Stories and Stanza

Abhra Pal
  • 5.0 (51)
  • Mental Health
  • Updated Weekly

Stories and Stanza is a podcast for curious minds hosted by Abhra Pal - poet, storyteller & public speaker.  The show is charting in the top mental health podcasts across the US, UK, and Canada.  Through two distinct series, the show explores the human experience with honesty, depth, and literary intention. 📖 Between The Lines brings intimate conversations with writers and creators — uncovering the vulnerability behind their craft, the stories that shaped them, and the creative struggles that lead to transformation.  🎙️ Fail With Me features raw, unfiltered conversations with doctors, psychologists, and mental health advocates exploring emotional intelligence, resilience, and the courage it takes to rebuild. Because awareness builds bridges — and people suffer silently until someone speaks first.

  1. 6d ago

    From Trauma to the Page | A Nurse's Journey Through Writing & Forgiveness — Nancy Jasin Ensley

    Send us Fan Mail #WritingAsHealing #PTSD #MentalHealth #StoriesAndStanza #Resilience "I decided I didn't want to be afraid all the time." That one decision changed everything for Nancy Jasin Ensley — and it might change something for you too. In this episode of Stories and Stanza, host Abhra sits down with Nancy — a writer, registered nurse, teacher, and grandmother of fourteen from rural Michigan — for a conversation that moves between the craft of writing and the work of healing. Nancy shares how a difficult childhood marked by PTSD and abandonment shaped her, and why it took her ten to twenty years before she could write her memoir, The Tire Swing. She talks about what it means to find stillness inside the tornado — her metaphor for those moments when life is chaos but you learn to breathe in the centre of it. The conversation explores why childhood PTSD was only recently recognised as distinct, how journaling sustained Nancy through years of caring for parents with dementia, and why she believes writing is for everyone — not just those who publish. Nancy brings her themes to life through her characters: "3B," a half-alien boy who overcomes bullying with nothing but a smile, and the Martians of Indigo 35, who gave up feelings entirely because they believed emotions caused war. She also shares hard-won lessons on writer's block, the realities of editing and self-publishing, and the moment a difficult colleague read her memoir and called her by name for the first time — because behind the name tag, he finally saw a person. The episode closes with Nancy reading "The Tire Swing" — a poem about the choice we all have to ride. 🕐 TIMESTAMPS  00:00 Childhood PTSD Reality  01:10 Podcast Intro Trailer  01:34 Meet Nancy Jasin Ensley  03:24 Early Life and Reading  05:23 Writing as Healing  08:08 Publishing and Craft Lessons  10:56 Themes Across Genres  16:02 Beating Writer's Block  22:10 Resilience and Self-Care  24:33 Fail With Me — Healing  32:36 Authenticity in Storytelling  40:06 Empathy and Mental Health  49:06 The Tire Swing Poem Finale ✍️ ABOUT NANCY JASIN ENSLEY  Nancy is an author, legal nurse consultant, hospice specialist, and teacher who has written across memoir, literary fiction, science fiction, mystery, thriller, action and adventure, and children's literature. Her career in nursing, hospice care, legal consulting, teaching, and supervision has given her deep insight into the human experience — and those experiences inform every story she tells. "I write because it is how I listen. I write because it is how I remember. And by grace, I will keep writing." 🔗 Connect with Nancy: https://nancyjasinensley.com/ Find this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/rynjo6P_igI   Support the show Wish to read about the episodes in advance or need a recap? Find us on 👉 SubStack. 📌 Follow us: YouTube | Facebook | X | Instagram ☕ Buy me a coffee 🛠️ Tools we love: vidIQ · Descript

    From Trauma to the Page | A Nurse's Journey Through Writing & Forgiveness — Nancy Jasin Ensley

