Jeanne Murray Walker and Ambition - Ep 49

12/03/15 • 41 min

Jeanne Murray Walker is a poet, playwright, memoirist, and teacher. Most recently, she co-edited with Luci Shaw a book of essays on the topic of ambition by members of the Chrysostom Society. We talked about her experience as an ambitious young woman in the era of the "mythical character" of Betty Crocker, ambition and motherhood, and the problems of ambition without direction or models of what to do with it. My own relationship with ambition is quite fraught in ways that might warrant a sequel to this, and this conversation gave me a ton to think about--I hope you find it equally thought-provoking!

For show notes and additional resources, visit the episodes page at sarazarr.com

Theme music by Dave Connis

For show notes and additional resources, visit the episodes page at sarazarr.com

Theme music by Dave Connis

Previous Episode

Corey Ann Haydu and Adult Children of Alcoholics - Ep 48

In this Very Special Episode of This Creative Life, Corey Ann Haydu and I talk about being adult children of alcoholics and how that can play out in both the creative and business sides of our careers, in positive and negative ways. As we mention in the conversation, the symptoms or traits we go over can also come from growing up in environments without substance abuse--for example families that are very rigid, perfectionistic, dealing with mental health issues, homes with raging/anger, families that have alcoholism in the family tree (though a particular generation may not actually drink), or homes where feelings are not expressed at all.

We also talk about Corey's life as an actor before she came to writing, the particular challenges of being judged almost wholly by appearance in that field, and how acting and writing share a similar skill set.

For show notes and additional resources, visit the episodes page at sarazarr.com

Theme music by Dave Connis