I met Catherine Brennan in one of my Loft classes. Her first reaction to Process (play for the sake of play) was a mix of anxiety and enthusiasm. As she played around with the idea of playing around to support her writing, she found creative play expanded her writing and her life as a writer […]

Deep Work, Deep Play: Writers Need Both
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: […]

Bust Writer’s Block with the Adult Coloring Craze
Process is a best-seller! The new craze of adults coloring with crayons and markers offers the added bonus of reducing resistance and releasing creativity. Coloring, my favorite way to do Process, was the topic of a New York Times article announcing that millions of adults around the world are getting out their crayons to color […]

Want to Write More? You Need to Play More!
Not that you need it, but I give you my permission to play. I invite you to play. I encourage you to play. Here’s why: What you really need is your own permission. I predict that if you write a permission slip to play, you’ll find it easier to write everything else. Let me know […]
Three Myths that Cause Writer’s Block
This morning while I walked the dogs in the park, a young man sat on a park bench playing riffs on his trumpet. Because I’m an introvert, I often have more involved conversations with strangers in my head than I do in reality. In my head, I said, “I used to play trumpet. But I’m […]
Zentangle Your Way Into Process and Out of Resistance: Guest Post by Phyllis Smith
I love to hear about new forms of creative play for Process especially from my students and coaching clients. One person’s creative play can be another person’s tedium, so I like to have lots of options to suggest. Phyllis Smith, a student in one of my online classes, introduced me and her classmates to Zentangle, […]
Process Play or Prouct Time Writing?
“I spent 15 minutes journaling last night. Is that Process or Product Time?” “I started out just freewriting, but ended up with a character sketch. Do I count that as Process or Product Time?” There are times when the lines between Process and Product Time can get hazy. It may not matter what you call […]
Why Writers Need Creative Play aka Process
Happy Holidays! My gift to you is a three-part sneak peek at summaries of the Three Recommended Habits: Process, Product Time and Self-care. This information is usually available only to my students and coaching clients on a password-protected page. You can find Success Stories from writers who applied the habits and the brain science behind […]
Tellin’ Ellen How to Move Around the Writer’s Block
Thanks Ellen King-Rodgers for the opportunity to share my passion about how brain science can solve writer’s resistance on the Tellin’ Ellen show on Yellowstone Public Radio! Here’s the link: http://ypr-pc.streamguys.net/podcast/130318tellinellen.mp3
What’s the Difference Between Process and Prouct Time Writing?
“I spent 15 minutes journaling last night. Is that Process or Product Time?” “I started out just freewriting, but ended up with a character sketch. Do I count that as Process or Product Time?” There are times when the lines between Process and Product Time can get hazy. It may not matter what you call […]