You Should Write A Book About That™

Kim O'Hara
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You Should Write A Book About That™

Book Coach to Best Sellers™ Kim O’Hara loves writers of all kinds. She also is a writer, and finds there are endless conversations to be had about the craft and psychology of writing. Join her each episode as she talks with a variety of writers - comedians, authors, coaches, speakers, songwriters, TV writers, to name a few - about their craft. The conversations can get personal in nature, as writing is truly an exploration of self. To learn more about Kim O'Hara as a Book Coach, go to kimohara.com or sign up for the latest on her books at kimoharabooks.com. igiveyoupermission.substack.com

  1. OCT 11

    I Give You Permission to Not Give Up on A Story...

    I used to love to write from the dark. Dark dark dark. Movies I made were dark, and short stories I wrote were dark, and the light to me was a sham and bubble gum b******t. I loved short stories because they were weird and perverse, and usually dark. I wanted to be as weird and dark as I could be, I stayed in that space for a long time until my life in itself was darkness and then I was living in the dark. I desperately clawed to find the light. I know that sounds kind of hokey but it was true, and now that I am in my fifties, I truly want to be only in the light. That said, I confess I have my ups and downs, trauma triggers, panic attacks and moments when my nervous system takes over and won’t calm the f**k down. I doubt in this lifetime my make up will ultimately change, but I get to love on and appreciate those parts of me because they push me even closer to that desire for light. They are the messengers but they are not the harbingers of grief. The protection mechanisms I had in the dark can speak to me, but I get to balance them in the light. What does this have to do with storytelling? After I wrote my book about sexual abuse and published it in 2023, I was free. I had written a self help book I felt was essential for the recovery spiritually, emotionally and physically for sexual abuse survivors. It worked for me, and I believe it will work for any survivor who wants a new life in the light. Then I discovered how many women don’t give themselves permission to be the greatest versions of themselves because they are buried in what I call Gunk. So I wrote a book about Permission, happiness and wealth (hence the column you are now reading), and it is a wonderful follow up to the life I can lead after so much darkness. Keep your fingers crossed I find a fabulous agent and/or editor who understands and champions the book because women need this message. Now I am endeavoring to be a romance writer, and here is the best part about that twist. It’s not a twist at all. The Universe has been strumming their fingers on the desk waiting for me to catch up to all the versions of this career I have started and stopped. It’s hard to write about romance in a light way when the love for yourself or others is in a dark place. Sure, you can write the darker movies where love doesn’t conquer all, but I like when love works. I like happy endings. I like when the light and the dark make the dawn. I was reminded today that a romance novel I am writing that involves horses and Malibu was actually first gestated in 1998 in a week long holiday in Haiku, the Upcountry of Maui, Hawai'i. Fields dotted with the spikey tops of pineapples and the smell of sodden soil was the topography high above the green frothed Pacific Ocean. I had seen a sign in the one road town for a rodeo, and that was all that I had needed to rush back to my rental and put down on paper my lone cowboy looking for love. But I recall it was like writing through mud, and I made a decision about myself. I can’t write about love. I am too dark. We make decisions about who we are as writers in places and spaces that truly are calling for a more emotional and psychological healing. Our original writer self is simply overshadowed by the trauma. So many of my clients have blocks in their writing not because they are not writers or shouldn’t be writing about the topic, but because there is a deeper wound and an underlying cause that forces them to buck up against the literary assignments given. Some people I can pull from the fire, and other people just burn up and let themselves be devoured by the pain. They ultimately need to want to save themselves and believe in their writer spirit. My current romance novel that I decided was ready to be written needed a vocation for the male love interest. Like all good romance books that I am reading as research such as Emily Henry and Abbie Jimenez, tension is created between the potential love interests and they also heal each o

