I'm fond of saying writers always have homework, but I also get tired of feeling that there's always more to do, always something incomplete needing attention. It's both a blessing and curse of being creative; one always has "multiple projects in various states of...
Do you follow some kind of routine when you write? Most creative people I know (including myself) dislike routines but can’t get much done without them. Though we do try! Routines can feel rigid, boring, mechanical, or lacking vitality—or so those who resist routines...
There comes a time when you tick off everything on your revision to-do list and call the project "done." It's a moment of stunned exhilaration--a rush of excitement at crossing a self-determined finish line paired with a kind of disbelief that you made it. Though none...
A client wrote to me not long ago to stay that her inspiration had stalled. It was both a statement and a lament. Writers tend to be preoccupied with the notion of inspiration--its presence or absence, its ease or struggle. Inspiration is a lot like the weather—a...
Earlier this month I had the good fortune to be a guest on a friend’s sailboat for ten days. Up until then I’d only ever spent a day or half day on a sailboat and hadn't needed to do much but sit back and enjoy the ride. For this trip, I was one of three hands on...
Have you ever noticed how abundance can build up momentum in your life so that good things seem to create more good things? Then all of a sudden abundance takes a step back, seems to drain away or run into hiding? In both cases gratitude is the key. When you have a...
By the end of January most of us are either hitting a stride when it comes to moving toward goals or else we’ve abandoned them completely. The latter can leave some of us disillusioned and disoriented, and simply trying to keep our heads above water as the river of...
When I was coaching a client last month, I brought up the notion of “the future self” as a way to provide a different sort of motivation for writing. Our future self is the one waiting for us next month or next year or 10 years from now. It’s who we will eventually...
I was recently in London and spent a few nights in Bloomsbury not far from a house Charles Dickens lived in from 1837 to 1839. It was here where he completed The Pickwick Papers and wrote the complete manuscripts for Oliver Twist and Nicholas Nickelby. His subsequent...
It’s the biggest challenge we face: opening the notebook or computer document and getting started. There are a hundred different demands and responsibilities vying for our attention and so often our writing ‘has to wait’. But the longer it’s neglected, the more our essential creative nature withers. How can you help yourself get to the work? Try these three simple suggestions:
I'm fond of saying writers always have homework, but I also get tired of feeling that there's always more to do, always...
Do you follow some kind of routine when you write? Most creative people I know (including myself) dislike routines but can’t...
There comes a time when you tick off everything on your revision to-do list and call the project "done." It's a moment of...
A client wrote to me not long ago to stay that her inspiration had stalled. It was both a statement and a lament. Writers tend...
Earlier this month I had the good fortune to be a guest on a friend’s sailboat for ten days. Up until then I’d only ever spent a...
Have you ever noticed how abundance can build up momentum in your life so that good things seem to create more good things? Then...
By the end of January most of us are either hitting a stride when it comes to moving toward goals or else we’ve abandoned them...
When I was coaching a client last month, I brought up the notion of “the future self” as a way to provide a different sort of...
I was recently in London and spent a few nights in Bloomsbury not far from a house Charles Dickens lived in from 1837 to 1839....
It’s the biggest challenge we face: opening the notebook or computer document and getting started. There are a hundred different demands and responsibilities vying for our attention and so often our writing ‘has to wait’. But the longer it’s neglected, the more our essential creative nature withers. How can you help yourself get to the work? Try these three simple suggestions:
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