The next time you feel resistance or writer’s block, notice where your attention is. It’s not a question of whether you’re paying attention – you’re always paying attention to something. It’s a question of what you’re attending to and what kind of attention you’re using. Flavors of Attention I used to think attention is attention … More Is Writer’s Block in the Forest or the Trees?
A coaching client confessed recently that one of her worst fears was that no one will believe her novel, that readers will say “This could never happen” and stop reading. That fear generated a lot of writing resistance until we worked through it. Most of us have similar fears. I’d hate it if someone thought … More Unbelievably Simple Cure for Writer’s Block
There’s nothing funny about feeling blocked or recognizing that you’re spending more time resisting than writing. But the solution might be a laughing matter. The Gamma Connection Humor increases creativity. Recent research shows that “mirthful laughter” triggers your brain to release gamma waves, which are the brain’s highest electrical frequency. Gamma waves are required to … More Laugh Your Way Out of Writer’s Block
The research is in: humor boosts creativity. Laughing is a great way to bust through writer’s block. I could cite the research and I will next week, but it’s Friday afternoon, so let’s cut to the chase. A panda walks into a diner and orders a bamboo sandwich. The waitress brings him a sandwich. After … More Writer’s Block Can Be a Laughing Matter
The paralysis of writer’s block feels like your brain is frozen. All mammals freeze when we’re threatened. When mammals first appeared on the evolutionary tree, freezing was a good way to escape notice of the reigning kings of creation, dinosaurs. True writer’s block – the paralysis of not being able to write, being unable to … More If Writer’s Block Is Brain Freeze, How Do You Thaw Your Brain?
Because you have brain loops. Brain scientists are still exploring the nuances of how memory works, but we do know that we have long-term memory, where you’ve stored the capital of France and how to drive, and working memory, where you would hold the memory of what you just read in an email. The capacity … More Why Do Brain Dumps Break Writer’s Block?
1. Dogs remind us to play. Especially as puppies, dogs know that play is the best way to explore the world. If you need a reminder about the value of play, check out the Top 10 Reasons to Play. 2. Training a dog gives you practical lessons in how to reward and motivate yourself to keep … More Top Ten Reasons Dogs Are a Writer’s Best Friend
One my coaching clients asked me, “Why didn’t you tell me writing was going to be so hard?” I’m pretty sure I did. And I’m pretty sure my mentors told me writing is hard work and yet I remember how surprised I was when I made my own transition from the high of writing when … More Writing Is Hard, Not Writing Is Harder
In our previous post, we illustrated how to use an Action Map to break big writing projects into small steps you can work on in a 15 minute Product Time session. You don’t need your Action Map to be perfect, but the more details you capture on Post-It Notes™, the more effective you can be … More Personalize The Action Map to Free Your Writing
In our previous post, we explored how Action Maps break through writer’s resistance by breaking big writing projects into manageable steps. To help you identify the multitude of small steps your Action Map might include, I provided a list of possible tasks. The relevance of the tasks listed will depend on the type of writing … More Action Map Your Way Out of Writer’s Resistance Part 2
Bane of Your Resistance 