Gift Ideas for Writers
by,
December 7, 2021

Struggling with what to get for the writer in your life this holiday season? Here are some creative gift ideas to help inspire, motivate, and comfort. And remember to shop early this year to get ahead of the expected holiday shipping delays! Notebooks and journals This may seem like a given, but trust me: writers really do love getting notebooks. And no, there’s no such… [Read More]

Are you a binge-and-purge writer?
by,
September 20, 2016

Julia Cameron advocates “morning pages.” Three pages of longhand, stream of consciousness writing, done first thing in the morning. