Content Writer and Editor
For the first time, I’ll be joining thousands of other writers in doing something a little nutty... National Novel Writing Month (a.k.a. NaNoWriMo). This gamified activity is fairly self-explanatory: participants draft an entire novel in the span of a month. For real. A participant “wins” by writing 50,000 words in the form of a novel by… Continue reading NaNoWriMo: Let’s Do This.
Imposter syndrome strikes many creative types. (I write about my own struggles to overcome this nasty complex in an earlier post, and for additional recommended reading, check out this article on the topic from a favorite resource, The Writer’s Edit.) Imposter syndrome in a nutshell: You’re certain everyone will find out how much of a… Continue reading Am I wasting my time?
You’ve been there. The feeling that you’re a total failure, unequipped to do the job. You know it, but no one else does… yet. Those around you are on the brink of figuring out that you in fact totally suck. Forget the training and preparation that brought you to this moment, and the experience that… Continue reading Battling imposter syndrome
For the past couple of months, I’ve been doing that thing where I procrastinate on writing. That thing you might do with any creative project or larger effort. Something I did for, uh… almost five years. To be fair, life has been a little hectic this summer. Since June, I: Looked for and bought a… Continue reading Old habits die hard
When I refocused this blog a few months ago, I maintained an ambitious goal of posting approximately once per week. Clearly I do not regularly meet that goal. In my defense, I have a lot going on at this juncture. That’s not an excuse but an admission to myself that there are several other things… Continue reading The power of the creativity journal
I drafted this post on the plane while heading home after a trip to visit family, during which I worked my 9-to-5, deliberated on and put in an offer on a house (!?!?!), did some other employment-related tidying up (interpret that as you will)… and spent time with a variety of family. Thing were a… Continue reading You’ve probably got a lot going on–and that’s OK
… that you read in school. Please. My mom (who’s reading this, hello!) always said that philosophy is lost on 20-somethings. I’ll specify by arguing that short fiction is lost on 20-somethings. Not all, and not always me, but looking back on all the fantastic essays, short stories, and novels I was assigned to read… Continue reading Re-read everything
You need a dedicated place to do your creative work. Dedicated. This workspace can be a corner, an entire room, and entire floor (and if this is the case, what a lucky duck you are). We’ve all see this advice before, right? And it makes sense. You need a place with minimal interruptions and something… Continue reading Be Selfish with Your Work Space
One of the most potentially destructive things a person can do is to compare themselves with others. I say “potentially” because the act of considering the successes, failures and milestones of others to our own experience can provide us insight into what’s important in our own lives. For example (as these things have been on… Continue reading An alternative to comparing yourself to others
Yeah, you read that right: the failures resume. Not a document that you’d want to submit as part of a job application. But developing a list of professional “failures” - programs that didn’t accept you, awards you didn’t win, funding you didn’t receive - can be a helpful exercise, even if not shared publicly. (Inspired… Continue reading The failures resume: It’s not as awful as it sounds
Gail Marie Cole 