The dreaded imposter syndrome… Do you worry you don’t have what it takes to be a writer? Even after a writing success, do you feel like you didn’t really deserve it? Do you worry that others will see the truth—that you really don’t know what you’re doing? If so, youContinue Reading
Are you suffering from hidden self-doubt? Being in the business of writing means we regularly come up against experiences that can leave us shaken and unsure about what we’re doing. There are times when you’ll know that you’re doubting yourself. At those times, you probably have ways to cope. MaybeContinue Reading
Procrastination is deadly to a writer. Writing a book is simply too big a task to accomplish in one or two short spurts. We need consistent effort over a long period of time to make it happen. If we put off our work until tomorrow, and tomorrow put it offContinue Reading
You know you’ve come to the culmination of your writing career when a client asks you to write about poop transplants. This happened to me a couple weeks ago. As a health writer, I’m often asked to write about the latest advances in medical science. These things usually interest me,Continue Reading
Jennifer was over the moon. Her book had been picked up by a publisher that she admired. She never thought she’d see one of her books with this publisher’s logo on the title page, but now it was going to happen. Finally, all her hard work had paid off! TwoContinue Reading
We all know that negative self-talk can be destructive. Most of us are much meaner to ourselves than we ever would be to a friend. When a story is rejected we privately bash our own writing ability. When we fail to stick with our writing commitments, we bemoan our ownContinue Reading
In a recent Writing and Wellness survey, I asked readers to share with me some of their biggest struggles when it comes to managing the writing life. One of the answers I received from several participants was that they needed help managing the “emotional roller-coaster.” More specifically, they didn’t wantContinue Reading
Would you know if you were suffering from writer’s anxiety? A friend of mine wasn’t getting her writing done. It had been over a month since she’d made any progress, or even sat down to focus on the work. It was her second novel and for a long time sheContinue Reading
How do you keep writing when others don’t support you? In a recent Writing and Wellness survey, I asked respondents to share their biggest writing challenges. One answer in particular broke my heart. The writer explained that a bad relationship had left her with the nagging feeling that her writingContinue Reading
Are you a highly sensitive writer? Do you know what “highly sensitive” is? I didn’t until I read The Highly Sensitive Person by Elaine N. Aron. Wow. What an eye-opener. If you’ve ever been told that you’re “too sensitive” and you haven’t read this book, I highly recommend you do.Continue Reading
Are you in a writing funk? You may not have noticed it creeping up on you. Then one day, you’re no longer excited about your writing. You may go so far as to say that you don’t really care if you write or not. What’s going on? Should you beContinue Reading
A friend of mind got a rejection the other day. She’d worked really hard on the story, putting it through numerous edits. The journal was one she’d read and admired for years. It was a big blow. I tried to console her, but she wouldn’t really allow it. “Nah, I’mContinue Reading