by Gail Marlene Schwartz As a six-year-old, my parents forced me to see a therapist, Dr. Solky. I hated it and I hated him. When Dr. Solky would peek his head into the waiting room to call my name, my mother would literally drag me into his office kicking andContinue Reading
by Michael Eon The idea for my debut novel, These Things Happen, began years ago when I was in early recovery from active alcoholism. I had become a member of Alcoholics Anonymous and had stopped drinking, but had yet to do anything more for my recovery outside of not drinkingContinue Reading
Do you regularly experience writing fears? You know, like fear of failure, rejection, writer’s block, not being good enough, etc. If so, congratulations! You’re perfectly normal. But during this Halloween season, let me warn you—your writing fears will prevent you from reaching your goals if you let them. They’ll distractContinue Reading
If you’re interested in food writing, check out freelance writer Elizabeth’s story. by Elizabeth Ann Quirino I have always worked as a writer. As soon as I graduated from college with a degree in BA Communication Arts from St. Paul University (Manila, Philippines), I worked as a copywriter for anContinue Reading
The biggest emotional challenge for me has been self-doubt. It took me SO LONG to give myself permission to write the book of my heart. I have been in love with words and the effects of words all my life. Every book I’ve ever loved made me want to createContinue Reading
When you wake up in the middle of the night, do you have trouble going back to sleep? If this happens now and then, it’s no big deal. But if it starts happening frequently, your health may suffer. There’s an actual name for it: middle-of-the-night insomnia. Or middle insomnia. Cute,Continue Reading
The biggest emotional challenge of being a writer has to do with the uncertainty of the effect of my work on an unknown reader. As a physician, I had regular feedback, sometimes immediately, from my patients. It was gratifying to know I had helped someone. As a writer, the firstContinue Reading
Are you overly concerned about your number of social media followers? Writers used to think that to sell more books, they had to increase their number of followers on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, etc. But actually, the number of followers you have may not mean very much when it comes toContinue Reading
In all honesty—and without sounding like a Pollyanna—I haven’t encountered any emotional challenges in my writing, or in my life, for that matter. I suppose I owe much of that to a lifetime of meditation, over some fifty years now, which has kept me on an even keel through anyContinue Reading
Easily, the biggest emotional challenge of being a writer is the rejection. No one likes rejection, no matter the circumstance, but with creative arts such as writing, it is unavoidable and painfully frequent. It’s Hard Not to Take Rejections Personally Since falling back in to writing in 2014, I’ve queriedContinue Reading
Have you dreamed about being a travel writer? If so, check out Jeremy Bassetti’s story and tips below. I have been interested in travel and writing as independent things for most of my adult life. But I came to travel writing—or travel literature—later in life, when I moved to SpainContinue Reading
Are you a writer who struggles with imposter syndrome? by Beth Biss My writer friends often tell me about their struggles with it. I commiserate with them as best I can, but I have a dirty secret. When it comes to writing, I don’t deal with imposter syndrome. How canContinue Reading