I know how scary it can be to think about what your writing should be. Fortunately, I also know how to get past fear to the writing. And I can show you how. My Latest Struggle I just got back to Minneapolis after helping my mom move to assisted living: two weeks of sorting, packing, … More Don’t Be Scared!
How has your writing and your life as a writer changed since January 2020? Take your time to freewrite/free association about that. I’ll wait. Maybe your normal routines were turned inside-out and your once-regular writing habit got hazy. Maybe unprecedented responsibilities and problems pushed writing out of your mind altogether. Maybe you had time but … More Remember When Writing Was..
In the previous post, you identified your writing habits and your resisting habits. To transform those resisting habits into writing habits, it helps to know just a bit about how habits work in your brain. When you think a certain thought or take a particular action, a series of neurons fire in sequence along a … More How to Build Stronger Writing Habits
Anything you can do to strengthen your writing habits and weaken the resisting habits will make your life so much easier and satisfying. Resisting habits are the thoughts and actions that make it less likely you will write. For example, consistently checking your email and Facebook when you think about writing decreases the chances you … More Do You have Writing Habits or Resisting Habits?
In the previous post, I explained that I’m not a fan of discipline (aka punishment). Here’s why. Why Discipline (aka Punishment) Rarely Works The human brain remembers every little thing associated with a negative experience. Because any of the little details might have caused or contributed to the experience, it pays to remember those details … More Why Writers Need Habits, Not Discipline, to Overcome Resistance
In more recent versions of the Marshmallow Test, Walter Mischel tells children to pretend the marshmallow is only a picture of a marshmallow or a fluffy cloud. The children who employ their imagination could wait three times longer than kids who didn’t use their imagination. “Once you realize that will power is just a matter … More Step Away From the Marshmallow Part 2
The effective writer’s personality is not at the center. Her talent isn’t at the center. Her ego and self-worth are not at the center. The writing task is at the center.
This is how writers can quiet the conscious self and all the inner chatter that is the origin of resistance. The better we direct our attention away from our own qualities – our expectations, nerves, reputation – the easier it is to lose ourselves in the creative flow. We can prevent ourselves from thinking too much about ourselves as writers or about the quality of any given day’s writing – which is death to flow performance.
Pam McAlister (who we met in the previous post When Your Writing Is Stuck, Let Go) was able to let go of expectations because she had assumptions to hold on to. She assumed she would keep honoring her writing commitments, she assumed she had people to rely on and she assumed her writing had purpose. … More When Your Writing Is Stuck, Hold On
If you’re in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area and you want to be a better writer, be sure you check out the Loft Literary Center’s winter/spring class offerings. I’m teaching two perennial favorites: The Writing Habit and Writer’s Workout. The Writing Habit class will give you a safe, supportive place to apply the Recommended Practices (Process, Self-care and … More Annoucement: Loft Classes Start Next Week
By Rosanne Bane Blue Learns to Teeter-Totter Most of what dogs do in agility are natural behaviors – running, jumping, climbing – but the teeter-totter is not. Take another look at those videos if you’ve never seen a dog on a teeter-totter. The teeter is weighted so that one end stays on the ground. The … More Reward Yourself Part 3
Bane of Your Resistance 