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The Story Behind Enthusiastic Encouragement & Dubious Advice
Latest Episode
- Taking What’s Best: A Guide to Self-HelpShow Notes In this episode of “Enthusiastic Encouragement and Dubious Advice,” Patricia and Nicole discuss how to read self-help effectively. They delve into their views on self-help books, highlighting the trap of constant improvement and sharing methods for effectively integrating helpful insights into daily life. They discuss the importance of discerning valuable advice from what’s… Read more: Taking What’s Best: A Guide to Self-Help
Meet Your Hosts

Patricia Elzie-Tuttle (aka Patricia Elzie) is a writer, podcaster, and librarian. Her weekly newsletter, Enthusiastic Encouragement & Dubious Advice offers self-improvement and mental health advice and resources that pull from her experience as a queer, Black, & Filipina person existing in the world. More of her written work can also be found on Book Riot, in Body Talk: 37 Voices Explore Our Radical Anatomy edited by Kelly Jensen, and, if you’re feeling spicy, in Best Women’s Erotica of the Year, Volume 4 edited by Rachel Kramer Bussel. Patricia is co-host of the All the Books and All the Backlist podcast, where she recommends a variety of reads. She lives in Oakland, CA with her wife Nicole and a positively alarming amount of books.

Nicole has eaten tacos in Sweden and Beijing.
Neither were remotely good. Not even passable.