Artist Recovery Podcast

Artist Recovery Podcast S2 Ep. 22 | From Boxed In to Breaking Out: Cathelina Duvert's Story

What happens when the people who are supposed to guide you tell you that you don't belong? For author and educator Cathelina Duvert, that question became the seed of a lifetime of creative recovery, deep self-discovery, and ultimately, a debut novel born from the pain she refused to keep carrying alone. In this episode of the Artist Recovery Podcast, Rich Wright sits down with Cathelina Duvert, a Hofstra University graduate, award-winning author, mental health advocate, and seventh and ninth grade ELA teacher from Queens, New York. Her debut novel, The Box, explores identity, depression, and resilience, and it carries the weight of everything she once kept hidden. Cathelina opens up about growing up Haitian American in a strict Queens household, being a twin who felt perpetually in the shadow of her sister's social world, and discovering early on that writing was the one place she felt truly herself. From stapling together handmade books for her father to read, to carrying a green notebook filled with forced rhymes and secret poems, her creative life was always burning underneath the surface, even when no one around her could see it. A guidance counselor told her she was wasting her money applying to Hofstra University. She got in anyway, and in her very first semester, earned straight A's for the first time in her life. This episode goes deep into the moments that shaped her: the childhood anxiety that went unnamed for years, the sexual trauma at age twelve that became the hidden root of her depression, the sister who ultimately saw her struggling and pushed her toward therapy, the Manhattan publishing world that lit her up creatively and socially, and the slow, deliberate process of transferring her pain onto the page by giving it all to her main character. Cathelina also shares the story of founding a creative writing club at her school, applying for a grant, and guiding her students through publishing their own book, Masquerade of Lies, and what it felt like to watch their faces the moment they saw their names in print. This is a conversation about the audacity to create when the world has told you not to, the healing that lives inside the writing, and what it means to finally give your story permission to exist. Topics Covered: ~Growing up in a strict Haitian American household in Queens, NY ~Early signs of creativity, anxiety, and introversion ~Being told by educators you don't belong, and proving them wrong ~Discovering a new way to study and earning straight A's at Hofstra ~Childhood sexual trauma and its connection to lifelong depression ~Writing as therapy, healing, and identity ~Self-publishing The Box and navigating the indie literary world ~Founding a student creative writing club and publishing Masquerade of Lies ~The audacity creatives need to share their work with the world Connect with Cathelina: Website: https://cathelinaduvert.com Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cathelina-duvert-b95b97304 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cathelinaduvert FB: https://www.facebook.com/TheBoxTheBook TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@UCmXCJwm_yFyx-bumAZh1J7g Youtube:  @CathelinaDuvert [https://studio.youtube.com/channel/UCmXCJwm_yFyx-bumAZh1J7g]  Join Podmatch:  https://www.joinpodmatch.com/artistre... Dyslexia Classes: https://www.skool.com/dyslexia-classes #ArtistRecoveryPodcast #CreativeRecovery #CreativeBurnout #DepressionAndCreativity #WritingAsHealing #BlackAuthors #IndiePublishing #SelfPublishing #HaitianAmericanAuthor #WomenWriters #MentalHealthAndCreativity #IntrovertCreator #AnxietyAndCreativity #DebutNovel #TheBoxNovel #CreativeWritingTeacher #LiteraryFiction #CreativeWritingClub #ChildhoodTraumaAndCreativity #OvercomingSelfDoubt #CreativeConfidence #ImposterSyndrome #SensitiveCreative #WritingPoetry #FindingYourVoice #FirstGenerationCollegeStudent #Storytelling #AuthorsWhoTeach #WomenInLiterature #CreativeHealingJourney #BlackWomenWriters #InnerChildCreativity #richwrightartist #richwrightunlimited #richwrightunltd #beaguest #podmatchguest  @PodMatch_com [https://studio.youtube.com/channel/UC4DJzxAgjypfUeS-mNgi-Jg] Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2457939/support] Always remember, Listen to your Heart and Be Kind to Your Mind! -Rich Wright Follow us here: https://www.theartistrecovery.com [https://www.theartistrecovery.com] Join the Community: https://www,artrecroom.com [https://www,artrecroom.com] Listen Weekly at: https://www.artistrecoverypodcast.com [https://www.artistrecoverypodcast.com] Connect: Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/theartrec] Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/theartrec] X [https://www.x.com/TheArtistRec] TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@theartrec] Linkedin [https://www.linkedin.com/in/richwrightunltd]

Artist Recovery Podcast S2 Ep. 21 | From CNN to Fiction: John DeDakis on Writing, Grief & Healing

What happens when a 25-year CNN veteran, a former White House correspondent who interviewed both Ronald Reagan and Jimmy Carter, a decorated thriller novelist, and a grief-through-writing advocate all walk into the same conversation? You get John DeDakis — and one of the most unexpectedly profound episodes of this entire season. John is the creator of the acclaimed Lark Chadwick mystery suspense series, a six-novel run with his latest, Enemies Domestic, taking the grand prize at the Chanticleer International Book Awards. He's also a highly sought-after writing coach, manuscript editor, and workshop leader — but none of that is the real story. The real story is how a shy, self-described "scaredy-cat" kid from La Crosse, Wisconsin became someone who has spent his life excavating the human condition — one story, one question, one grief at a time. In this episode, Rich and John go deep — not just on craft, but on what it means to be a man who listens, feels, and heals. In this conversation: ~Growing up in La Crosse — a stable, love-anchored childhood and why John says he was "born on second base" ~How the Vietnam War, the draft, and a campus radio station at the University of Wisconsin set his entire trajectory ~Enlisting to avoid the draft — and landing in Germany where his very first interview was with Alfred Hitchcock ~ 25 years at CNN and what it really felt like inside The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer ~ Why journalism was the perfect fit for a man who didn't want to pick a side — and why that matters more now than ever ~ The origin of Lark Chadwick — a 20-something female protagonist written by a man, and what writing her revealed about gender, safety, and emotional intelligence ~ What men get wrong about women — in relationships, in the room, and in conversation ~ The powerful truth that "women are always playing defense" — and why every man needs to sit with that ~ Grief as a creative catalyst — from witnessing a fatal car-train collision at age nine, to his sister's suicide, to losing his son to a heroin overdose ~ Why writing is not just craft — it's catharsis, and how mining your pain produces your most authentic work ~ The memoir — Plot Twists: A Memoir on Writing and Living — coming later in 2026 Connect with John: Website: https://johndedakis.com Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-dedakis-4b09a34 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dedakisjohn FB: https://www.facebook.com/john.dedakis Join Podmatch:  https://www.joinpodmatch.com/artistrecovery Dyslexia Classes: https://www.skool.com/dyslexia-classes #ArtistRecoveryPodcast #CreativeRecovery #MentalHealthForCreatives #JohnDeDakis #CNN #ThrillerAuthor #WritingCoach #LarkChadwick #GriefAndWriting #WritingTherapy #MensMentalHealth #MenAndGrief #MaleEmotionalHealth #EmpathyForMen #FemalePOV #WritingFiction #CreativeHealing #GriefProcessing #BeYourOwnAdvocate #TherapyForMen #SuicideSurvivor #CreativePivot #TransferableSkills #PlotTwistsMemoiir #JournalingForHealth #SubconsciousWriting #StorytellingTherapy #CNNInsider #WolfBlitzer #richwrightartist #richwrightunlimited #richwrightunltd #artistrecoverypodcast #beaguest #podmatchguest #WhiteHouseCorrespondent #ReaganInterview #AlfredHitchcock #VietnamWarDraft #ArmyJournalism #EnemiesDomestic #ThrillerWriting #WritingAcrossGender  ⁨@PodMatch_com⁩ [https://studio.youtube.com/channel/UC4DJzxAgjypfUeS-mNgi-Jg]  #WomenAndSafety #RelationshipsAndListening #LoveIsAChoice Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2457939/support] Always remember, Listen to your Heart and Be Kind to Your Mind! -Rich Wright Follow us here: https://www.theartistrecovery.com [https://www.theartistrecovery.com] Join the Community: https://www,artrecroom.com [https://www,artrecroom.com] Listen Weekly at: https://www.artistrecoverypodcast.com [https://www.artistrecoverypodcast.com] Connect: Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/theartrec] Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/theartrec] X [https://www.x.com/TheArtistRec] TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@theartrec] Linkedin [https://www.linkedin.com/in/richwrightunltd]

Artist Recovery Podcast S2 Ep. 20 | From Addiction to Agency: Grant Curtis's Creative Comeback