    2 min
  2. Eroticism is the secret sauce to wellness

    07/16/2023

    Eroticism is the secret sauce to wellness

    What would you think if I told you EROTICISM is the SECRET sauce to wellness? Would you buy a book written on that topic? I know I would, and while she hasn’t written the book yet, that is the position of Tina Koopersmith MD, who after 30 years as a fertility specialist is focused on prioritizing Pleasure to remind our nervous system that we are safe in our bodies. I am sure many of our listeners are going through fertility-issues, or have questions about late in life motherhood, or like me, are abuse survivors with the body trauma, so this is going to be a fantastic conversation for you but also for everyone, looking at a deeper relationship to our bodies and sexuality. So why hasn’t she written her book yet? On today’s episode we talk about the headspin many people come to me with –” I think I have four books, I can’t decide which book to write, I want to do the book more aligned with my coaching practice, but I feel more called to this other book…” As a Coach, Tina’s mission is to guide women to nourish all 4 of our bodies: the mind body, the heart body, the physical body and the energetic body because we are ALL worthy of self-care, self-acceptance and self-love. Join us as we find out where she is in the writing process, her many experiences with patients in infertility and amazing tools for happy healthy sexuality. You can learn more about Tina at womensreproduction.com If you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other similar episodes you may like? Check out recent episodes with my book client Angie Wisdom who wrote the  book The Non-Negotiable You and talks about coming to writing as a complete newcomer. Or perhaps listen to Alisa Zipursky, an author who has written a frank self-help book on Healing Honestly from sexual abuse. There is always a guest for everyone at every stage in their writing journey so subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests. If you liked this episode, I would love a review! It’s the lifeblood of podcasts. I have written a  book!  Check out No Longer Denying Sexual Abuse: Making The Choices That Can Change Your Life. I also have a 21 week series Abused No Longer.  Get full access to I Give You Permission with Kim O'Hara at igiveyoupermission.substack.com/subscribe

    34 min
  3. Author Angie Wisdom and the Non-Negotiable You

    06/11/2023

    Author Angie Wisdom and the Non-Negotiable You

    Life & Business Coach Angie Wisdom came to me to write a book because it was something she didn’t think she could do… which made it very appealing! A high achiever who brings her clients to find a life they love, Angie endeavored to write about how critical it is to trust yourself and be authentic in all you do. She had to overcome some perfectionism to write the first draft of the book. Wanting every line and idea to resonate wasn’t helping her forward momentum. She soon learned we would craft the book into the vision she saw in drafts two and three.  Now she is releasing this incredible book The Non-Negotiable You in June 2023 and already has a best-selling companion journal Start With You. I personally did three rounds of the Start With You Journal, tracking every day what my intentions were, and was shocked at how clear and directed my life became. Her book is an extension of the journal, diving deeper into some of the concepts of values and purpose. From this episode, you will walk away with a deeper insight into the book writing process from a novice (who now knows not only how to write a book but publish one with her marketing partners), as well as hear a highly sought coach talk about core concepts that can make you see how you focusing on you first can enhance your life. She also stresses it’s up to you to choose your seat, and create a meaningful success and a life you love. You can learn more about Angie at https://angiewisdom.com/ If you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other similar episodes you may like? Check out recent episodes with Alisa Zipursky who talks about the magnificent messy process of writing about childhood sexual abuse, or one of my great book clients Joy McManigal who has written a book for young adults called The Good Life. Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests, and if you liked this episode, I would love a review! It’s the lifeblood of podcasts. I have written a  book!  Check out No Longer Denying Sexual Abuse: Making The Choices That Can Change Your Life. I also have a 21 week series Abused No Longer.  Get full access to I Give You Permission with Kim O'Hara at igiveyoupermission.substack.com/subscribe

    32 min
  4. The Messy and Magnificent Writing of “Healing Honestly”

    05/28/2023

    The Messy and Magnificent Writing of “Healing Honestly”

