Showing results by author "Erica Schmidt" in All Categories

Ben Braxton built his career on beauty and now it’s disappearing. He’s aging out of knowing who he is, his marriage to novelist Mira Blair is vanishing in plain sight, and he can’t direct his way out of it. When Ben casts a magnetic unknown actress in his passion project, the line between artistic obsession and self-destruction dissolves overnight. His producer warns him. His teenage daughter watches from the window. His wife starts writing a novel that looks suspiciously like their life. And the young woman he’s gambling everything on? She’s playing a longer game than he realizes.

Ashling is every busy parent’s dream: a professional nanny with experience and a warm, sunny attitude. But from the moment Mary hires her to look after her young children, things start to feel just a little...off. Are Mary’s stressful work schedule and lack of sleep playing games with her own sanity, or has she welcomed an unstable troublemaker into her home?

Welcome to This Is Your Strange and Beautiful Life! In this podcast, writer Erica J. Schmidt talks to people who may—or may not—have had the chance to transform their lives into spectacular TED talks. Cherished guests include Erica’s beloved grandmother, talented fringe performers, and more fascinating folks from across generations and communities. Discover new takes on creativity, morning routines, art, mental health, eating disorder recovery, perfectionism, and healing, plus a loving advice column segment in almost every episode. Oh, and sometimes there are tiny singsongs! About the ...