What does it look like when a creative director loses everything at the height of his career and builds something better on the other side of sobriety?  In this episode, Rich Wright sits down with Grant Curtis, founder of Curtis Creative Agency and United Headwear, for a raw, unfiltered conversation about addiction, identity, and the grit it takes to start over with clarity. Grant spent nearly 16 years inside a growing apparel brand in Tacoma, Washington, working his way up from screen printer to creative director after getting his foot in the door at 19 years old, lying about knowing how to screen print on day one, and figuring it out before Monday morning. That kind of resourcefulness carried him through two decades of building other people's brands, until the day they laid him off just 7 months into his sobriety. $60,000 in debt, a mortgage to cover, and a newly clear head, Grant chose to build rather than break. Rich and Grant go deep on what it really means to recover, not just from substances, but from the version of yourself that you outgrew. They talk about cocaine addiction and the financial wreckage it leaves behind, how early sobriety and a layoff happened in the same season, why athletics became Grant's anchor instead of a coping mechanism, and how the gym, running, and cycling became the discipline that holds everything together. Grant shares the story behind United Headwear, originally called United by Sobriety, a headwear brand born out of a creative gap in the market for sober culture, and the honest reality of rebranding when your first instinct was bigger than your bandwidth. They also dig into the quiet power of the founder's story, the creative perfectionism that holds artists back, and why building in public from the ground floor is what creates real community. This episode ends with one of the most unexpected moments of the season. Grant reveals that his sobriety date is September 25th. His baby's due date is September 24th. And the number 4 has been his lucky number since his soccer days. Connect with Grant: Website: https://www.curtiscreativeagency.com Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/grantalexcurtis Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/curtiscreativeagency Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/curtiscreativeagency Join Podmatch:  https://www.joinpodmatch.com/artistrecovery Dyslexia Classes: https://www.skool.com/dyslexia-classes #SobrietyRecovery #AddictionRecoveryStory #CreativeEntrepreneur #GraphicDesignerCareer #BrandBuilder #CreativeDirectorJourney #SoberLifestyle #CocaineAddictionRecovery #ApparelIndustryCareer #HeadwearBrand #ScreenPrintingCareer #ArtistRecoveryPodcast #SobrietyAndBusiness #BuildingABrandFromScratch #AthleticDisciplineSobriety #GymAndRecovery #AAAlcoholicsAnonymous #LayoffAndEntrepreneurship #SoberCreative #UnitedHeadwear #CurtisCreativeAgency #RecoveryPodcast #PodcastForCreatives #SobrietyMilestone #FounderStory #ProductDevelopmentApparel #richwrightartist #richwrightunlimited #richwrightunltd #grantcurtis  Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2457939/support] Always remember, Listen to your Heart and Be Kind to Your Mind! -Rich Wright Follow us here: https://www.theartistrecovery.com [https://www.theartistrecovery.com] Join the Community: https://www,artrecroom.com [https://www,artrecroom.com] Listen Weekly at: https://www.artistrecoverypodcast.com [https://www.artistrecoverypodcast.com] Connect: Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/theartrec] Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/theartrec] X [https://www.x.com/TheArtistRec] TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@theartrec] Linkedin [https://www.linkedin.com/in/richwrightunltd]

Artist Recovery Podcast S2 Ep. 19 | Lucinda Sage-Midgorden: When Story Becomes the Healing Path

What happens when a life spent observing, feeling, and questioning everything becomes the very foundation of a creative calling?  In this episode, Rich Wright sits down with Lucinda Sage-Midgorden, a storyteller, educator, author, podcaster, and lifelong student of the human experience whose creative journey is as layered as the stories she tells. Lucinda grew up moving from town to town across the Pacific Northwest, learning early how to read a room, adapt to new environments, and find her footing in unfamiliar places.  That constant navigation did not just teach her resilience. It taught her how to see people. How to observe the invisible forces shaping behavior. And eventually, how to ask the question that would change everything: not "why is this happening to me," but "what am I supposed to learn from this?" Lucinda's story is a masterclass in the long arc of the artistic life. She shares how her father, a self-taught dyslexic machinist and lay minister, used family movie nights to teach his children how to think about human nature. How journaling saved her at the moment she needed it most. How the theater community became the first place she felt truly seen. And how a decision to sell their house and circle the globe with her husband Barry became the defining act of creative courage in her life.Her spiritual thread runs quietly through all of it. From a childhood confirmation that cracked her heart wide open, to leaving a toxic church environment because she heard four words clearly in her mind, to studying Deepak Chopra, M. Scott Peck, and Gregg Braden as she built a new interior life rooted in New Thought and Reiki practice.  For Lucinda, creativity and spirituality have never been separate. Her mentor said it best, and she has carried it with her ever since: theater is a spiritual endeavor. Today, Lucinda is the host of the Story Power Podcast, co-creator of the Classic Cinema with the Sage Sisters YouTube channel, author of the dual-timeline novel The Space Between Time, and the founder of Sage Woman Chronicles, a blog she built to practice her craft and sharpen her voice.  Connect with Lucinda: Website: https://sagewoman.life/ Join Podmatch: https://www.joinpodmatch.com/artistrecovery Dyslexia Classes: https://www.skool.com/dyslexia-classes-2483/about  #ArtistRecovery #CreativeResilience #HealingThroughArt #HighlySensitivePerson  #SensitiveSoul  #SpiritualCreativity #CreativeEntrepreneur  #IndependentAuthor  #CreativeBurnoutRecovery #PodcastForCreatives #NewThoughtSpirituality #ReikiAndCreativity #EmpathArtist #IntuitiveCreative #FindingYourVoice #CreativeCourage  #WomenInMinistry #DualTimelineNovel #OregonTrailFiction  #StoryPower #LucindaSageMidgorden #ArtistRecoveryPodcast #RichWrightPodcast #CreativeCalling #richwrightartist #richwrightunlimited #richwrightunltd ⁠ ⁨@PodMatch_com⁩ ⁠ [https://studio.youtube.com/channel/UC4DJzxAgjypfUeS-mNgi-Jg] #beaguest #podmatchguest Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2457939/support] Always remember, Listen to your Heart and Be Kind to Your Mind! -Rich Wright Follow us here: https://www.theartistrecovery.com [https://www.theartistrecovery.com] Join the Community: https://www,artrecroom.com [https://www,artrecroom.com] Listen Weekly at: https://www.artistrecoverypodcast.com [https://www.artistrecoverypodcast.com] Connect: Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/theartrec] Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/theartrec] X [https://www.x.com/TheArtistRec] TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@theartrec] Linkedin [https://www.linkedin.com/in/richwrightunltd]

