In segment two of the special Courage to Create episode Bethany recorded live during her Write. Submit. Support. class’s summer retreat, the group of writers delve into what drives their literary lives at the moment and what, if anything they’d like to change about that. How can community help our work? Why is it so important to balance craft techniques like pace and structure with the emotion of the story? How do we unblock ourselves when we’re creatively stuck? The writers explore all these topics as they continue on with writing exercises meant to unlock and investigate these areas of the literary life. Bethany also gives a shout out to middle grade author Ann Braden, who was a Courage to Create guest on episode 52, and her heartfelt debut, THE BENEFITS OF BEING AN OCTOPUS, and how much Ann overcame to get that book out into the world. The group discusses the importance of sharing your struggles with your writing community as a way to lessen their impact. Listen also to part one if you haven’t already, and be sure to find out more about The Writing Barn’s online Write. Submit. Support. programming at http://www.thewritingbarn.com/upcoming-classes/#online