When someone recommends a book, I go to my library’s website. Some books I can download immediately; I request the others be sent to my local branch. When I get an email informing me that the requested book has arrived, I stop on my way home for the Y. I find my book on the … More Is the “Efficiency Trap” Blocking Your Writing?
Feeling stuck? Avoiding your writing because you feel uninspired? You’re in luck! You have a reason to eat dark chocolate – and just in time for Valentine’s Day. Chocolate may be the most flavorful cure for writer’s resistance ever. Dark chocolate is a source of flavanols, which have been shown to improve both your coronary … More Sweet Cure for Writer’s Block
It helps to surrender yourself to the story (poem, essay, script, etc.) early in the day when your creative energy is highest. You won’t get all of the story out, but your unconscious will trust you to return tomorrow and so won’t find it necessary to send you agony signals the rest of the day. … More Bless Your Agony – It Will Lead You to Write
Imagine trying to run a race when your lungs can only inhale. Carbon dioxide would build up in your body. First, you’d feel drowsy, then your heart rate and blood pressure would spike. As carbon dioxide increased, you’d become confused, dizzy, short of breath. Eventually, your vision would fail, you’d lose consciousness and your muscles … More Is Your Writing Brain Waiting to Exhale?
Be like the bird that, Pausing in her flight Awhile on boughs too slight, Feels them give way beneath her, And yet sings, Knowing she hath wings. – Victor Hugo What creative leap have you been thinking about? Starting a new piece of writing? Going public with your writing in a blog or querying a … More Take a Creative Leap – You Have Wings!
Last September, I promised myself I would return to my Essential Path novel in January. My plan was to follow the advice I gave a client: read the entire novel without judgment, without making notes, noticing only what I love about the novel. I wouldn’t start thinking about what was working and what needed tweaking … More New Book Update: Loving Eyes Are Not Blind
What changes in your brain and your writing do you anticipate as you age? Do you think your creative brain will be like a fine wine that gets better with age or more like grapes that shrivel and eventually rot? Be careful, your expectations will affect your experiences. Chances are, the younger you are, the … More Writing Your Future Self
When you start writing, it may seem like you’re just sitting in a chair. What you’re really doing is crossing your arms over your chest, closing your eyes and letting yourself fall backwards into the unknown. Every time you sit down to write, you take the trust fall. Before we start, writers don’t know how … More Creative Trust Fall
I was sitting on the couch last night with about a hundred pages of my novel manuscript sitting next to me. Officially, I set the novel aside five years ago so I could focus on Around the Writer’s Block. Unofficially, I set it aside because I didn’t know how to move forward without risking more … More Time to Be Brave Again
My previous post showed you why New Year’s Resolutions are dangerous for writers. So cancel any resolutions you may have made and read on…. Breaking promises to yourself damages your trust in yourself, increases resistance and makes it harder to do what will work for your writing. Norman Mailer points out in The Spooky Art: … More Cancel Resolutions and Rebuild Trust to Reduce Writer’s Resistance
Bane of Your Resistance 