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
Nearly every writer has darlings — both in what we write and how we write. “Kill your darlings” is great advice. The difficulty is figuring out what your darlings are. Traditionally, a darling is anything you’ve written that you are overly attached to and is not essential to the piece you’re writing. But knowing what … More Kill Your Darlings — But First You Have to Find the Little Buggers
I don’t mind my desk being messy, if it’s my mess. Drafts with notes, books I’m reading, student drafts, client folders or process toys (thumb piano, markers, coloring books, mini jigsaw puzzles) co-mingle on my work space just fine. I bristle a little when household accounting and bills end up here (even if I put … More Do You Have the Writing Space You Need?
I love paradox. The most important insights I’ve found came wrapped in paradox. For example, play is by definition doing something that has no practical purpose. Yet play provides essential, practical rewards. Shigeru Miyamoto, inventor of Super Mario Bros., Donkey Kong and The Legend of Zelda, told The New Yorker, “Anything that is impractical can … More Practical Writers Need Impractical Play
I’m deep in revising the last chapters of my novel. So deep, I sometimes wonder if it qualifies for being in the weeds. I surfaced a few minutes ago. After stretching, (it’s amazing how stiff my body gets while I’m immersed in the story) I started wondering again what to post here on BaneOfYourResistance this … More Another Way to Prepare for a Writer’s New Year
Bright Solstice Everyone! This year, the solstice is today, December 21, and marks the start of Yule; Hanukkah starts on December 24, Christmas is December 25 and Kwanzaa starts December 26. The solstice is typically December 21 or 22, but since 1900, Hanukkah has coincided with Christmas Eve or Christmas Day only 7 other times … More We All Celebrate the Light and Need to Honor the Dark
Even if you’re doing NaNoWriMo, you don’t have to write every day. But, NaNo or not, you need to track your writing progress everyday. Even the days you don’t show up. Especially the days you don’t show up. Note to NaNoWriMo writers: I know the suggestion that you don’t have to write 1,667 words every … More Even If You Don’t Write Everyday, You Need to Track Everyday
Writers often look to famous authors for role models. We assume that whatever routine works (or worked) for a famous writer should work for every writer. If Stephen King writes 2,000 words a day, 365 days a year, every writer should write 2,000 words a day, 365 days a year. The problem is that what … More If It Works for Stephen King, Shouldn’t It Work for Me?
For writers, extended time without distractions and competing priorities is a pleasurable necessity; without it we cannot enter the writer’s trance, aka creative flow. We want and need what Cal Newport defines as Deep Work: “Professional activities performed in a state of distraction-free concentration that push your cognitive capabilities to their limit.” In Deep Work: … More Deep Work, Deep Play: Writers Need Both
Ernest Hemingway certainly never heard the term “attention residue,” but he knew how to make the phenomena work in favor of his writing. You can, too. In case you didn’t read the previous post, “Don’t Let ‘Attention Residue’ Derail Your Writing,” and haven’t heard of “attention residue” either, it’s what distracts you when you sit … More How Hemingway Made ‘Attention Residue’ Work for Writing
Bane of Your Resistance 