of madness!), her next novel, and more. She also shares some excellent advice she got from her dad.

Episode breakdown:

0:00 Intro

01:09 Parents not artists, but innately creative and supportive.

06:02 Writer surprised by interpretation of their play.

09:55 Supportive parents, writing struggles, novel characters reused.

15:38 Mix of planning and spontaneity in writing.

17:20 Two types of writers: plotters and pantsers.

23:09 Feeding creativity through exposure to art and music.

25:14 Observing people, sparking curiosity, fostering creativity.

27:14 3-year-old nephew's wild story about alligators.

33:00 Characters connect through accents, interviews essential for authenticity.

34:10 The sound of words matters to writing.

40:08 Intense family saga vs. immediate relationship novel.

42:54 Encouraged writer spans genres and age groups.

45:13 Describing book as mix of others important.

48:18 Novel: Parenthood, love, creativity, friendship, humor, advice.

51:51 Jotting down scenes and dialogue, then dedicated.

54:56 Character decides to go left, not right.

58:10 Trust your gut and follow your instincts.

Check out the full show notes at fycuriosity.com, and connect with me and fellow creatives on Substack.

Please leave a review for this episode and in it, tell us about a moment when your creative work came to life for you.

If you enjoyed our conversation, I hope you’ll share it with a friend.

Want more? Here's a handy playlist with all my previous interviews with guests in writing.

CPT #77: Embrace Normal

It's easy to think of "normal" as an insult, or at least not something to aspire to. You might want to rethink your perceptions of normal, though. I explain why in this short episode.

Want more tips? Check out this playlist with all my previous Creative Pep Talks!

Please leave a review, and in it, tell us how you embrace normal.

Join my free creative community, The Spark! We celebrate each other's creative courage, and I'll be sharing programs for subscribers and listeners there in the coming months.

The Crossroads of Conflict and Creativity with Alex Poppe

Alex Poppe decided when she was in her 20s to leave her corporate job and become an actor, with no acting experience at all. After acting for 12 years, she followed her travel instincts, becoming certified to teach English overseas and moving to multiple countries, including Iraq, to pursue teaching and humanitarian work, and writing. Alex is the author of four works of fiction: Duende, Jinwar and Other Stories, Moxie, and Girl, World. Her writing has won numerous awards, including the International Book Award, Reader’s Choice Book Award, and a 35 over 35 Debut Book Award. Alex tells me about her decision to become an actor, how she made the move into teaching abroad—and what she’s learned from both experiences—how her time abroad has influenced her writing, and more.

Episode breakdown:

05:28 16 years teaching, actor training influences writing.

09:55 Networking in theater leads to humanitarian aid.

15:13 Teaching experiences in Middle East were heartfelt.

17:59 Studied and worked in Erbil and Germany.

21:55 Children witnessing war, finding innocence amid turmoil.

25:40 Homesickness, friendships, and social pressures at boarding school.

32:42 Shocked friend describes disturbing bar experience.

33:30 A shocking experience inspired her book writing.

37:14 Returned to the States, started writing in 2010.

41:49 Lyrical book with dense language.

47:30 Exploring character, tone, and emotion in writing.

51:56 Navigating uncertainty in creative process with flexibility.

55:33 Book inspired by old photo, friendship celebration.

Check out the full show notes at fycuriosity.com, and connect with me and fellow creatives on Substack.

Please leave a review for this episode and in it, tell us about a time when you took a risk.

If you enjoyed our conversation, I hope you’ll share it with a friend.

Want more? Here's a handy playlist with all my previous interviews with guests in writing.