by Ulrike Selleck Have you ever considered yourself a cosmic writer-creator? I certainly hadn’t! Most of us think of ourselves as localized identities, beings with ups and downs. Lack of inspiration. Fatigue or burn out. Low energy, or even depression. Writer’s block. Self doubt. Perfectionism. Insecurity, and lack of self-confidence.Continue Reading
How are your writing mornings going right now? My parents loved to quote Benjamin Franklin when I was growing up: “Early to bed, early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise.” Personally, I’ve always hated this saying. I was born a night owl, and despised being awakened inContinue Reading
What is your true motivation for writing? That thing that gets you out of bed to write early in the morning or keeps you going late at night to get that next chapter done? What picks you up off the floor after a devastating rejection or bad review? You mayContinue Reading
For me, the biggest emotional challenge of being a writer is allowing myself to be vulnerable. Fiction writing is an introspective experience. The characters and their journeys exist in a deep, private part of me. Yes, they’re entirely fiction, and yet they feel completely real. I experience their emotions whileContinue Reading
My biggest, perhaps only, emotional challenge as a writer is motivation/self-discipline/time management. After I transitioned from traditional to self-publishing a few years ago, one of the many benefits was that I set my own deadlines. For my personality type (Ooh, shiny!) this is also the bad news. There are soContinue Reading
by Laura Libricz When we set off on our creative path, do we freely skip through the flowers, hone our craft, sell lots of the finished product and retire early? It’s all about living the dream, right? For some, that may be the case. For others, like the most ofContinue Reading
Do you feel creatively fulfilled as a writer? A Writing and Wellness reader who commented on a former post (“5 Things Writers Can Do to Live Longer”) got me thinking about this. Mike was talking about his difficulty with getting enough sleep each night, not only because he likes toContinue Reading
Are you feeling lately like your writing sucks? As writers, we often come up against the same weaknesses in our storytelling again and again. With each book completed, we improve on some things, but others continue to hover around the mediocre level, which can be frustrating. The danger is thatContinue Reading
The biggest emotional challenge of being a writer that I have faced thus far is the post-partum publication blues. During the weeks directly after releasing my work into the world, I’m a basket case and feel extremely vulnerable, suffering the extreme highs and lows of birthing a novel. This isContinue Reading
I’ve always thought of myself as a writer. I’ve always been an introvert, and spend a lot of time “in my head.” Writing gives me an outlet, a way to escape, and a way to give a voice to those characters chattering away in my head. The biggest emotional challengeContinue Reading
by Olivia Jones Inspiration is a fickle beast, as every writer knows well. We do our best to tame it, manage it, and help it flourish, but ultimately it has its own heartbeat and a way of growing or halting to a sudden stop. But among so many things weContinue Reading
Do you have a to-do list? As writers, we spend a lot of time learning what “to do” in terms of plot, characterization, setting, pacing, and more. We also try to learn what to do when it comes to social media, marketing, publishing, and other parts of the business sideContinue Reading