Originally recorded in 2011, the critically-acclaimed author of 6 books (most recently The Problem With Everything), columnist and blogger (@Meghan_Daum) talks with Paul about growing up and later rebelling in a household where music and academia were everything. She talks about the pressure of starting a writing career in Manhattan and living a real-life Devil Wears Prada nightmare, where the idea of even living in a rundown building in a bohemian neighborhood became unattainable. They talk about the epiphany of realizing her dreams were shallow, materialistic and unattainable, her move to Nebraska and the perspective and novel (The Quality of Life Report) that resulted. A great episode for people who have a critical inner voice that never shuts up. Meghan has written for The New Yorker, Harper’s and Vogue and has contributed to This American Life. She also hosts the podcast The Unspeakable and is a co-host on another called A Special Place In Hell. She recently launched a new project, creating an intellectual community for freethinking women called The Unspeakeasy. Meghan is a weekly blogger for Medium and host of The Unspeakable podcast (@UnspeakPod) at www.theunspeakablepodcast.comFind out more about Meghan and her books, including The Problem With Everything at https://MeghanDaum.comFollow Meghan on Twitter www.Twitter.com/Meghan_DaumRead her on Substack https://meghandaum.substack.com/Check out The Unspeakeasy project at https://www.theunspeakeasy.com/Support Our Sponsors! This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp online counseling. To get 10% off your first month go to www.BetterHelp.com/mental Must be 18. For those under 18 you will be redirected to or can go directly to TeenCounseling at www.teencounseling.com WAYS TO HELP THE PODCASTSubscribe via iTunes and leave a review. It costs nothing. https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/mental-illness-happy-hour/id427377900?mt=2Spread the word via social media.  It costs nothing.Our website is www.mentalpod.com our FB is www.Facebook.com/mentalpod and our Twitter and Instagram are both @Mentalpod Become a much-needed Patreon monthly-donor (with occasional rewards) for as little as $1/month at www.Patreon.com/mentalpod  Become a one-time or monthly donor via Paypal or Zelle (make payment to mentalpod@gmail.com)Try Our Sponsor’s Products/ServicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.