My family and I took a trip to Alabama one year to see my younger brother, who was attending military school there at the time. We went out to lunch at a cute little restaurant, and when the waitress asked if we wanted something to drink, I requested, as IContinue Reading
by Carrie Brummer My first professional post was teacher at the age of 22. I spent years in the classroom LOVING what I did. But then, something started to niggle in the back of my mind. I started to wonder, “was this really enough?” “How else could I make anContinue Reading
What do you really want out of your writing career? It’s not always so easy to tell… One summer, I attended a panel filled with award-winning, bestselling literary writers. The experience was outstanding in many ways, but I was surprised by what one author had to say. This author hadContinue Reading
I saw part of an original Star Trek episode the other day that got me thinking about our “dark sides.” It’s the episode where a transporter malfunction splits Captain Kirk into two people. Called “The Enemy Within,” it follows the story of the two as they display unique characteristics. SeemsContinue Reading
Have you given your creative power away? Let’s find out. Imagine for a moment you’re a character in a fantasy novel, and at the very beginning of the story, you’re given the power to write. There you are in your cool leather outfit walking around with your writing power, andContinue Reading
There are several things writers need to learn that we can learn from smart moms. After all, how often have you, as a writer, called your book your “baby?” A lot of us do it, because we put so much of ourselves into our work. We talk about “conceiving” ideas,Continue Reading
by Marcia Yudkin Having coached scores of writers over more than 30 years, I’ve observed that they often struggle for two reasons: They tend to fight their inborn tendencies rather than accommodating them, and they have an overly rigid idea of how writing needs to take place. Have you triedContinue Reading
by Ulrike Selleck When I was five years old, I drowned. While my friend and her mom desperately tried to fish my lifeless body out of the water, I actually had the most amazing, beautiful, light-filled, and cozy experience. I experienced where I lived, who I really was, had been,Continue Reading
Could your punctuation reveal something about you? You’ve heard of handwriting experts—those people who can read something you’ve written by hand and tell you what your personality is like. A certain slant to the letters, size of the consonants, or openness between words can reveal characteristics you’d never expect couldContinue Reading
Are you ready to set some writing goals? Usually it’s a good idea, particularly for writers and other creatives. We need goals to keep us moving forward. But we have to be careful. Good goals help us improve and achieve. Bad goals lead to disappointment and discouragement. Following are sevenContinue Reading
I love getting writing book recommendations from other authors, so I thought Writing and Wellness readers might like to know which books I keep on my writing desk. The following 10 are earmarked and broken-backed because I turn to them so often. Maybe one of these needs to be onContinue Reading
by Sarah Schembri As a writer working from home, I know how creatively draining it can be when you don’t get out of the house to go to the office. I’m not complaining. Working from home allows me to create my own schedule and to work in complete silence, whichContinue Reading