Wanna know why you shouldn’t waste your time with New Year’s resolutions? Wanna find out what will really improve your writing life? Meet me tonight, January 10, at Common Good Books in St. Paul from 7 to 8 pm for a free writer’s workshop/reading. I’ll explain why New Year’s resolutions are bad for writers (and … More Psssttt… Wanna Know a Secret?
Many writers share the awareness that when we’re at our very best, the writing comes, not so much from us, as through us. We are a channel that creative energy flows through. What we call the source of that creative flow varies: the Divine, the Universe, your muse, the life force, the Great Mystery. This … More Are You a Creative Super-Conductor?
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: Some Thoughts on Writing: “If you tell yourself you are going to be at your desk tomorrow, you are by that declaration asking your … More Reduce Writing Resistance by Rebuilding Trust
Question: What’s the difference between a New Year’s resolution and a broken promise? Answer: About three to six weeks. Research shows that 78% to 88% of New Year’s resolutions fail. Resolutions are destined to fail in part because they rely on will power, which cannot last. Applying will power is repeatedly making a decision to … More Why New Year’s Resolutions Are Bad for Writers
Note: I’ll pick up the discussion of whether real writers get writer’s block later this week. Silas House recently published “The Art of Being Still” in the New York Times. I agree with everything in this intriguing essay about the writer’s need for stillness except this comment: “We writers must become multitaskers who can be … More Response to Silas House’s Essay “The Art of Being Still”
Is writer’s block, as one writer described it in a LinkedIn discussion forum, nothing more than “a psychosomatic illness which afflicts wannabe writers or poseurs”? Is this a fair assessment or the equivalent of a man who’s never seen combat declaring “Shell shock, battle fatigue, PTSD, whatever you call it, is the refuge of cowards … More Do Real Writers Get Writer’s Block?
Even though there’s a risk in publishing a blog about writer’s resistance, I’m grateful for the opportunity to exchange ideas with talented writers like you. The risk? In a nutshell, we get more of what we focus our attention on. According to extensive social science research in the field of Appreciative Inquiry, what we expect … More What Do You Want More of in Your Writing?
Are you passionately in love with writing or are you and your writing an old, married couple? When you’re in love, you tingle with passion, desire, excitement. Every moment is an opportunity to discover another fascinating detail about your beloved. Even the risk of being disappointed, rejected or broken-hearted is thrilling. When you love, you’re … More Do You Love Writing… Or Are You In Love With Writing?
Nothing demonstrates the Poop Principle better than housetraining – your puppy or your writing. When you get a puppy, you know the poop side of the Love-to-Poop ratio is going to be high. For a while it seems like all you do is take the puppy outside or regret not taking the puppy outside! Fortunately, … More Housetraining Your Writing
Every voice matters! At the polls and in our writing. We all have threads to weave into the tapestry of life. When we share what we’ve been given to share, the tapestry is stronger and richer. We need every voice. Even, maybe especially, the voices we don’t agree with…
Bane of Your Resistance 