Artist Recovery Podcast S2 Ep. 18 | Amy L. Bernstein: Wrangling Doubt to Reclaim Your Creative Life

What happens when a lifetime of being told "no" finally meets the one voice that says "yes, do it anyway"? In this conversation, Rich Wright sits down with author, book coach, and creativity mentor Amy L. Bernstein for a deeply honest and soulfully resonant exchange that every creative who has ever doubted their right to create needs to hear. Amy is the author of Wrangling the Doubt Monster, a widely praised guide for creatives and professionals navigating self-doubt, the critically acclaimed speculative thriller Be Real, the award-winning YA novel Fran the Second Time Around, and the forthcoming family saga Tent City. She is also a book coach, workshop facilitator, and Substack writer whose platform Doubt Monster has become a gathering place for creatives who are done hiding. In this episode, Amy tells the truth about the journey. The drama kid who moved states and lost her creative community. The college application she fought for by advocating for herself when her father said no. The publishing internship that ended before it began. The man who sat her down and told her women could not write for a publication like the Village Voice. The morning on the train platform when she stood moments away from walking out of her own life. All of it unfiltered, all of it real. Amy and Rich explore the seeds of self-doubt planted in childhood and how they live quietly inside creatives for decades. They dig into the difference between allies and adversaries in the creative journey, and why the people who love us most are often the ones who fear our risks the most. They talk about the psychic cost of making art, the long game of gradual reinvention, and why permission, not talent, is the thing that most creative people are actually missing. Amy's tagline says it all: "I write stories that let readers feel while asking them to think."  Whether you are a writer, visual artist, musician, designer, or any kind of maker who has been told to be practical, this episode is the permission slip you have been waiting for. Connect with Amy: Website: https://amywrites.live/ Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amylbernstein/ FB: https://www.facebook.com/AmyLBernsteinAuthor Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amylbernstein Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCscYRJs-r3aeNLu_2Qmg_3w Join Podmatch: https://www.joinpodmatch.com/artistrecovery #CreativeSelfDoubt #OvercomingSelfDoubt #CreativeRecovery #ArtistRecoveryPodcast #WranglingTheDoubtMonster #AmyBernsteinAuthor #BookCoachForWriters  #SelfAdvocacyForCreatives #CreativeBurnout  #SelfDoubtAsACreative #WritingThroughSelfDoubt #PermissionToCreate #CreativeResilience #SensitiveCreatives #HealingThroughCreativity #ArtistMentalHealth #FindingYourCreativeVoice  #MentoringCreatives #CreativeLifeTruth #CreativeReinvention #CreativeJourneyPodcast #ArtistPodcast  #HowToStartCreatingAgain #CreativeConfidence #DoubtAsACreative #richwrightartist #richwrightunlimited #richwrightunltd #beaguest #podmatchguest  @PodMatch_com [https://studio.youtube.com/channel/UC4DJzxAgjypfUeS-mNgi-Jg] Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2457939/support] Always remember, Listen to your Heart and Be Kind to Your Mind! -Rich Wright Follow us here: https://www.theartistrecovery.com [https://www.theartistrecovery.com] Join the Community: https://www,artrecroom.com [https://www,artrecroom.com] Listen Weekly at: https://www.artistrecoverypodcast.com [https://www.artistrecoverypodcast.com] Connect: Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/theartrec] Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/theartrec] X [https://www.x.com/TheArtistRec] TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@theartrec] Linkedin [https://www.linkedin.com/in/richwrightunltd]