“I’ve been polishing turds,” I confessed to my co-coach Laura. “I spent weeks revising and tweaking and polishing the last five chapters. Then I realized I don’t even need two of them.” “Could you have gotten here without polishing those chapters?” Laura asked. I didn’t answer right away. I grudgingly admitted that I probably could … More Do Writers Have to Polish the Occasional Turd?
Writers who resist research often have only a vague idea of what they’re looking for, so they don’t know how to start, where to go, or when to stop. Overwhelmed by the idea of research or hoping to not have to bother with it, their writing grinds to a halt. Writers who get in stuck … More When Research Blocks Your Writing, Questions are the Answer
Writers who don’t like research often don’t know how to start. Writers who love research often don’t know when to stop. Paradoxically, the solution is the same for both types. Stuck in the Research Some writers say they get stuck in the research because they love it. Whether they know it or not, many writers […]
In my last post, I suggested that in addition to darlings that appear in our writing – sections we are inordinately proud of that simply don’t serve the whole of the piece – we have darlings in how we show up to write. Process darlings are the things you believe you must have, do or … More Kill the Darlings in Your Writing Practice
Bane of Your Resistance 