The Stories We Tell Ourselves

Writing Prompts for Hard Seasons

This morning I had the joy of speaking to a group of caregivers called Amazing Angels, led by a wonderful woman named Nadine Nichols. We talked about something I believe with my whole heart: the words we say to ourselves impact us profoundly, and writing is one of the most powerful tools we have to change our mindsets and lives.

If you have ever sat in a hard season and thought, "I will never get through this" or "I do not even know where to start," then this post is for you. You do not have to be a caregiver to need a mindset reset. You just have to be human.

I shared these prompts with the group this morning, and I did not want to keep them to myself. They come from people I deeply admire: Rachel Koltin, my co-leader at Women Connect; Gavin McHale, a gifted mindset coach; and the members of my Cancer Caregiver Support Group of East Tennessee, who show up with courage and grace every single time we meet.

Try these when you have a quiet moment. A cup of coffee, a journal, and five minutes is all you need.

One Word Check-In

Right now, I feel...

Thought Reframe #1

I worry that...

What if...

Thought Reframe #2

How will I ever...

How can I...

Thought Reframe #3

I will never...

For now, I will...

Three Good Things

Even during difficult seasons, there are still good things worth noticing. What are three of yours?

Looking Ahead

I wish I would...

This week, I will...

One Small Step

What is one thing I can do this week to care for myself?

Here is what I want you to notice about these prompts. Every single one of them moves you forward. "I worry that" becomes "What if." "I will never" becomes "For now, I will." That is not toxic positivity. That is the quiet, steady work of choosing a different story, one sentence at a time.

And here is why that matters to me personally, especially for those of you who are thinking about writing your own story someday: the way you talk to yourself on the hard days is the same voice that will carry your memoir, your devotional, or your legacy book across the finish line. Learning to reframe is not just a mindset skill. It is a writing skill.

You have a story worth telling. You do not have to have it all figured out to start. You just have to take one small step.

If you are curious about what it would look like to write and publish your story with a team that genuinely cares about you, I would love to invite you to schedule a Publishing Pathway Call with one of our Publishing Advisors. There is no pressure, no pitch, and no judgment. Just a real conversation about your story and where you want to take it.

Books live forever!

Jody Dyer

CEO & Caregiver

Crippled Beagle Publishing and Story Mountain Media

There is something I see over and over again, and it quietly stops people from ever writing their books.

Aspiring authors often treat books like investments that must pay them back in order to be a valid endeavor.

They ask questions like:

Will this make money?
Will I get a return?
Is the work worth it, financially?

I understand those questions. Producing a high-quality book isn’t cheap. However, I always want to ask a couple of questions in return (pun intended).

Do you ask for a return on investment from anything else you love?
Many people spend thousands of dollars each year on things they enjoy and never expect a financial return. Why is writing a book treated differently?

For fun, I researched the top 10 hobbies for American adults AND how much we spend on them. Interesting. Here are the results:

Gardening, up to $1,200 per year
Arts and Crafts, up to $1,500 per year
Gaming, up to $1,500+ per year
Fitness and Wellness, up to $1,800+ per year
Music (learning or playing), up to $2,000+ per year
Fishing, up to $2,500+ per year
Golf, up to $3,000+ per year
Home Improvement and DIY Projects, up to $5,000+ per year
Hunting, up to $5,000+ per year
Travel, up to $8,000+ per year

Think about where else friends, family, and you spend money. Is anyone paying for what you produce, create, or accomplish?

These are still meaningful pursuits. I am in the Smoky Mountains, where thousands of brown trout and rainbow trout dodge flies atop Little River daily. I have never met a fly fisherman who spent eight hours wading and casting, expecting to make a profit. That said, I bet every fly-fishing enthusiast will tell you that the time and financial investment are worth every minute and penny.

People invest in passions and hobbies because those experiences bring joy, growth, and fulfillment. They may also create multigenerational memories, but when it comes to writing a book, something shifts. The expectation becomes transactional. I don't like that.

Here is what I believe. A book is not just a creative outlet. Your book is an evergreen contribution to the world, starting with your family and community and, most importantly, readers who will benefit from what you have to share.

Let’s revisit that list and think about how this all plays out financially over a decade so we are comparing apples to apples, if you will. This is something that people don’t usually think about: Most of these hobby and passion project expenses repeat every single year.

Gardening, up to $12,000
Arts and Crafts, up to $15,000
Gaming, up to $15,000+
Fitness and Wellness, up to $18,000+
Music (learning or playing), up to $20,000+
Fishing, up to $25,000+
Golf, up to $30,000+
Home Improvement and DIY Projects, up to $50,000+
Hunting, up to $50,000+
Travel, up to $80,000+
Don’t even get me started on AAU basketball and travel baseball!

I recently read that Americans spend an average of $3,000 per year on IMPULSE shopping for non-essential items out of boredom, consumerism, and maybe "retail therapy." Did you know that writing is one of the best forms of self-care?

When it comes to investing and returns, a book is different. The majority of the investment happens only once, during the writing, editing, design, publishing, and early marketing phases in Year 1. Then the book continues to serve. Your book reaches people you will never meet. Your content influences conversations you will never hear. In some cases, books shape families, stop damaging cycles, launch and serve businesses, and set in motion positive, eternal consequences. The return is profound and immeasurable.

You may never fully understand the effects your words have. That does not make the impact any less real or the effort any less worthwhile.

Instead of asking, “Will this pay me back?”

Ask, “What message has been entrusted to me, and how will it serve others?”

Then ask, “What is the cost of keeping that message to myself?”

Jody Dyer
Founder and CEO, Crippled Beagle Publishing and Story Mountain Media