Creative Pep Talk
Andy J. Pizza
A Weekly Podcast Companion for Your Creative JourneyTransform your creative potential into reality by making your creativity a practice. A “creative discipline” can feel like an oxymoron. Creativity is about doing something new. Discipline is about doing something consistently. The aim of this podcast is to help you strike that elusive balance. Each week, New York Times Bestselling Author Illustrator Andy J. Pizza shares everything he’s learning about building a thriving creative practice. Through solo episodes and interviews with top-tier creatives, Pizza brings you the strategies and stories that you need week in and week out to keep your inner critic at bay, bust through creative blocks and stay creatively pepped to the max!!Learn more: creativepeptalk.comCheck out the host: andyjpizza.com
Episodes
Mentioned books
11 snips
May 13, 2026 • 60min
555 - Overcome Dead Ends & Open Up to New Directions with Hrishikesh Hirway
Hrishikesh Hirway, musician, composer, and creator of Song Exploder, shares his winding creative path. He talks about hitting dead ends and finding new directions, how deconstructing songs reshaped his process, and the power of collaboration and live imperfection. Conversation touches on his album In the Last Hour of Light and creative prompts to restart your work.
20 snips
May 6, 2026 • 50min
554 - Get Back to Creativity that Actually Helps Your Mental Health with Gemma Correll
Gemma Correll, illustrator and cartoonist known for candid comics about anxiety, shares her art-journal approach and graphic memoir Anxietyland. She talks about recovering the private, meditative joy of making. They explore the risks of mixing creativity with mental health and how creative communities can evolve beyond social media.
16 snips
Apr 29, 2026 • 46min
553 - Recover Sense of Self & Creative Voice with These 6 Juicy Prompts
A creative course to help you rediscover who you really are through playful prompts. Short exercises invite autobiographical art, symbolic tattoos, and epigraphs to reclaim voice. Inner parts become characters to draw and love, and you are encouraged to find communities that celebrate your true self. Practical, weird, and inviting prompts push you to externalize your inner world.
7 snips
Apr 22, 2026 • 48min
552 - Listen to This if You Need Help Remembering Who You Are (Right Side Out 1 of 6) *RE-AIR*
Lulu Miller, radio producer and author of Why Fish Don't Exist, offers concise creative counsel. She talks about using creativity to remember who you are. She prompts bringing your whole self into work. She suggests talking to family as a catalyst. Short, human, and gently provocative.
22 snips
Apr 15, 2026 • 31min
551 - Consume and Create Art to Get Your Brain Back with Scientist Daisy Fancourt
Daisy Fancourt, epidemiologist and author who researches arts and health, explains how engaging with art can restore your mind. She discusses arts as a pillar of health, why both making and consuming art help, and practical swaps to replace mindless screen time. Short, science-backed habits for daily creative practice are highlighted.
16 snips
Apr 8, 2026 • 44min
550 - Get Back to Your Creative Path with These 3 Counterintuitive Things
They diagnose creative stalls and offer three counterintuitive remedies to get back on track. They argue that what you consume shapes your creative health and liken shallow media to junk food. They recommend using films, books, songs, and comedy as “priming,” perspective, and provocation tools to reignite purpose and artistic action.
Apr 1, 2026 • 1h 14min
549 - This is How Sensitive Creative People Make Big Changes with Eric Zimmer
Eric Zimmer, author and podcaster who writes about recovery and habit change, shares how emotional truth guides meaningful shifts. He explores values vs desires, tiny consistent promises that rebuild self-trust, practical ways creatives make habits flexible, and a simple values exercise to steer choices toward what truly matters.
22 snips
Mar 25, 2026 • 35min
548 - 5 Creative / Neurodivergent Friendly Productivity Hacks to Become a Doer
Five neurodivergent-friendly productivity hacks are unpacked in short, actionable segments. Morning revs and ritual habits to kickstart creative energy get spotlighted. Practical tricks include quick-start creative sprints, simplifying daily decisions with a repeatable wardrobe, and harvesting easy byproducts like doodles and surplus ideas. A quick self-quiz helps identify your neurotype to tailor your workflow.
16 snips
Mar 18, 2026 • 1h 8min
547 - Find the Creative Voice You're Holding Back with Claire Keane
Claire Keane, author-illustrator and visual development artist behind Who Are You? and work on Tangled and Frozen, shares her journey reclaiming a personal creative voice. She talks about using sketchbooks, confronting panic and healing, shifting from pleasing others to making personal work, and the moment a simple prompt sparked a picture book. Short, candid, and inspiring creative talk.
35 snips
Mar 11, 2026 • 28min
546 - How to Transform What You're Drowning in Into High Octane Creative Fuel
A lively chat about turning personal pain and daily burdens into lasting creative fuel. He breaks down three types of creative energy—obsessions, anger, and breakdowns—and shows how to harvest each. A practical 'Create in Your Sleep' technique links dreams and symbols to ideas. Creativity is reframed as a form of self care that transforms overwhelm into productive work.
