A Little Help From My Friends

Thursday, April 23, 2026

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I’ve been feeling a little down in the dumps about my writing lately. After years of working on various novel-length projects, I finally had requests from agents. Then, the rejections came pouring in once they read through the book. I’ve had a few beta readers go over the manuscript, and it needs work, but I can’t bring myself to begin the edits. I’ve written a novel about a true crime podcaster who shares survival stories whose sister disappeared from a summer camp. Last week I picked up a book by Tiffany Crum that's been receiving a lot of buzz called This Story Might Save Your Life. Guess what it’s about? Two true crime podcasters who host a survival podcast until one of them goes missing. Well, darn. (I read the novel, and while it’s not the same as mine past the podcast premise, I still worry it’s going to appear I copied the concept if I ever send out the manuscript again). It made me think that maybe I’m not cut out to write mysteries, because I struggle with planting all the clues efficiently when I write.

I produce a weekly true crime podcast where I do all the research and write the scripts. While it has grown organically in the past five years to have almost 9,000 followers on one podcast platform, it still doesn’t receive enough downloads to earn money. Essentially, I’m paying to produce my own podcast, and last week, someone was kind enough to drop a nasty one-star review in the feed. Among other things, this anonymous keyboard warrior said, “Do a little research on how to produce a good quality show before actually doing it.”

Then, today, a glimmer of hope, from a WOW! classroom instructor and judge. Last month, I’d told her about an essay I wanted to write. In 2023, I was the victim of financial fraud and lost more than $3,000. My bank refused to refund the money until I enlisted the help of a local consumer affairs reporter. The day I received the cash back into my bank account was the same day I learned my biological father had passed away. Estranged for many years, I hadn’t even known he was ill. I ended up using some of the refund to quietly help pay for his funeral.

The first draft of the essays flowed out of me in 24 hours. I had the instructor look over it, and we had a call today. She lifted my spirits, pleasantly surprised that I could have written a solid first draft in less than a month, and gave me some wonderful tips for revising the next draft. I began to think that maybe my writing isn’t so hopeless after all. Then I thought back to all the times my writing friends (most of whom I’ve met right here at WOW!) have helped me with essays, short stories, contest and market suggestions, and reading drafts of my novels. In fact, if it hadn’t been for these writing friends, I wouldn’t have placed in Writer’s Digest competitions for nonfiction and fiction or had my work published in literary journals. They’ve even cheered along my podcasting journey from the very beginning.

I can’t write in a vacuum, and none of us should. Sometimes all it takes is a few words of encouragement to make us realize our worth. I came away from today’s call with a renewed enthusiasm and suggestions on how to improve a few other essays I’ve drafted in the past few years.

And maybe, just maybe, a little more belief in myself.

Renee Roberson is an award-winning writer and host/creator of the podcast, Missing in the Carolinas. Learn more about her work at FinishedPages.com.