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Welcome back to Finding the Throughline: Conversations about the Creative Process where today\u2019s guest is thriller author Vanessa Lillie, whose books include \u201cLittle Voices\u201d, \u201cFor the Best,\u201d and her newest book \u201cBlood Sisters,\u201d a thriller about two missing Indigenous women and the Cherokee archeologist for the Bureau of Indian Affairs who is searching for them which was a Good Morning America Buzz Pick and USA Today national bestseller. She\u2019s also the co-author of a fun 80s mystery romp \u201cYoung Rich Widows\u201d as well as its sequel which is coming out next year, \u201cDesperate Deadly Widows.\u201d\nAn Oklahoma native, Vanessa is an enrolled citizen of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma living on Narragansett land in Rhode Island.\n\nToday I\u2019m talking with Vanessa about the mindset side of writing, or what I call inner stuff\u2013the thoughts, ideas, and attitudes that affect your work, even if you\u2019re not fully conscious of it, including:\n\n- Fighting erasure by weaving her family\u2019s story into her books\n- The thrill and the total fear of writing about your culture and worrying about getting it wrong\n- How Vanessa steadies herself when that anxiety crops up\n- Embracing the challenge of writing a page turner\n- Dealing with the fear that your current work isn\u2019t as good as your previous work\n- Seeing ideas as a butterfly that come and sit on your shoulder (from Elizabeth Gilbert\u2019s book \u201cBig Magic\u201d\n- Why it\u2019s so vital to get clear on why you are the right person to tell this story\n- Why being in her 40s feels like such a relief\n- Some frank talk about early motherhood\u2013and why it was a theme in her first novel\n- Letting go of the idea that your success is within your control\n\nConnect with Vanessa on Instagram @vanessalillie\n\nFor full show notes with links to everything we discuss, plus bonus photos!, visit katehanley.substack.com.\n\nThank you for listening!\n\nAnd thanks to this week\u2019s sponsor, Air Doctor Pro. Visit airdoctorpro.com and use code KATE to save 30% off an amazing indoor air filter *and* receive a free three-year warranty (an $84 value).\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices