I started a podcast because I'm a loser.

This episode is the origin story I've never told: going blind, ending up in a wheelchair, and the freedom that comes with nothing left to lose. (Any Janis Joplin fans here?)

It's about the almost-but-not-quite Hollywood successes, my dad's mountain range philosophy, and why Navy SEALs know something about drowning the rest of us need to hear.

But really, it’s about this:

The more I owned my loser status, the more people related to me. And I hope it gives you courage to own your failures too.

Best Quotes:

"Everyone is performing success all the time, even when we're drowning. Especially when we're drowning."

"I was the silent Asian. To this day, we still play this game. We watch TV and we see an Asian, we're like, oh, silent Asian. That Asian never gets to speak."

IN THIS EPISODE:

• Elijah Wood was my dream prom date
• How to be on TV and still feel like a failure
• The $1 million conversation that set me free
• Why my life is one long Navy SEAL drown-proofing drill
• What my dad would say about Beck's "Loser" hitting #10 on Billboard 100

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 Why I Started My Podcast

00:34 Blind and Paralyzed

00:57 Beck & My Hollywood Dreams

03:37 Failure & the Asian Dad

04:30 The $1 Million Story

05:24 The Bottom Bounce: Navy SEALs Know How to Sink

06:54 Owning Failure Publicly

09:21 The Loser's Anthem

10:36 Join Us at the Bottom

FREE Are You Ready for Traditional Publishing decision tree: https://bit.ly/freeflowchart

Sign up for my newsletter to get more unfiltered truths. https://thesophiachang.substack.com/

No social media! Newsletter is the ONLY way to stay connected

Sophia Chang is a Reese's Book Club LitUp fellow, disabled dancer, and the world’s first iPod silhouette model. She hosts The Sophia Chang Show, coaches new podcasters, and believes deadlifts can change your life. She will make out with your dog. Learn more at: www.sophiachang.com

Podcast content is for entertainment purposes only. Don't jump into a pool with your hands tied, obvs.

TOPICS: bottom comeback, podcast origin story, failure in publishing, Asian American author, minorities in Hollywood, traditional publishing struggles, writing community, imposter syndrome writers, creative career failure, disability and creativity, honest publishing podcast

Happy New Year!

Still looking for a resolution you’ll break in the third week of January? I've got one that actually helped me when I was too depressed to get out of bed.

This episode is a moment-by-moment peek behind the curtain into my morning as a digital minimalist.

No phones, lots of protein, and how I'm a Cullen vampire.

Best Quotes:

"This is not medical advice. Don't listen to something you hear from a podcaster who decided she would spend her life being an actor, a dancer, and a writer."

"I'm a Twilight vampire, I'm a Cullen. You know, where I'm a vegetarian. I only eat animals. No, I would probably eat human too if I was a vampire."

"I'm not a completely insane dictator who's leading the world. I don't need to be on my phone. I'm not that important. Nobody really cares."

IN THIS EPISODE:

• Why my phone sleeps outside my bedroom (how the night before sets up your morning)

• Pushing my face into the screen to stare at the sun: Huberman Labs taught me this?

• The electrolyte + creatine combo that changed everything

• That time an acupuncturist put me on a 25-hour cauliflower diet

• Why I eat animal protein 6-7 times a day (vampire life chose me)

• The vegetable hack that keeps me full for hours! (I wish this were clickbait but I actually do this)

• Breakfast outside like I'm Simon Cowell on a yacht

• How this routine pulled me out of depression and off the doom scroll

• Why women need to eat within 30 minutes of waking up (cortisol spikes are real)

Timestamps:

00:00 Move Over Huberman, Chang Labs is Here

00:46 No Phones in the Bedroom

01:14 Is Sunlight Hurting My Eyes?

02:55 Electrolytes + Creatine

04:39 Cauliflower, Rice, Fried Fish Diet??

05:45 Vampire levels of meat

07:33 Breakfast outside like I'm Simon Cowell

08:53 A Year Ago I Was Too Depressed to Get Out of Bed

09:57 AM Cortisol spikes in women

10:06 Share your morning routine with me on Substack or comment below

Resources Mentioned:

• Seeking Health Optimal Electrolytes (with creatine) https://amzn.to/49lfMy6

• Seeking Health Vitamin D drops https://amzn.to/49lmwMm

Affiliate links may credit me much-appreciated 5 cents

Got your own digital minimalist morning tips? Drop them in the comments on YouTube or share them with me on Substack! Let's help each other optimize our mornings.

Sign up for my newsletter Books. Biceps. No BS. https://thesophiachang.substack.com/

You'll get a FREE flowchart: Are You Ready for Traditional Publishing? and access to Ask Sophia Q&A!

