Could your punctuation reveal something about you? You’ve heard of handwriting experts—those people who can read something you’ve written by hand and tell you what your personality is like. A certain slant to the letters, size of the consonants, or openness between words can reveal characteristics you’d never expect couldContinue Reading
Are you ready to set some writing goals? Usually it’s a good idea, particularly for writers and other creatives. We need goals to keep us moving forward. But we have to be careful. Good goals help us improve and achieve. Bad goals lead to disappointment and discouragement. Following are sevenContinue Reading
I love getting writing book recommendations from other authors, so I thought Writing and Wellness readers might like to know which books I keep on my writing desk. The following 10 are earmarked and broken-backed because I turn to them so often. Maybe one of these needs to be onContinue Reading
by Sarah Schembri As a writer working from home, I know how creatively draining it can be when you don’t get out of the house to go to the office. I’m not complaining. Working from home allows me to create my own schedule and to work in complete silence, whichContinue Reading
You trust your writer’s instincts. But are they always right? When I first started writing Loreena’s Gift, I remember calling my mom up in a panic. After exchanging the usual pleasantries, she asked me how the book was going. “Mom, she’s blind!” I burst out. “My main character. She’s blind!Continue Reading
According to PBS, Herman Melville first thought of the idea for what would become Moby Dick after reading a 1839 article by Jeremiah N. Renolds entitled “Mocha Dick: Or, the White Whale of the Pacific.” For years he researched and thought about the story. It wasn’t completed and published untilContinue Reading
Setting goals. You either love it or hate it. But most likely, if you’re a writer, you’ve done it at least a time or two. “I’m going to publish a novel.” Even if you’re not a goal-setter, it’s likely you’ve made decisions like this that have moved your career forward,Continue Reading
You’ve probably heard the “experts” say that in order to get where you want to go, you first have to believe you deserve to get there. Diane Sawyer was quoted as saying: “Whatever you want in life, other people are going to want it too. Believe in yourself enough toContinue Reading
There’s a lot of talk about authenticity these days. “Be real,” they tell us. Show your true self. Be honest in your writing. Take away the masks. I’m all for being authentic. In fact, I have a hard time being any other way. When I was a teenager, it oftenContinue Reading
Who are your writing heroes? Can you name them—right now? Do you know who they are? Does it matter? I’ve asked a number of people these questions. I’ve been amazed by how many blank looks I’ve received. Maybe it’s because my writing heroes are so important to me—and I believe,Continue Reading
In writing critiques, writers hear a lot about their weaknesses. Critiques are a way of life for us. We’re always asking people what’s wrong with our work. We feel like we have to hear criticism in order to improve. This may be true to some extent, but the longer IContinue Reading
“The privilege of a lifetime is to become who you truly are.” ~Carl G. Jung Are you struggling to take a new path in your life? Is that little voice inside you urging you to try something new, but you have yet to take action? Be careful—you may have allContinue Reading