I don't "do" poetry. In my first writing class–a seminar style graduate-level class for English majors (what was I thinking?)–this math major freaked when I was handed a long poem and told I'd be leading a discussion about it. The professor gave me advice that I still use for finding the significant takeaways from articles […]

My favorite quote is from Randy Pausch’s Last Lecture (if you haven’t read that small book, you should - it’s incredibly inspiring). “The brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we […]

Sierra Godfrey It would be nice if we all had a virtual set of Tupperware that allowed us to take out nice fresh pieces of our websites or blogs when things get stale. Let’s face it—even if your website or blog is professionally designed or a straight-off-the-shelf template, and whether you’re promoting a book or […]

Kathryn Craft Turning Whine into Gold In our ongoing look at what wisdom Don Miguel Ruiz’s The Four Agreements can offer writers, we come to agreement number three. [Click here for Agreement 1 and Agreement 2.] Don’t Make Assumptions Find the courage to ask questions and to express what you really want. Communicate with others […]

What's the time management secret that's sure to help us all get TONS more writing done? "Yes makes less." It's my new favorite motto. If you've never heard of Steven Pressfield or Shawn Coyne, you're missing out on some amazing lessons. Pressfield wrote The War of Art (edited by Coyne) and they often blog about creativity. […]