Writing well requires an enormous amount of concentration and energy, plus a decent dose of self-confidence and courage. It’s not like making widgets on an assembly line, where your mind can wander while your hands stay busy producing. For that reason, even “normal” amounts of stress can freeze your writing fingers. (“Normal” meaning those stresses […]
writing challenges
Mixing Writing & Adult Children
Keeping with our Mother’s Day theme of combining writing with raising children (Hats Off to Mom Writers, Combine Babies and Bylines,Combining Writing and School-Age Kids, Writing During the Teen Years), let’s talk about writing when you have college kids and grown children (plus grandchildren). Again, your writing skills need flexibility! (with granddaughter, Abby, at a book sale) Déjà […]
Writing During the Teen Years
Keeping with our Mother’s Day theme of combining writing with raising children (Hats Off to Mom Writers, Combine Babies and Bylines, Combining Writing and School-Age Kids), let’s talk about writing during the teen years–and the skills it will entail. The main challenge at this time is keeping (and constantly regaining) your sanity! Even normally active teens can […]
Combining Writing and School-Age Kids
Yesterday we talked about how to Combine Babies and Bylines. There are challenges galore when writing with newborns and babies in the house. At that stage, we usually daydream of that magical day when the kids will be in school and we’ll have all those uninterrupted hours to write. Yes, it is easier to write […]
Stage 3: Taking Action
Ready for Stage 3? It’s about taking action. (First read The Dynamics of Change, Stage 1: Making Up Your Mind, and Stage 2: Committing to Change.) If you’ve done your homework in Stages 1 and 2, you’re probably more excited about this action phase than you would normally be. Why? You’re prepared. You’re motivated. You’ve taken […]
Writing Life: the Reality
“Life is difficult,” wrote M. Scott Peck in his famous book The Road Less Traveled. “This … is a great truth because once we truly see this truth, we transcend it… Once it is accepted, the fact that life is difficult no longer matters.” I’d like to amend Peck’s quote to say that “the writing […]
The Pain of Overload
As I mentioned last time, writers need margin in their lives in order to write. However, margin has disappeared for many people. Frazzled mothers, office workers, retired grandparents, and other writers struggle to find both time and energy to write. Make no mistake: it is harder today than at any other time in history. It’s […]
When Deadlines Meet the Holidays
I love having deadlines. I really do. It means money will be coming in for my daily writing, as long as I meet those deadlines. But when overlapping deadlines meet Thanksgiving and Christmas (and all the dinners, shopping, cards and company that go with it), I feel my internal panic button set to go off. […]
Voices of Self-Sabotage
[This is a repeat post because I’m out of town. I think the message is one we need to be reminded of.] You’ve often heard the phrase “you are your own worst enemy.” Does this apply to you when trying to create a writing life you love? It certainly applies to me! How does this […]
Jealousy: Conquering the Green-Eyed Monster
Last weekend, I went to a 75th Anniversary showing of “Gone With the Wind” in a local theater. It was a treat! After the Civil War ended, Scarlet OHara nearly starved with her family on their broken down plantation while she burned with jealousy toward anyone who still had money. Later, after marrying Rhett Butler, […]