When I lost my job, got cancer and my mom died, it finally pushed me to pursue my dream of writing, but I had no idea if I was any good. I think that was one of my biggest emotional challenges as a writer. I know a lot of writersContinue Reading
As winter drags on, even the happiest writers can become depressed writers. I felt it coming on in mid-November: that sluggish, tired feeling that often plagues me during these cold, gray months. Some people refer to it as “SAD” (Seasonal Affective Disorder), but for many of us, it’s not aContinue Reading
Fear was always the biggest challenge. I keep a Fear Journal. Every time I can’t write fiction, I process the feeling by figuring out which of the fears are getting in my way today. Up until I got a chronic disease, I worked for and trained to be a researchContinue Reading
How can you grow your readership? You’re a good writer. You have the awards or the reviews to prove it. But something’s not working. Your books aren’t selling as much as you’d like. Your email list isn’t growing and your readership has stagnated. What would propel your writing career toContinue Reading
Creativity is such an amoebic thing. It moves and grows, shrinks, contracts, spins and warbles in a constant tidal motion. Fortunately, I’ve never suffered from writer’s block but have felt overwhelmed at times by a story. Not sure what to do, insecure about my ability to plot. Will people likeContinue Reading
Facing writing difficulties is something every writer must do. How you face them determines whether or not you succeed. No matter what struggles you may be having—and we all have them—one thing is true: If you want to make progress toward your writing dreams, you have to get clear onContinue Reading
I didn’t tell very many people I was writing for a long time because I didn’t want to have to talk about not getting an agent, not finding a publisher, not selling any books…admitting I wasn’t succeeding at my effort to become a published author. Then, when I finally didContinue Reading
Welcome to the Writing and Wellness annual quote round-up! Looking back, I can’t believe that this is the sixth year I’ve done these. They’ve all been popular posts and I love how they capture certain overarching themes in the writing life. You can view past quote pages at the followingContinue Reading
Being in any of the arts—writing, theatre, painting, dance—is not for the timid. Because of the nature of the work, these pursuits are among the lowest paid unless you become a star in the field. So, emotionally, I didn’t consider making writing an occupation until I retired early from myContinue Reading
How about a year’s worth of writing tips in one post? This year has been a crazy one for sure, but looking back, we’ve talked about several topics that may be helpful in your writing life. Some apply to your health as a writer—extremely important to your longevity in theContinue Reading
by Kris Maze Worried about your Writer Wellness? We can improve our writing productivity if we focus on improving our Writer Habits. It’s a pleasure to share the importance of balancing your writer life and not to neglect mojo-giving resources of exercise, proper nutrition, and sleep. One of the biggestContinue Reading
Following the pattern I established a few years ago, I’m sharing my favorite books of 2020. This year, eight books stood out for me out of all of those I read. Keep in mind: I’m no book reviewer, so you won’t find reviews here. Instead, I give a few commentsContinue Reading