  2. Aug 15

    What If Your Happiness Isn't Yours? Redefining Happiness With Charu Moorjani

    Send us Fan Mail What does it mean when your life looks perfect on the outside but something feels deeply off inside? In this episode of Fail With Me, I sit down with Charu Moorjani — Australian author of The Happiness Pathway, mindset coach, and wellbeing storyteller — for a conversation about what happens when the version of happiness you've been chasing was never actually yours. Charu's turning point came during her honeymoon in Macau, when she was diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome and spent a month in ICU on a mechanical ventilator. For the first time, everything went quiet. No expectations, no performance, no pretending. That stillness forced her to confront how disconnected she had become from herself. Later, navigating an emotionally abusive marriage and divorce, journaling became her lifeline — a nightly practice of sitting with her feelings, asking honest questions, and slowly rebuilding who she really was. What I love about this conversation is how practical Charu makes it. This isn't abstract self-help. She walks us through gratitude exercises, mindfulness prompts, the difference between pleasure and fulfilment, and why happiness isn't a destination — it's something you cultivate through daily micro habits and alignment with who you actually are. In this episode, we explore: → Why a life that looks good on paper can feel empty inside  → How an ICU diagnosis became her turning point  → Why journaling works — and what to do if you struggle with it  → The one gratitude practice Charu swears by every night  → Bringing awareness into mundane moments — the coffee exercise  → Steps to heal after a difficult relationship: acknowledge, forgive yourself, forgive the other  → The difference between pleasure and fulfilment  → Why you're not broken if you feel disconnected "I want people to realize they're not broken if they feel disconnected. Maybe they've just been chasing the wrong version of happiness or someone else's version of happiness, and they really don't need permission to create their own." — Charu Moorjani Connect with Charu Moorjani:  Website → thehappinesspathway.com  Instagram → @thehappinesspathway  Book (Amazon) → https://amzn.asia/d/0ibK94gU Support the show Wish to read about the episodes in advance or need a recap? Find us on 👉 SubStack. 📌 Follow us: YouTube | Facebook | X | Instagram ☕ Buy me a coffee 🛠️ Tools we love: vidIQ · Descript

    What If Your Happiness Isn't Yours? Redefining Happiness With Charu Moorjani

  3. Aug 10

    Moonee Valley Writing Group on Craft, Community, Resilience & New Work

    Send us Fan Mail What happens when you pass a mic around a library table and ask four writers why they keep showing up? This is the first ever in-person episode of Stories and Stanza — recorded live at Sam Merrifield Library in Moonee Ponds with the Moonee Valley Writing Group. Frances McKay talks about her published nonfiction Pieces of China and reads from her humorous novel-in-progress Postcards from Paris, about a young Australian au pairing in 1970s Paris. Claire describes turning a redundancy diary into fiction. Katherine reflects on memoir writing, dyslexia, composing music, and finding community. And John shares his journey from retirement into science fiction, reads from his series Rogue Genesis, and talks openly about the path to self-publishing. Together they explore why meeting face-to-face still matters, how honest feedback helps you accept imperfect writing, and what keeps a small group of volunteers returning to the same table month after month. 📣 Join us for the first ever Stories and Stanza live event on 29 August — an in-person discussion with author and journal coach Sarah Rosse about her memoir So, Who Are You Anyway?, exploring identity, motherhood, caregiving, and healing through writing. 🎟️ Register: https://events.humanitix.com/stories-and-stanza-with-sarah-rosse The Moonee Valley Writing Group meets every month second Monday at Sam Merrifield Library, Moonee Ponds — 7:00 PM. Everyone is welcome. Wish to read about the episodes in advance or need a recap? Find us on 👉 SubStack. 📌 Follow us: YouTube | Facebook | X | Instagram ☕ Buy me a coffee 🛠️ Tools we love: vidIQ · Descript Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Support the show Wish to read about the episodes in advance or need a recap? Find us on 👉 SubStack. 📌 Follow us: YouTube | Facebook | X | Instagram ☕ Buy me a coffee 🛠️ Tools we love: vidIQ · Descript

    Moonee Valley Writing Group on Craft, Community, Resilience & New Work

  4. Aug 9

    Writing Scary Books: What I Learned from NaNoWriMo

    Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Stories and Stanza, host speaks with writer Diana Gunn about her writing journey from starting at age eight and using NaNoWriMo to build discipline and finish projects to publishing five books, including her recent Gothic horror vampire novel Woman of Sorrow and Blood. Gunn discusses planning versus drafting fast, how challenges like NaNoWriMo can help writers start and develop confidence, and why she created the Weeknight Writers community to provide year-round support, especially for marginalized writers. She explains how fantasy and horror offer a safe container to explore trauma, healing, and real-world fears, notes world-building pitfalls, and reads an excerpt from her novel. The conversation also covers drafting-to-editing best practices, beta readers and proofreading, writer’s block as a symptom, and key differences between traditional and self-publishing. 00:00 NaNoWriMo Magic Hook 01:24 Podcast Intro and Guest 02:42 Diana Writing Origins 06:05 NaNoWriMo Planning Tips 09:53 Why Horror and Fantasy 13:07 Classic Horror Metaphors 15:43 Worldbuilding Pitfalls 17:16 Meet Woman of Sorrow 21:00 Cover Art to Draft 22:58 Weeknight Writers Programs 27:36 Why Writers Need Community 30:55 Start Writing When Overwhelmed 35:47 Editing and Beta Readers 41:11 Writer Block Workbook 43:11 Publishing Paths Compared 46:18 Final Thoughts and Goodbye Dianna Gunn decided she wanted to be an author when she was just eight years old. Since then, she's devoted her entire life to not just becoming an author - with six published fantasy and horror books to her name in 2026 - but helping other writers become authors through Weeknight Writers, an organization dedicated to creating virtual events and community spaces for authors. https://weeknightwriters.com/writers-block-buster/ This is where folks can sign up to receive the Writer's Block Buster, a free mini-workbook designed to help people find the root cause of their writer's block so they can get back to work on their stories. Signing up here also signs people up for the Weeknight Writers newsletter so they can learn more about the community. Wish to read about the episodes in advance or need a recap? Find us on 👉 SubStack. 📌 Follow us: YouTube | Facebook | X | Instagram ☕ Buy me a coffee 🛠️ Tools we love: vidIQ · Descript Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Support the show Wish to read about the episodes in advance or need a recap? Find us on 👉 SubStack. 📌 Follow us: YouTube | Facebook | X | Instagram ☕ Buy me a coffee 🛠️ Tools we love: vidIQ · Descript

