On Being A Slow Writer – WN 158
No matter how much coffee I drink, I’m never able to write as quickly as I want to. This week, we’re taking a look at what it means to be a “slow writer” — and all of the baggage that comes along with it.
No matter how much coffee I drink, I’m never able to write as quickly as I want to. This week, we’re taking a look at what it means to be a “slow writer” — and all of the baggage that comes along with it.
(Doubles as a gift guide if you like to give hugs)
Creating consistently strengthens your command of the craft and builds trust with your audience. But if you’re anything like me, creating on a consistent basis feels impossible. Why are we like this? What do we do when we fail to live up to our own — and others’ — standards?
Whether you’re doing NaNoWriMo or not this year, it’s a good idea to have an honest conversation with yourself about what you need to thrive as a writer.
What do we do with those irritating things about ourselves that we can’t change?
On making money from your work — and… not.
What happens when your childhood dream feels like it’s no longer achievable? What does it mean if (and when) your 5-year plan goes off the rails? Today we’re talking about what happens when our writing dreams change — and what it means for us as creators.
A letter about seasonal change and beginning when it feels right.
What is writing to you — a hobby, a second job, a meditative practice? Something else? All of the above? This week, we’re talking about the role of writing in our lives and how we can feel more satisfied and fulfilled in doing what we love.
How should we navigate selling our creative work? I speak with Asa Merritt about pitching a project, which hill(s) to die on, and the pros and cons of telling a personal story on a commercial platform.
What is it that’s REALLY toxic here?
Like all marketing, social media is only a means to an end. Let me explain…
No matter how sophisticated it gets, A.I. will never replace you — and here’s why.
Is there value in admitting that we’re bad at something? Must we improve ourselves in every way?
In defense of writing slowly, and thoughts on the blurry line between “writing to sell” and “writing to survive”. (Content warning: Death and dying)
Writing — or any creative act, really — is just a chain of beginnings, one after the other. (Does that make you feel better, or worse?)
We tend to talk about being brave as this positive, empowering thing, but… is it?
We’re not machines, as much as we sometimes wish we were (or maybe that’s just me). What do we do as creators when our brains and bodies fail us?
Back in 2019, I signed a deal with Netflix for a “Girl In Space” TV show. So… whatever happened to that?
The story of one time when I called someone a bad word (it rhymes with “ditch”). You’ve been warned.
The social consensus seems to agree that social media is bad for us. But… is it?
A gentle reminder that suffering is not a virtue, even when society tells us it is.
The twelve days of a possibly terrible, horrible, no good, very bad Christmas BUT ALSO HOPEFULLY SOME INSIGHTS.
On creative flow, creative guilt, and why we give into distractions. (Or, if you’re the kind of person who easily resists distractions, please tell me your secrets immediately.)
Maybe you’ve heard before that perfectionism is a form of fear. So… what should we be aiming for instead?
Why are endings so darn hard to write? Is it just because it’s difficult to wrap up all of the loose ends… or is there something more going on? What makes for a truly satisfying ending, and how do we create one?
I returned from speaking at the Austin Film Festival two Mondays ago, and then promptly went into hiding. I don’t necessarily think I did it on purpose, thinking to myself, “Ha ha! Now no one will be able to find me!” At least, not this time.
Why did I ditch my laptop and start writing everything by hand? What are the benefits — and what have I learned from it about the craft of writing?
If you’ve ever been curious about how live-action roleplaying game podcasts are planned, created, recorded, and produced, or if you have any interest in RPGs like D&D, Pathfinder, or improv in general, give this episode a listen. Cat is an expert in plucking meaningful narrative from a scattered story and provides tons of great advice on how to clarify your own creative work.
No matter who you are, Kate Wallinga’s story of wielding creativity to take back agency in her life will inspire and astound you.
I’m really struggling with what to write to you in this week’s letter. Not because there’s nothing going on in my life, but because I keep telling myself that I can’t tell you what’s going on in my life.
I don’t know where this impulse is coming from, even though I’ve been sitting here mulling it over for a while. So maybe I’ll tell you the things, and in doing so hopefully figure out why I’m so resistant.
In this episode I’m asking why might creatives we hold onto regrets? What are we punishing ourselves for? Why do we spend so much time and energy focusing on our regrets and what purpose might they serve?
What is your ideal balance or imbalance? What would it take to actually get there? What can you drop in your life that does not feed your purpose?
Can you believe the Write Now podcast has been running for seven (7) years?! Because I can’t!
In this episode, I break down my writing process, tool-by-tool.
I’m joined by two of the co-creators of the sci-fi audio drama, Marsfall: Eric Saras and Dan Lovley. They discuss their process for writing their series collaboratively.
Times get tough and sometimes I am not okay. I haven’t been okay for a while. Maybe you can say the same. Maybe we can get through it together.
After speaking about the merits of failure, I was left wondering — what exactly was “failure”?
For the first time in my life, I have been writing consistently, habitually, every day.
I’ve been traveling the past several weeks for family and work, and everywhere I went, I took a dedicated carry-on piece of luggage that contained everything I needed to operate my business (and write).
I just realized it has been a while since I last talked about my favorite writing tools — and by “a while”, I mean more than seven years. Whew! Suffice to say a lot has changed since then, including the tools and processes I use to write.
Is this you? “MARCH 11, 1915: How time flies; another ten days and I have achieved nothing. It doesn’t come off. A page now and then is successful, but I can’t keep it up, the next day I am powerless.”
Oof. It feels like “something came up” for me every day this past week, and I hardly got any writing done at all. Family stuff, life stuff, calls, obligations, meetings, errands, even meals — things seemed to crop up as soon as I decided I should probably go write. …Or DID they?
Over and over again during the conference I just attended, I kept hearing the question, “Do I (or does my podcast) need to be on TikTok?” and the answer was usually in the form of another question, i.e., “Can you afford not to be?”
I didn’t mean to, but this morning I started listing out my core values. I didn’t think a lot about “core values” before I started my own business, but I think that, despite its corporate icky-ness, it’s a great exercise for anyone seeking clarity and direction in their life.
I’ve been thinking a lot about our circumstances lately, and how we interpret what we are going through, and how that interpretation informs a huge part of our self-identity and self-worth as writers and creators. What would we do, and who would we become, if we interpreted our situation(s) a little bit differently?
I was writing my morning pages earlier today when I realized I was doing something that I wasn’t supposed to be doing — writing a “to do” list of all the sidelined tasks that were stressing me out. “Pick up Midori’s kidney medication.” “Pay electricity, gas, and utility bills.” “Target run for necessities.” It felt good at first…
I just flew back home on Monday after 16 days with my family in Cleveland. My mother was in the hospital with heart failure, two of my sisters were in the process of moving, and my two-year-old niece had yet to begin daycare (and then came home with croup when she did).
Being home — or returning to a place I used to call home — is weird. Maybe you’ve experienced something like this, too. Being here makes my life feel like it has a split end…