The Creative Penn (for actor-writers)
Writing and publishing strategies for creative professionals
Overview
The Creative Penn, hosted by Joanna Penn, covers writing craft, self-publishing, and building a creative business. While not acting-specific, the show provides valuable guidance for actors who write their own material, screenplays, or books.
Episodes explore topics like storytelling structure, marketing creative work, building an audience, and leveraging multiple creative income streams. The business-minded approach helps creatives monetize their talents effectively.
How It Works
Valuable for actors who also write or want to start creating their own content. The skills covered — storytelling, audience building, and self-promotion — translate directly to an acting career as well.
Free on all podcast platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts.
Who Uses It
Recommended for actor-writers who want to take control of their creative output. In an industry where creating your own content is increasingly important, the writing and publishing skills covered here are career-multipliers. Joanna Penn has built a successful career as a multi-published author and creative entrepreneur, and her practical approach to the business of creative work translates effectively to actors who are looking to diversify their creative output and income streams. The podcast's coverage of self-publishing, content marketing, and audience building is directly applicable to actors who want to write and publish memoirs, craft books, screenplays, or other written content that establishes their expertise and expands their professional identity. For actors who feel constrained by waiting for other people to create opportunities, The Creative Penn provides a framework for generating creative work independently.
Pricing & Plans
The Creative Penn is completely free on all major podcast platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts. Joanna also maintains a comprehensive website at thecreativepenn.com with articles, resources, and course recommendations. She offers paid books, courses, and tools for writers, but the podcast and website provide extensive free content that stands on its own merit. The show has been running for over a decade, producing hundreds of episodes that collectively represent a comprehensive education in creative entrepreneurship. For actors who want to explore writing and self-publishing without financial risk, the free podcast content provides more than enough guidance to get started.
Pros & Cons
What's Great
The podcast's greatest strength is its practical, business-minded approach to creative work, treating writing and content creation as viable professional pursuits that require the same strategic thinking and entrepreneurial skills as any business venture. Episodes on storytelling craft cover narrative structure, character development, dialogue, and pacing in ways that apply equally to screenwriting, playwriting, and prose fiction, helping actor-writers develop their storytelling skills across formats. The show's coverage of self-publishing and direct-to-audience distribution models is particularly relevant in an era where actors increasingly benefit from creating and distributing their own content rather than relying solely on traditional industry channels. Joanna's discussions of building multiple creative income streams — including books, courses, speaking, and consulting — provide a framework for financial diversification that is directly applicable to actors seeking to reduce their dependence on sporadic booking income. The podcast also covers emerging topics including AI writing tools, audio content creation, and the evolving landscape of digital publishing that keep listeners current with rapidly changing creative industries.
What Could Be Better
The Creative Penn is a writing and publishing podcast, not an acting podcast, and its content is not specifically tailored to the entertainment industry or performers' unique career challenges. Actors who are not interested in writing or publishing may find the content irrelevant to their immediate career needs. The show's self-publishing focus, while empowering, may not align with the goals of actors who aspire to traditional screenwriting careers where industry relationships and representation are more important than self-distribution. Some episodes cover technical publishing topics — formatting, ISBN acquisition, metadata optimization — that are highly specific to book publishing and have limited applicability beyond that field. Joanna's perspective is shaped by her experience as a UK-based author and entrepreneur, which may not perfectly translate to the American entertainment industry context.
Our Recommendation
Actor-writers who are actively writing or developing written content — screenplays, plays, books, articles, or other creative work — should listen to The Creative Penn for its practical guidance on turning creative writing into a professional pursuit. The podcast is particularly valuable for actors who want to diversify their income streams through writing or who want to develop the storytelling and business skills that support self-generated content creation. If you are not currently writing or interested in writing, the podcast's content may not serve your immediate career needs, and acting-specific podcasts will provide more directly relevant guidance. Pair The Creative Penn with entertainment-industry-specific resources if you are pursuing screenwriting or playwriting, as the publishing world's business model differs significantly from the entertainment industry's approach to written material.
Pro Tips
Start writing regularly — even 15 minutes a day — using the discipline-building strategies Joanna advocates, as the actor-writers who successfully create their own material treat writing as a daily practice rather than an occasional burst of inspiration. Apply the storytelling principles discussed on the podcast to your script analysis and audition preparation, as understanding how stories are constructed from the writer's perspective deepens your ability to interpret and perform written material. If you are considering writing a memoir, a craft book, or a guide based on your acting experience, use the podcast's publishing guidance to understand the full process from concept to publication. Explore the podcast's coverage of audio content creation, including audiobook narration and podcast production, as these skills combine your performing abilities with the content creation expertise The Creative Penn teaches. Build your author platform alongside your acting career using the audience-building strategies Joanna recommends — a strong online presence as a writer-performer creates additional professional opportunities and establishes you as a multi-dimensional creative professional.