EP 486 - Seeing The World Metaphorically with Melissa Heathers

In this episode Mark interviews Melissa Heathers, author and host of The Book Crawl. Prior to the main content, Mark welcomes new patrons, and shares a word about this episode's sponsor. This episode is sponsored by an affiliate link to Manuscript Report. Use code MARK10 at checkout and save 10% off your own personalized report. Links of Interest: Stark Realities Book BUY DIRECT Link (Use code STARKDIRECT at checkout to save $4.00. Patrons, check the post on Patreon.com/starkreflections for the post dated June 12, 2026 for your special 67% off coupon) Manuscript Report (Mark's affiliate link - use MARK10 to save 10%) Buy Mark a Coffee Patreon for Stark Reflections Mark's YouTube channel ElevenLabs (AI Voice Generation - Affiliate link) Mark's Stark Reflections on Writing & Publishing Newsletter (Signup) Stark Realities Book An Author's Guide to Working With Bookstores and Libraries The Relaxed Author Buy eBook Direct Buy Audiobook Direct Publishing Pitfalls for Authors Wide for the Win Ghost Stories of the Great Lakes Mark's Canadian Werewolf Books This Time Around (Short Story) A Canadian Werewolf in New York Stowe Away (Novella) Fear and Longing in Los Angeles Fright Nights, Big City Lover's Moon Hex and the City Only Monsters in the Building Once Bitten (Novella) The Canadian Mounted: A Trivia Guide to Planes, Trains and Automobiles Yippee Ki-Yay Motherf*cker: A Trivia Guide to Die Hard Merry Christmas! Shitter Was Full!: A Trivia Guide to National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation I Think It's A Sign That The Pun Also Rises   The introductory, end, and bumper music for this podcast ("Laser Groove") was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 Episode Details Status: Published Release Date: Jul 30, 2026 Author: Mark Leslie Lefebvre Episode Type: full Season: 9 Episode: 485 Rating: Clean     File Info Size: 39 MB Duration: 00:27:32 File Type: audio Codec: mp3 Bitrate: 187.50 kbPs Sample Rate: 44100 Hz Upload Date: Jul 30th, 2026 02:46 PM Downloads for This Episode IAB     IAB Unique Daily Downloads 171                 Downloads: [bold][/] Last processed 08/06/26 06:11pm Destinations   Destination Status Release Expiration Amazon Music/Audible Released Jul 30, 2026 7:00pm Never Android App Released Jul 30, 2026 7:00pm Never Apple Podcasts / Libsyn Classic Feed Released Jul 30, 2026 7:00pm Never Boomplay Released Jul 30, 2026 7:00pm Never Deezer Released Jul 30, 2026 7:00pm Never Gaana Released Jul 30, 2026 7:00pm Never iHeartRadio Released Jul 30, 2026 7:00pm Never iPhone/iPad App Released Jul 30, 2026 7:00pm Never JioSaavn Released Jul 30, 2026 7:00pm Never Network App Listing Released Jul 30, 2026 7:00pm Never   of 2         Episode Description In this solo episode Mark reads Chapter 5 (The Beautiful Mess: On Failure, Mistakes, and the Gift of Getting It Wrong) from his book STARK REALITIES: Stacked-up Lessons Every Writer Needs to Know About the Business of Writing and Publishing. Prior to the main content, Mark shares a personal update and a word about this episode's sponsor. This episode is sponsored by an affiliate link to Manuscript Report. Use code MARK10 at checkout and save 10% off your own personalized report. In their conversation, Mark and Melissa talk about: Melissa's first book (Dear Ego, Dear Heart), which was published Dec 24, 2024 as a Christmas gift to herself The questions that came next, including "What do I do to make this book visible?" Being told in high school by a teacher that Melissa had a talent for writing The transcendence that came as the results of the side-effects from a horrible car accident The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle and how it inspired Melissa to write poetry that explores the inner duality Seeing the world metaphorically Some of the strategies that Melissa had to employ What Book Crawl is and how it first started The initial name Melissa had for this show What Melissa's show is like, and how it's different than a podcast A mistake Melissa made leveraging AI to generate images for a kids' book The artist/designer that Melissa ended up using for the final project The visibility summit that Melissa was participating in during the summer of 2026 Advice Melissa would offer to other authors And more... After the interview Mark reflects on the importance of teachers in recognizing the talents and skills of students, and the impact a small gesture can have on someone's creative life. Links of Interest: Melissa's website The Book Crawl The 2026 Aurora Awards (livestream Sunday Aug 9, 2026 at 5 PM Eastern) 2022 Aurora Awards Opening Schtick/Cold Open 2023 Aurora Awards Opening Schtick/Cold Open 2024 Aurora Awards Opening Schtick/Cold Open 2025 Aurora Awards Opening Schtick/Cold Open Manuscript Report (Mark's affiliate link - use MARK10 to save 10%) Buy Mark a Coffee Patreon for Stark Reflections Mark's YouTube channel ElevenLabs (AI Voice Generation - Affiliate link) Mark's Stark Reflections on Writing & Publishing Newsletter (Signup) Stark Realities Book An Author's Guide to Working With Bookstores and Libraries The Relaxed Author Buy eBook Direct Buy Audiobook Direct Publishing Pitfalls for Authors Wide for the Win Ghost Stories of the Great Lakes Mark's Canadian Werewolf Books This Time Around (Short Story) A Canadian Werewolf in New York Stowe Away (Novella) Fear and Longing in Los Angeles Fright Nights, Big City Lover's Moon Hex and the City Only Monsters in the Building Once Bitten (Novella) The Canadian Mounted: A Trivia Guide to Planes, Trains and Automobiles Yippee Ki-Yay Motherf*cker: A Trivia Guide to Die Hard Merry Christmas! Shitter Was Full!: A Trivia Guide to National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation I Think It's A Sign That The Pun Also Rises   The introductory, end, and bumper music for this podcast ("Laser Groove") was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0