Sophia Chang is a Reese’s Book Club LitUp fellow, disabled dancer, and extroverted writer. She hosts The Sophia Chang Show podcast, teaches Character First writing with Daniel David Wallace, and believes deadlifts can change your life. She will make out with your dog. Learn more at: www.sophiachang.com

Podcast content is for entertainmentpurposes only and does not constitute medical, health, or fitness advice.

Topics

digital minimalism, morning routine, wellness, self-care, lifestyle changes, mental health, productivity, health tips, mindfulness, personal growth

FREE Are You Ready for Traditional Publishing decision tree: https://bit.ly/freeflowchart

My Spotify Wrapped for Creators just exposed ALL of you.

Taylor Swift lovers, K-pop Demon Hunters fans, Drake apologists (boo!) and apparently... a Minnesota Vikings superfan who also loves books and biceps. We need to talk.

This is my 2025 podcast year in review: 12 episodes, 6 incredible guests, hilarious Spotify Wrapped data that makes no sense. What I learned from restarting this show after a multi-year hiatus and why the real treasure was the friends we made along the way.

Best Quotes:

"I'm Joe Rogan stuck inside a tiny Asian body. One day a publicist is going to ask why I said that sentence."

"This year, my show's growth outpaced 80% of other shows. That's kind of amazing considering I only pumped out three month’s worth of podcast episodes."

IN THIS EPISODE:

• Why I may be the next Joe Rogan
• You all listen to too much Tay Tay
• Why a sportsball-hating writer from NYC now reps the Dodgers
• The most meaningful part of restarting this podcast: reconnecting with a writing community
• Are You Ready for Traditional Publishing? FREE decision tree for new subscribers
• A chance to appear on The Sophia Chang Show

Sign up for my newsletter: to see all the hilarious Spotify Wrapped screenshots from this episode. Plus you'll get a FREE flowchart: Are You Ready for Traditional Publishing? and access to Ask Sophia Q&A!

https://thesophiachang.substack.com/

No social media! Newsletter is the ONLY way to stay connected

Sophia Chang is a Reese’s Book Club LitUp fellow, disabled dancer, and extroverted writer. She hosts The Sophia Chang Show podcast, teaches Character First writing with Daniel David Wallace, and believes deadlifts can change your life. She will make out with your dog. Learn more at: www.sophiachang.com

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 The Most Wonderful and Heinous Time of the Year

01:51 I See You Swifties

03:28 Who is My Minnesota Vikings Fan?

05:27 Proud to be your 2025 Joe Rogan

07:53 2025 Spotify Awards

08:57 Unexpected Best Part of Restarting my Podcast

KEYWORDS: Spotify Wrapped 2025, podcast year in review, Spotify podcast recap, podcast growth tips, Asian American author, traditional publishing, writing community, podcast behind the scenes, year end podcast episode, books and fitness podcast

Ah yes, hellworld, give us the rise of Digital Minimalism Influencer.

Six years after crowning Cal Newport's Digital Minimalism my 2019 book of the year, I return with a solo episode to report on the state of digital detoxing in a world where anything that promises peace and deep work will eventually become a product.

In this episode:

• Why "escape Instagram by joining my forum" is just rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic
• Parents: You're the Problem. An Education Week study shows the biggest classroom distraction isn’t teens sneaking TikTok—it’s parents texting their children during class to soothe their own anxiety
• My confession: how the need to pay bills is wrecking my own digital minimalism
• Why actual digital minimalism is boring, unsexy, and impossible to monetize

Quote of the Week:

"There is something deeply ironic about building an entire online business around helping people get offline."

Timestamps:

00:00 The Rise of the Digital Minimalism Influencer

04:45 Parents, You're the Problem

06:27 Am I Still a Digital Minimalist?

08:15 Will I Go Full Recluse in the Future?

If you’ve been flirting with quitting social media, but skeptical of the influencers using attention economy to sell digital detoxes, this episode is my side-eye with you.

Subscribe to my newsletter: https://thesophiachang.substack.com/

No social media. No Discord. Just my voice and your inbox. As it should be.

Sophia Chang is a Reese’s Book Club LitUp fellow, disabled dancer, and extroverted writer. She coaches new podcasters, teaches Character First writing with Daniel David Wallace, and believes deadlifts can change your life. She will make out with your dog. Learn more at: www.sophiachang.com

If you enjoyed this episode, please give it a 5-star review so others can find it, too!

Your ears do not deceive—I actually put a man on my show.

Former chemist and Wall Street analyst, Amran brought his insider knowledge of the financial industry's wildest excesses to his satirical thriller Leverage, published by Atria Books in August 2025. It’s a fun, fast, biting read about Ali Jafar (yes, two names from Aladdin), a hedge fund analyst who loses $300 million in a single day and must find increasingly unethical ways to make it back.