    Since 2016, Author Alisa Zipursky has been blogging about her experiences as a millennial woman trying to live a full life while healing from her abuse. As many of you know, I am a survivor of childhood sexual abuse and I am thrilled that Alisa is my first guest who has written a book about her healing. She wrote Healing Honestly: The Messy and Magnificent Path to Overcoming Self-Blame and Self-Shame to put a book out in the world that honestly addressed the balance of trauma recovery and living a happy life. Going out in the world and trying to be practical or rational about your abuse story to make others less uncomfortable is just b******t, and she takes that head on as an effort to show how it can ultimately combat shame.  She is a beautiful writer and on today’s show, we get deep into the balance of personal narrative and research in her book, as well as who connected with her when she first started the writing process online. When she got public in her survivorship, the first survivor who connected with her was from India, but she also heard from people in her social circle that they were affected by abuse. She realized it was all around her in this seemingly perfect community in Bethesda, Maryland. The truth is, we are all surrounded by survivors.  We chat about: *Her grandmother was Alisa’s biggest champion through the early process of her writing her blog (which eventually led to the book.) * How she at first felt that just body memories were not enough to be a legit survivor only to discover this was one of the biggest areas where people connected with her story. * When she shared about a niche experience in her process of facing abuse that she never thought anyone would connect with, that it was exactly what people needed to hear. As writers in recovery we are tasked with writing about what goes on inside us, even if we think we will be stigmatized as angry feminists as abuse survivors (which may be on some levels true, but not so binary). Our job is to show that it is not black and white thinking for healing where you are either thriving or victimized. We get to have many layers and stages of our recovery and it is ever changing. She offers practical strategies for survivors of sex abuse to support themselves in living full and vibrant lives.  You can find Alisa at - Founder HealingHonestly.com Author of Healing Honestly: The Messy and Magnificent Path to Overcoming Self-Blame and Self-Shame (June) pre-order now! If you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other episodes you may like with Book Client/Authors of Kim’s? Check out recent episodes with Joy McManigal, Author of The Good You or Matthew Brownstein, founder of the Institute of Interpersonal Hypnotherapy. Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests, and if you liked this episode, I would love a review! It’s the lifeblood of podcasts.  My podcast is also connected to my 3x weekly column Inner Circle so be sure to subscribe! I have written a  book!  Check out No Longer Denying Sexual Abuse: Making The Choices That Can Change Your Life. I also have a 21 week series Abused No Longer.  Get full access to I Give You Permission with Kim O'Hara at igiveyoupermission.substack.com/subscribe

    32 min
  5. A Book That Helps Young Adults Live a Good Life

    05/14/2023

    A Book That Helps Young Adults Live a Good Life

    Book client Joy McManigal has led a varied life from owning a pub in Ireland, working in​​ the movie business, facing bankruptcy, and raising four daughters with celebrity Giancarlo Esposito. All of her life’s twists and turns landed her on the decision to write a book that would help young people dodge some of the pitfalls she encountered. Young adults have a lot to overcome and learn, including doubting themselves in today’s hyper critical society on social media. Their path will be one of a Good Life if they can discern their values, mission and purpose - tools rarely taught in high school or even college. Her new book, The Good You, was written to press the concept of Help not Hurt out in the world for young adults. She gives four key pillars to look at why you are motivated to make choices in your young life. We talk about the creative process she went through and how exhilarating it feels to write a book. Her moment when she knew she had to write this book came in a dinner conversation when friends were expressing they were struggling with their kids and they asked her, “Why are your kids not so messed up?’ She understood all her capacities as a mentor, teacher and coach combined provided her kids the tools they needed from her mothering perspective. The book started as a guide for mothers to not raise kids who are not screwed up, and it morphed into a book focused on how to be a good person in a simple non-complicated way. We chat about: * Writing a true vernacular and terminology for young readers as a midlife writer. * When she realized her self-help book needed her story so the readers could invest in her as an author. * Writing five drafts and how the vision has changed of the book. Her advice to any writer starting the process is to be clear about your motivation for writing a book. Remember why you initially started which anchors you on days you are staring at a half-baked book. She also suggests a writer to be flexible with their book as it evolves.  Joy is in the process of shopping her book and so we are rooting for her to land an agent to get this amazing book in bookstores all over America! What a great graduation gift!  If you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other episodes you may like with Book Client/Authors of Kim’s? Check out recent episodes with Matthew Brownstein, founder of the Interpersonal Hypnotherapy Institute or Amy Powers talking about network marketing from an Ivy League perspective. Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests, and if you liked this episode, I would love a review! It’s the lifeblood of podcasts.  My podcast is also connected to my 3x weekly column Inner Circle so be sure to subscribe! I have written a  book!  Check out No Longer Denying Sexual Abuse: Making The Choices That Can Change Your Life. I also have a 21 week series Abused No Longer.  Get full access to I Give You Permission with Kim O'Hara at igiveyoupermission.substack.com/subscribe

