We were lucky to catch up with Meg Eden Kuyatt recently and have shared our conversation below.
Meg Eden, so great to have you with us today. There are so many topics we want to ask you about, but perhaps the one we can start with is burnout. How have you overcome or avoided burnout?
It’s a process, and I’m still learning. But the past couple years, I’ve had some awful cases of burnout, which have humbled me and reminded me that I have human limits! It’s easy in our current culture to focus on producing, and forgetting that rest is productive–we can’t produce or work if we don’t listen to our bodies and take the time to rest. We see rest modeled in nature too–fields that need to go fallow before a new harvest; there are animals that sleep long hours so that they can be prepared to hunt. I’m trying to build in more frequent breaks, and to remind myself that rest is purposeful, and that I won’t be as productive if I don’t take that time to rest.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
I wear lots of hats, but my main ones are as a writing instructor and a middle grade author. I’m the author of GOOD DIFFERENT and THE GIRL IN THE WALLS (coming out May 20th), both middle grade novels in verse with Scholastic. GOOD DIFFERENT Schneider Family Book Award Honor-winning title. I love doing school visits and meeting with kids to hear what they’re excited about and what questions they have about my books and the world. I love working individually with writers and helping them on their writing journey, and brainstorming ideas to help them overcome challenges in their writing projects.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
-Independent studies: I created my own major in college, and this taught me to decide what I care about, why it matters, and to create an argument to others on why it should matter. It also helped me further cultivate skills in intrinsic motivation, being my own boss, and creating a sustainable structure to reach a long-term goal.
-Autistic joy: I am autistic, and I think this helps me to think outside the box. It helps me to feel big and empathise with others. It helps me to get hyperfocused and specialize my skills. It also helps me be less interested in what everyone else is doing and be a trend-setter and make my own path. It makes me stand out, and I generally really like that! It also can make me a bit stubborn and persistent, which is not always good, but in the right setting, has helped me keep going even when things are hard.
-Teachability: This is a growing point, but I think having a spirit of willingness and excitement to try new things, keep learning, and explore has let me get to be a part of so many unique opportunities, and served me well in my career.
Who has been most helpful in helping you overcome challenges or build and develop the essential skills, qualities or knowledge you needed to be successful?
Many people have helped me but the first that came to mind is my former pastor, who taught me how to be a strong writer, structure a clear argument, and modeled humble leadership, which I greatly admire. Whenever he came up to preach, he made clear that he was actively not there to call out specific people or shame; he was just there, telling us what he was learning and struggling with now. I realize now that as a writer, he has been my biggest influence. When I write stories, I think about his approach to sermons. I ask myself: what am I struggling with right now? What do I need to hear and learn? And that’s the engine for my stories, which I think in turn, because it’s so personal, makes it resonate with readers. Another great thing he did was he had a very clear structure and order when he spoke. His messages were easy to remember because he organized them in a very logical, practical way. As a speaker, I always really try to emulate this so my audience will remember the points I’m trying to make. I really love that he always stressed that we should never just take his word for something. We should never believe something’s true because he said it; we should always examine what God says is true and invite us to go back to the original source to investigate and seek truth. This instilled in me a great value for critical, independent thinking, and seeking what is actually true. Likewise, as an instructor and writer, I want to challenge my readers and myself to think critically and come to our own conclusions as to what is true, instead of being passive consumers.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.megedenbooks.com
- Instagram: meden_author
- Facebook: Meg Eden Writes Poems
- Other: https://bsky.app/profile/medenkuyatt.bsky.social
Image Credits
Headshot by Vincent Kuyatt
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