In what is my most No BS conversation yet, Amran breaks down the economics of why debut novels fail, how the “1,000 true fans” model is BS, and why we should stop with the false humility and own the arrogance of being a writer.

And he used to lift!

Just some of the juicy tidbits we lay bare:

• Getting ghosted by your publisher happens more than you think

• Why both Amran and I are the Dogecoin of traditional publishing—“to the moon!”

• Amran’s catastrophic BookScan data

• Rich authors buying their own books to hit bestseller lists

• Why traditional publishing is "one big tiger mom"

• The "debut flop" is now the industry norm

• Why Amran still believes in traditional publishing

• The GOOD news we can take from this—and some inspiring words for all writers

Top quotes:

"It would take me 200 years to earn back my advance at the rate the books are selling."

"There's about 100 authors that make a ton of money. And then there's about 25,000 other authors that make no money. You are the 25,000."

"It's good to have realistic expectations and know exactly the business you're in, because otherwise you can psych yourself out and then find yourself asking, ‘Do I even do art at all?’ And that's a really unfortunate place to end up because you should make art because you're an artist at the end of the day."

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 Amran, my DEI guest

01:09 Do you even lift, bro?

02:50 The Asian Squat: key to longevity?

03:18 White like Obama

03:59 Was Sophia an investment banker?!

04:46 What illegal activities has Amran seen?

06:09 Cali, the richest country in America

06:58 Naming Ali Jafar after Aladdin

08:39 The High-achieving Losers Club

09:32 Ghosted by your publisher: Impact of Sales on Future Book Deals

16:39 Should we write to market?

19:55 Is Traditional Publishing Still Worth It?

26:33 You are the 25,000

27:57 The arrogance of writing a book, the futility of selling it

30:23 Is 1,000 True Fans BS?

33:58 The False Humility BS

36:51 The Creative Process and Artistic Integrity

Find Amran

• Website & Newsletter: amrangowani.com

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amrangowani/

Buy his book: Leverage

Hardcover https://amzn.to/4nph1kM

Ebook https://amzn.to/4hzLrzE

Audible (you can use your credit) https://amzn.to/43GRPzc

Follow this podcast for more great interviews!

⁠Subscribe to my Newsletter:⁠ Get more publishing real talk and behind-the-scenes content every Tuesday

Sophia’s Website⁠

Like what you saw/heard? Rate 5 stars & Review: Help other book lovers find us!

(Amazon affiliate links may provide me 10 much-needed cents.)

If your back sounds like bubble wrap when you finish writing, gaming, or working at the computer—this episode is your rescue plan.

Mobility coach and Body Nerd Show host Alex Ellis joins us to talk repetitive strain, and how a few minutes a day can change everything. No yoga mat, gym, or guilt required.

I also introduce a new segment where I ask my guests a very important question…

You’ll learn:

• Quick 1-5 minute fixes

• Why flexibility ≠ mobility (and what to do instead)

• How to hack your dopamine addiction to build habits

• The only hard-and-fast fitness rule you need

Whether you write books or emails all day, this episode will help you move smarter, write longer, and feel human again.

Timestamps:

00:00 — Your Text Neck Is Saved — Alex Is Here!

01:55 — Every Story Starts With Injury

03:55 — “Core Strength”? What Even Is That?

05:11 — Why Yoga Didn’t Fix It

06:17 —What If I Get in the Flow and Can’t Stop?

11:18 — The Whole, Human Writer

12:42 — Live Demo: Do This Right Now

15:41 — Variety Is the Key

17:57 — Hack Your Phone-Addicted Brain for Good

19:30 — Which One of Us Gets Our Electronics Taken Away Like a Toddler?

21:23 — Tiny Habits, Big Results

22:49 — Love Is Blind vs. Sleep: Which One Wins?

24:29 — How Alex Actually Works With Clients (Hint: No Boring Handouts)

27:49 — “Do You Even Lift, Sis?”

31:04 — Fitness Influencers vs. Real-Life Sustainability

Find Alex:

www.aewellness.com

Video Vault: https://www.aewellness.com/vault/

Bodywork Starter Guide: https://www.aewellness.com/op/bodywork-starter-guide/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@aewellness

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hollaformala/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/aewellness

Follow this podcast for more great interviews!

⁠Subscribe to my Newsletter:⁠ Get more publishing real talk, writer health tips, and behind-the-scenes content

⁠Sophia’s Website⁠

Like what you saw/heard? Rate 5 stars & Review: Help other book lovers find us!

#WritingLife #MobilityCoach #AlexEllis #SophiaChang #WritersHealth #TextNeck #WriterWrist #BodyNerdShow #CreativeWellness #AuthorLife #WritingPodcast