    Writing Scary Books: What I Learned from NaNoWriMo

  5. Aug 2

    From Cancer Diagnosis to Bestselling Novelist

    Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Stories and Stanza, I sit down with writer, musician, and cancer fighter Ray Hartjen to talk about his brand new novel, The Iranian Fiasco — a Tom Clancy-inspired espionage thriller published on April 7th and available wherever books are sold. Ray's story is unlike any I've heard on this show. After being diagnosed with multiple myeloma — an incurable but treatable blood cancer — in 2019, he didn't slow down. Instead, he grabbed life by the shoulders and asked himself one question: "If not now, when?" That question has since fuelled six published books, a shift from nonfiction to fiction, and a deeply fulfilling creative life built around storytelling and music. In our conversation, Ray reads the opening pages of The Iranian Fiasco and introduces us to Tiger Swanson — a CIA operative who is no princess waiting to be rescued. We talk about how he writes in the detailed, research-heavy style of Tom Clancy but for a modern publishing landscape, how he builds real-world locations into his fiction (right down to motorcycle shops in Western Iran you could find on a map), and why he writes without outlines, letting the story flow organically. We also get into the writing discipline that makes it all possible — 500 words a day, tracked in a spreadsheet — and Ray shares honest, practical advice for anyone who has a story inside them but hasn't started writing it yet. This episode spans both my Between the Lines segment, where we explore the craft behind the writing, and Fail With Me, where we go deeper into the human story — because with Ray, the two are inseparable. 📖 BOOKS BY RAY HARTJEN The Iranian Fiasco (2025) — https://rayhartjen.comOutflanked — Espionage ThrillerMe, Myself & My Multiple Myeloma — Cancer Patient MemoirImmaculate: How the Steelers Saved PittsburghThe Indy 500: A Year-Long Quest to Win the Greatest Spectacle in RacingRevenue Orchestration & Today's New Era of B2B Sales and Marketing🔗 CONNECT WITH RAY Website: https://rayhartjen.com Email: rayhartjen@gmail.com Social media: @rayhartjen (across platforms) If you are a cancer patient, caregiver, or ally — Ray personally invites you to reach out. He has connected with patients from Australia, New Zealand, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, Europe, and across the United States, and considers it the honour of his life. ⏱️ TIMESTAMPS 00:00 Podcast Intro and Guest 03:06 Ray's Writing Journey — From Marketing to Six Books 06:13 Cancer Diagnosis to Purpose — The "If Not Now, When?" Moment 19:44 Inside The Iranian Fiasco — Opening Pages Read Aloud 35:00 Writing Advice, Publishing Realities, and Wrap 🎙️ ABOUT STORIES AND STANZA I'm Abhra, and Stories and Stanza is where I amplify the voices of writers, poets, and people with authentic human stories. The show runs two series — Between the Lines (craft and writing) and Fail With Me (wellness, mindset, and emotional intelligence). New episodes drop regularly across YouTube and all major podcast platforms. Wish to read about the episodes in advance or need a recap? Find us on 👉 SubStack. 📌 Follow us: YouTube | Facebook | X | Instagram ☕ Buy me a coffee 🛠️ Tools we love: vidIQ · Descript Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Support the show Wish to read about the episodes in advance or need a recap? Find us on 👉 SubStack. 📌 Follow us: YouTube | Facebook | X | Instagram ☕ Buy me a coffee 🛠️ Tools we love: vidIQ · Descript