    25 min
  6. What Does It Really Mean To Be Enlightened with Book Client Matthew Brownstein

    04/30/2023

    What Does It Really Mean To Be Enlightened with Book Client Matthew Brownstein

    Book client Matthew Brownstein didn’t originally come to me to write a book. He was looking to better promote his five already written books. I convinced him to re-write his book on hypnotherapy, and today the book emulates a curriculum for his state-licensed Institute of Hypnotherapy. He acknowledges how he had to let Spirit guide him to let the words come through and be okay if the words didn’t come. He appreciated the structure I provided to him and had to be in the spiritual flow of knowledge and wisdom. He speaks of rewriting the introduction three times, and being okay with being patient in the process.  Matthew as a young person was your average middle class kid, headed to a liberal arts college, until he had a moment of enlightenment. This affected everything about his life, and he felt the desire to meditate all the time and connect to the mystical branches of the world religions. His desire was to connect to love’s presence and live in a monastery. He went on a journey to understand oneness.  When Matthew and I met, we connected from a mutual respect for the author Michael Singer (The Untethered Soul). He lived on and off in his Temple of the Universe, where Michael would talk about blockages (“sankars”). So Matthew first went to school for acupuncture to remove blockages for people but the higher wiser voice told him he was going to go to Hypnotherapy school. He was quickly blown away by the power of the mind. He found with Hypnotherapy he could remove the blocks.  Interpersonal Therapy is his unique brand. It came from him asking the higher wiser voice, what is the spirituality of hypnotherapy? He heard, interpersonal is the answer. The word is about the sacred nature of transformational relationships. Profound, right? Listen in to hear more lessons and insights from Matthew who has dedicated his life to healing people in the body and mind from his lifetime work.  We chat about: -What is at the root of negative belief systems -What is at the core of the negative memories? -How we can discover an unforgiven relationship and release it With his school, and books, Matthew hopes to encourage more people to either learn how to use hypnotherapy for their own healing, or explore hypnotherapy as a profession.  You can learn more about Matthew at https://www.instituteofhypnotherapy.com/ If you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other similar episodes you may like? Check out recent episodes with Jenna Dillon, a results-driven Executive Coach or one of my great book clients Jae Wu talking about happiness and moving through after coming to this country from Korea. Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests, and if you liked this episode, I would love a review! It’s the lifeblood of podcasts. I have written a  book!  Check out No Longer Denying Sexual Abuse: Making The Choices That Can Change Your Life. I also have a 21 week series Abused No Longer.  Get full access to I Give You Permission with Kim O'Hara at igiveyoupermission.substack.com/subscribe

