Because I am writing to provide insights and information, I have never doubted that what I was doing had worth. That’s huge! I really do think it empowers people to know about ecology, history and how systems function. How a Writer Sees Criticism The biggest emotional challenge is right-sizing feedback.Continue Reading
[Photo caption: Author Jason Offutt and his wife Kimberly Offutt on a recent vacation at Rathbun Lake, Iowa. Yes, Iowa has lakes.] There are different levels of emotional stress that come with where a writer is in their career. Early on was rejection, until I learned that EVERY writer getsContinue Reading
If you’re writing creativity has stalled a little bit, Halloween is the perfect time to jumpstart it again! Insert some fun into your writing life, and you may be surprised at what it does for your story! Writing Creativity Tip #1. Dress up as one of your characters. When IContinue Reading
by Sheree K. Nielsen I suppose my love of coffee began as a teenager. On a camping trip, rummaging through the RV’s kitchen cabinets, I searched for tea bags. “Where’s the tea?!” I demanded. “All we have is coffee”, my friend Sherry C replied. Gathered around a crackling fire, inContinue Reading
You’re probably heard that owning a dog is good for you. I’m here to tell you—it’s even better for you if you’re a writer. As some of you already know, I rescued a shelter dog—Storm—several weeks ago. (Read more about that here.) I’ve owned dogs all my life, so thisContinue Reading
by Noelle Sterne Three shelves in my library are crammed with guaranteed-to-break-your-writer’s-block books. All have a thick dust blanket, some have grown moss, and a few have put down roots. One book, though, never even got to the shelf. Julia Cameron’s The Artist’s Way went with me everywhere and, toContinue Reading
What is the key to being a successful writer? Building an identity as a successful writer. But what does that mean? Dreaming is Not Enough Kaylie was discouraged. She’d been dreaming of a successful writing career for years. In high school, she won a contest for a short story sheContinue Reading
I started writing when I was in high school and started an alternative school newspaper, then didn’t write again much until I was in my early thirties. It started out with short stories, then nonfiction journalistic articles, which then progressed to novels and story collections. Counseling Greatly Informed My WritingContinue Reading
My biggest emotional challenge related to writing coincided with the pandemic. I had previously spent a couple years writing a three-book fiction series, Prisoners of Hope, and released the first two in October and November of 2019. The third released in late January 2020. The books totaled more than 1,100Continue Reading
Sometimes the writing rules we live by aren’t real rules, but merely things we think we “should” be doing in our writing lives. It’s amazing how much power these “rules” can have over our brains. They can keep us feeling like we’re endlessly coming up short, which can be discouragingContinue Reading
The biggest emotional challenge of being a writer is trying to balance my passion for the craft, the time commitment required to bring an idea to fruition, and the demands of full-time work and parenting. I am a full-time teacher with three young children. I am also a “sandwiched” generationContinue Reading
Overwhelmed because everything is happing at the same time? Find help for writers in this post, with 7 tips to better manage a crazy time.