    From Cancer Diagnosis to Bestselling Novelist

  6. Jul 25

    Eradicating Loneliness Through Connection, Compassion, and Boundaries

    Send us Fan Mail Relationship coach, YouTube creator, and author Stacy Rocklein joins Stories and Stanza to discuss her mission to eradicate loneliness by helping people feel seen, known, and understood in their relationships. A former math teacher turned coach and author, Stacy shares how finding her purpose led her to this deeply personal work. She reframes failure as a pathway to intimacy when it's felt and shared rather than avoided, and emphasizes emotional "fluency" — sitting with feelings, not just naming them. The conversation explores how unmet needs, childhood wounds, and defense mechanisms shape relationship patterns, why personal wholeness must come before seeking a partner to "fill holes," and how endings can offer painful but valuable growth. Stacy and the host discuss navigating busy lives through small daily moments of connection, the importance of emotional presence during mental health struggles, and how boundaries create safety for vulnerability, trust, and deeper intimacy. She also reads from her book "Forgive Without an Apology: How to Heal, Set Boundaries, and Create Deeper Connections," offering a powerful formula for making peace with your past and moving forward — even without closure from the other person. Whether you're healing from a difficult relationship, trying to deepen the one you're in, or learning to determine who in your life is truly capable of the emotional intimacy you desire, this conversation will meet you where you are. Connect with Stacy Rocklein: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@StacyRocklein Book on Amazon: https://a.co/d/jdiPiRk Substack: https://substack.com/@stacyrocklein Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SRocklein Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stacyrocklein/ If this conversation resonated with you, subscribe to Stories and Stanza for more meaningful discussions on creativity, resilience, and the human experience. Follow us on YouTube or any podcast platform. Wish to read about the episodes in advance or need a recap? Find us on 👉 SubStack. 📌 Follow us: YouTube | Facebook | X | Instagram ☕ Buy me a coffee 🛠️ Tools we love: vidIQ · Descript Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Support the show Wish to read about the episodes in advance or need a recap? Find us on 👉 SubStack. 📌 Follow us: YouTube | Facebook | X | Instagram ☕ Buy me a coffee 🛠️ Tools we love: vidIQ · Descript

    Eradicating Loneliness Through Connection, Compassion, and Boundaries

  7. Jul 23

    Solving Dyslexia: The Method That Jumps Kids 8 Grade Levels in Months

    Send us Fan Mail #dyslexia #neurodiversity #learningdisability Russell Van Brocklen, the Dyslexia Professor, reveals the writing-based method that helped students jump 8 grade levels in months — at less than 1% of the cost of private dyslexia schools. If your child struggles with reading and writing, this episode could change everything. Russell was flunked by SUNY Buffalo despite earning a recommended A-minus through the NY State Assembly Internship Program — all because of his dyslexia accommodations. Instead of giving up, he set out to solve dyslexia himself. He audited law school, learned to read in a month, and spent 25 years developing a method rooted in how the dyslexic brain actually works. In this conversation, Russell breaks down the brain science behind dyslexia, demonstrates his word analysis and articulation technique live, and shares real results — including a 10-year-old who jumped 8 grade levels in 6 months and a homeschooling mom who solved her son's dyslexia in under 9 months. He also covers why motivation and specialization matter for dyslexia, ADD, and ADHD, and how the craft of research connects directly to mastering AI tools in the workplace. 🔔 Subscribe for more conversations on creativity, resilience, and human stories. ⏱️ TIMESTAMPS 00:00 Flunked Internship Sparks Mission 03:37 Law School Breakthrough and Research Program 06:11 Dyslexia Science and Fast Fix Method 19:44 Course Pricing & Access 24:15 Dyslexia Testing Myths 33:24 Advanced Writing Framework 🇦🇺 AUSTRALIAN LISTENERS If you are based in Australia and wish to get Russell's course priced in Australian dollars instead of USD, get in touch with us at Storiesandstanza@gmail.com and we will generate a discount code for you. 📩 Connect with Russell — grab his free ebook and join his newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/dcacd9a6f9ae/3-reasons-ebook Stories and Stanza is a podcast exploring creativity, resilience, and the transformative power of human stories. Through our two series — Between the Lines (creators and craft) and Fail With Me (wellness and life's challenges) — we bring you authentic conversations with inspiring voices from around the world. #ADHD #readingintervention #dyslexiaawareness #specialeducation #parentingtips #homeschooling #writingskills #storiesandstanza Wish to read about the episodes in advance or need a recap? Find us on 👉 SubStack. 📌 Follow us: YouTube | Facebook | X | Instagram ☕ Buy me a coffee 🛠️ Tools we love: vidIQ · Descript Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Support the show Wish to read about the episodes in advance or need a recap? Find us on 👉 SubStack. 📌 Follow us: YouTube | Facebook | X | Instagram ☕ Buy me a coffee 🛠️ Tools we love: vidIQ · Descript

