Guest post by Steve Mitchell and Carol Roan The experiences we draw upon in order to write exist in every part of our selves. When our writing is not going well, when we’re blocked, lots of thoughts are running around in our heads (all of which we discard), and that’sContinue Reading
I enjoyed Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. Great fun! But that’s not what inspired this post. It was actually a PBS special entitled, “The Ape Who Went to College.” In case you haven’t seen it, it told the story of Chantek, a baby orangutan raised as a humanContinue Reading
My biggest challenge with writing is being fatigued. I work full time and my job is physically demanding, and then I come home to three children. Time isn’t on my side, and when I’m able to sneak in some writing my brain is on the fritz. What helps me isContinue Reading
You sense a glimmer of an idea, something new you want to do with your life. You mention it to your spouse, your colleague, or your best buddy. Instead of the supportive response you hoped for, you get: “What? Why would you want to do that?” Maybe the person laughs.Continue Reading
The biggest physical challenge for me as a writer is staying physically active. I have diabetes and it’s important to get at least thirty minutes of exercise every day. If I don’t do it first thing in the morning, I can’t manage to work it in. I am a walkerContinue Reading
Housework is a bad thing for writers. It’s intrusive, creeping into our thoughts when we least want it to. Blank screen? That’s when we realize the bathroom needs immediate attention. Plot struggle? It’s time to mop the floor. We try to stop it. A messy house isn’t going to self-destruct,Continue Reading
The biggest physical challenge is being sedentary. My two favorite hobbies—writing and reading—require no more from me than sitting still and turning pages or typing. And I’m way too comfortable with that. For example, I’d never look up from my computer and say, “Hey! You know what? I think I’llContinue Reading
Those successful people. How do they do it? My dog gave me an idea the other day. Have you ever seen someone behave as if they really wanted something? My dog is really good at it. If she wants a bone, you know it. She’ll do all the tricks she’sContinue Reading
By far the biggest physical challenge for me is managing my weight. As a full-time teacher and mother of two, the only time I have to write is in my “free” time (I’m laughing on the inside, because I barely know the meaning of that phrase), and that is theContinue Reading
A couple weeks ago, I told you all about my trip to research my current work in progress (The Beached Ones). Now I’m back home, the trip is over, and I’m processing the whole experience. I thought it only fair to warn you—this type of journey isn’t for the faintContinue Reading
I woke up with one of these a week ago. Yuck! There’s nothing like trying to work for hours at the computer when your neck hurts. In the past, I’d always just lived with it, slowly working it out through my yoga practice over a series of days. It gotContinue Reading
My biggest physical challenge has been repetitive stress hand annoyances plus overall discomfort at sitting too much. I’m always trying to improve my desk situation, but this high-minded approach has only arisen now after several years of sitting on a couch, virtually curled into the cracked screen of my laptop.Continue Reading