It seemed like a safe bet at the time… On one of those “bonus winter” days in April when everyone on Facebook was talking about the never-ending snow, I offered a free copy of Around the Writer’s Block to everyone in class if it snows in Stillwater, Minnesota on May 18 when I’m teaching Overcome … More Got Brains? Wanna Bet?
Resistance and overwhelm are old friends. Nothing can freeze the creativity right out of your brain or send you running away from your writing in search of a distraction, any distraction, as fast as contemplating the enormity and complexity of a big writing project. The bigger the dream, the bigger the resistance. But there’s an … More One Giant Leap for Writing, One Small Step for Writers
In response to the post “Do You Know Who NOT to Ask for Feedback,” Paige McKinney commented, “My first response to the post title was ‘my family’…” Joel Canfield commented on the first post in this series on feedback, “What’s hardest for me has been the silence from my family. Not my wife; she’s my … More Do You Really Want Feedback From Family?
On May 9, I’ll travel (virtually, not literally) across the pond to the UK as a guest of the IACCW – International Association of Conscious and Creative Writers – to talk about What Conscious Writers Need to Know About Writer’s Block. Join Julia McCutchen and me at the live teleseminar (16:00 BST/11:00 am EST/10:00 am … More I’m Going International! Wanna Come Along?
Sometimes we get so caught up in the desire for response to our writing, we forget to screen the sources of that feedback. But all readers are not equal. Find Readers Who Are Right for Your Writing When asking for feedback, choose people whose opinions you respect and who have the experience, interest and emotional … More Do You Know Who NOT to Ask for Feedback?
[Note: We’ll return to the Feedback series after this short break.] Can’t get the words on the page? Try putting pictures there first. As I mentioned in a previous post, Edwidge Danticat creates collages to find her way into a novel. She says “I like the tactile process. There’s something old-fashioned about it, but what … More Collage Your Way Out of Resistance and Into Writing
Previous posts have identified inappropriate feedback as a cause of writer’s block (or other forms of resistance) and established that the writer should determine what level and type of feedback her/his writing receives. What you need now is a common understanding of what to call different levels of feedback with other writers you exchange feedback … More Seven Levels of Writing Feedback
When a piece of writing is “hot,” that is, when it’s fresh from your imagination onto the screen or page, you don’t really want or need critique. Like a cake just out of the oven, a new piece of writing will lose its shape and flavor if it’s poked at too soon. The level of … More Do You Know What Your Writing Needs?
In response to the previous post, “Feedback Should Be a Crystal Ball, Not a Wrecking Ball,” Paige McKinney observed, “Sometimes wrecking balls seem magnetic, and once they’ve hit, a writer’s stuck. Any advice on how to let go or fight the pull?” I’ll talk about how to recover from “feedback fallout” – writer’s block and … More How to Avoid Wrecking Ball Feedback
Judy Reeves, author of Writing Alone, Writing Together, offered this comment to my first post about feedback: “Thanks for this post, Rosanne. I know from personal experience how criticism can do harm, but I also know critique is valuable to me as a writer and to those writers I work with. I wanted to pass … More Feedback Should Be a Crystal Ball, Not a Wrecking Ball
Bane of Your Resistance 