    Solving Dyslexia: The Method That Jumps Kids 8 Grade Levels in Months

  8. Jul 10

    Why Your Political Views Aren't Fully Your Own: Personality, Conditioning & Filter Bubbles

    Send us Fan Mail What if your political identity has less to do with facts and more to do with personality and conditioning? In this episode of Stories and Stanza's Fail With Me series, host Abhra sits down with psychologist Jennifer Cox to unpack the psychology behind political identity — without labeling any side as right or wrong. Using the Big Five (OCEAN) personality framework, they explore research linking higher openness to left-leaning tendencies and higher conscientiousness to right-leaning tendencies, along with how extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism shape political engagement, emotional reactivity, and our vulnerability to filter bubbles. Abhra also shares a personal story of perfectionism, anger, illness, and loss that became a turning point toward curiosity, mindfulness, and creative freedom — connecting emotional intelligence and openness in a very human way. The conversation moves into belonging, unpacking the real origins (and modern misuse) of "Maslow's hierarchy of needs," and how political movements weaponize in-group/out-group fear. The episode closes with a preview of future topics: immigration, intergenerational trauma, and gender fluidity. If you're interested in political psychology, emotional intelligence, personality theory, or how conditioning shapes belief systems, this episode is for you. Jennifer earned her minor in creative writing from Alfred University in 2016. As a pansexual genderflux individual and a trauma-informed mental health counsellor, they’re passionate about representation in fiction. Each story she tells is an opportunity to explore the beauty in nonconformity, healing, and diversity. After a lifetime of putting imagination to paper, Jennifer’s debut novel, Getting to Know You, came into being as a promise kept to a friend. Jennifer lives in the Finger Lakes with her family, enjoying tabletop roleplaying games, sewing, and cuddling their cat. Find her books here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D4BKKR3Nhttps://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FXVRTG15 Timestamps 00:00 Failure Sparks Change 01:15 Podcast Intro 01:39 Meet Jennifer Cox 04:11 Episode Focus: Political Identity 06:51 EQ Measurement Challenges 11:29 Big Five (OCEAN) Overview 14:11 Host's Turning Point Story 20:37 From Rigidity to Politics 22:42 Openness and Left-Leaning Tendencies 24:12 Conscientiousness and Right-Leaning Tendencies 26:07 Extraversion, Agreeableness & Neuroticism 31:44 Filter Bubbles and Disengagement 34:16 Conditioning Limits Curiosity 38:58 Belonging and Maslow Reframed 45:52 Politics Weaponizes Belonging 49:58 Immigration and Generational Views 53:20 Intergenerational Trauma and Identity 58:05 Wrap-Up and Where to Follow Listen and Subscribe YouTube: https://yt.openinapp.co/ii389 Spotify: https://spotify.openinapp.co/storiesandstanza Apple Podcasts: https://apple.openinapp.link/u3ui2 Substack (full write-up): storiesandstanza.substack.com#PoliticalPsychology #EmotionalIntelligence #BigFive #PersonalityTraits #FilterBubbles #MentalHealthPodcast #FailWithMe #StoriesAndStanza Wish to read about the episodes in advance or need a recap? Find us on 👉 SubStack. 📌 Follow us: YouTube | Facebook | X | Instagram ☕ Buy me a coffee 🛠️ Tools we love: vidIQ · Descript Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Support the show Wish to read about the episodes in advance or need a recap? Find us on 👉 SubStack. 📌 Follow us: YouTube | Facebook | X | Instagram ☕ Buy me a coffee 🛠️ Tools we love: vidIQ · Descript

    Why Your Political Views Aren't Fully Your Own: Personality, Conditioning & Filter Bubbles
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5
out of 5
51 Ratings

About

Stories and Stanza is a podcast for curious minds hosted by Abhra Pal - poet, storyteller & public speaker.  The show is charting in the top mental health podcasts across the US, UK, and Canada.  Through two distinct series, the show explores the human experience with honesty, depth, and literary intention. 📖 Between The Lines brings intimate conversations with writers and creators — uncovering the vulnerability behind their craft, the stories that shaped them, and the creative struggles that lead to transformation.  🎙️ Fail With Me features raw, unfiltered conversations with doctors, psychologists, and mental health advocates exploring emotional intelligence, resilience, and the courage it takes to rebuild. Because awareness builds bridges — and people suffer silently until someone speaks first.

Information

  • Creator
    Abhra Pal
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    137
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Stories and Stanza
  • Show Website
    Stories and Stanza

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