Member Spotlight: Becky Garrison

Why is writing important to you and why do you think it’s an important medium for the world? As a child, I would sit on my father’s lap when I was around seven or so. I’d tell dad stories that he would then type up on his IBM Selectric typewriter. Together we bonded over our shared love of story until my parents’ alcoholism ran over their hippie idealism and they died from their addictions when I was in my teens. Writing became my salvation, the way I could push through this pain that went beyond my bones. Through words, I have learned to tell my story and connect others through story as we explore together what we have in common in our shared humanity. In a world increasingly dominated by CGI, AI, and other influencer-driven means of producing “marketable” art, we need the authenticity of the writer’s voice to keep us grounded and connected to ourselves, each other, and the planet as a whole.

What are your tried and tested remedies to cure writer’s block? To quote the late Gary Austin, founder of the Groundlings, I always have at least one passion project that I’m working on. Currently, that’s my first work of fiction titled War of the Game, a somewhat true accounting of my late grandfather’s experiences as a football coach for the Navy in the Pacific Theater during World War II. Whenever I get stuck, I can always go to this project and tinker with it until I’m out of my funk. Other helpful tools include microdosing mushrooms, CBD/Cannabis, labyrinth walks, cycling, and camping especially by the beach or along a freshwater lake. Fly-fishing and kayaking optional.

What is your favorite time to write? What matters to me more is not the time I write but establishing a daily rhythm. I found the 8-8-8 rule to be particularly effective in helping me maintain my balance. When possible, I divide my day up into sleep or deep meditation, work, and rest with the goal of spending approximately 8 hours on each segment. Also, I aim to give myself an artist’s day once a week as per Julia Cameron’s excellent advice so that I can recharge my creative spark plugs. Along those lines, I am very mindful after I complete a project such as an article, book, or podcast to conduct a body scan. If I feel depleted, I’ve learned this means I need to stop and give myself the gift of rest. I used to attribute such exhaustion to writer’s block. But now I see they’re signs of what I term “brain break.” I’m not stuck but rather I’ve run out of energy and need to recharge until my mind gets refueled again.

What’s the best piece of writing advice you’ve ever received and would like to impart to other writers? From Gary Austin again – “Do the work.” You can’t control who will buy your wares or how the public will respond to your work. But if you just keep doing the work, then you are not beholden to the praise or criticism that follows. Rather you can find satisfaction knowing you put forth your best work.

What excites you most about being a writer in today’s age? In a publishing world becoming increasingly dominated by clicks over content and marketing over message, I’m delighted that I was able to find two publishers who truly value the editor and marketing I’ve never had better editorial and marketing support than what I’ve gotten with The History Press/Arcadia Publishing (Distilled in Washington: A History) and Lake Drive Books (Gaslighting for God, Jesus Died for This?) That said, I had to find these publishers by going outside of the box, a move I predict an increasing number of writers will be making as the publishing industry becomes increasingly corporatized.

Becky Garrison’s Gaslighting for God: A Satirical Guide to Save Yourself from Spiritual Narcissists is out with Lake Drive Books.