    32 min
  7. Finding Sobriety & Self Love with Sophie McCallum

    04/16/2023

    Finding Sobriety & Self Love with Sophie McCallum

    Sophie McCallum has first and foremost on her website the question, “Are you ready to love being you?” This is over her looking very chic riding an escalator up from the NYC Subway. She emulates strength and grace in mid life, but that hasn’t always been the case. She tells about hitting herself repeatedly in the head with a brush when she looked in the mirror or biting her arm so hard it bled when she was a young girl. When she met her husband and had her boys, she became a super mom… until that fell apart and after divorce came shared custody, and then the terrible bouts of drinking. Sophie hit her bottom. I can relate as a sober woman who used to drink my feelings of low self-worth and emotions away! When she became sober, she was able to look within and find and understand long trapped emotions that held her back from knowing her true self. So why hasn’t she written her book yet? On today’s episode we get real and honest about our journeys as moms and also as rock star women (she actually plays in a band), as well as my needling her about why she hasn’t yet written the book and why. I chat with her about: Don’t write the introduction first  Understand her reader avatar As a Certified Professional Coach, Energy Leadership Index Master Practitioner and School of Life Participant, Sophie’s mission is to guide women to their strongest position: Self-Love. Join us as we find out where she is in the writing process, her many relapses with alcohol and amazing tools for self-love. You can learn more about Sophie at https://selflovepeddler.com/meet-sophie If you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other similar episodes you may like? Check out recent episodes with Sarah Sperry, a Wellness Coach who works with women about burnout, or one of my great book clients Ethan Bach talking about his five psychotic breaks. Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests, and if you liked this episode, I would love a review! It’s the lifeblood of podcasts. I have written a  book!  Check out No Longer Denying Sexual Abuse: Making The Choices That Can Change Your Life. I also have a 21 week series Abused No Longer.  Get full access to I Give You Permission with Kim O'Hara at igiveyoupermission.substack.com/subscribe

    30 min
  8. You Can Set The World on Fire with Tanya Geisler

    04/02/2023

    You Can Set The World on Fire with Tanya Geisler

    A main focus of certified Leadership Coach Tanya Geisler’s work is with the imposter complex. Come on, don’t act like you don’t have one. We all do, even the most accomplished of us have that voice that tells us we need to do more, work harder and just be better.  On today’s show, I talk with Tanya about how she landed on this work as well as how the imposter shows up in her in terms of the book she wants to write but hasn’t yet. I coach her through her book idea and we debate what kind of   She has a great Iconic quiz which she created to not make people feel crappy about having the value of perfection. Why isn’t it okay that you want to show up for excellence? You can be a big vision thinker but women who own businesses, or first time authors, tend to have a intrinsic desire to belong which can be translated into a desire to belong in a tribal way. So we cap ourselves because it doesn’t feel good to be the first. Or what got me here won’t get me there, and what I need to do means I have to become a variation of myself I don’t want to be. When people we love in our life tell us they see so much for us at a young age, we can feel the onus of the broadness of that goal. So when supporting women, Tonya likes to be super intentional in her recognition of what is available for women. She talks about the book is the expression of thought leadership. Writing comes out of us to be expressed from our hearts. Sometimes we don’t understand why we want to write about what sets us on fire so we suppress it when in fact it is our greatest message. She also tells me she loves the name of my podcast with “the fire of a thousand suns” which may be my favorite statement of 2023. You can learn more about Tanya at https://tanyageisler.com/ If you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other similar episodes you may like? Check out recent episodes with Sarah Sperry, a Wellness Coach who works with women about burnout, or one of my great book clients Ethan Bach talking about his five psychotic breaks. Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests, and if you liked this episode, I would love a review! It’s the lifeblood of podcasts. I have written a  book!  Check out No Longer Denying Sexual Abuse: Making The Choices That Can Change Your Life. I also have a 21 week series Abused No Longer.  Get full access to I Give You Permission with Kim O'Hara at igiveyoupermission.substack.com/subscribe

    27 min
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41 Ratings

About

Book Coach to Best Sellers™ Kim O’Hara loves writers of all kinds. She also is a writer, and finds there are endless conversations to be had about the craft and psychology of writing. Join her each episode as she talks with a variety of writers - comedians, authors, coaches, speakers, songwriters, TV writers, to name a few - about their craft. The conversations can get personal in nature, as writing is truly an exploration of self. To learn more about Kim O'Hara as a Book Coach, go to kimohara.com or sign up for the latest on her books at kimoharabooks.com. igiveyoupermission.substack.com

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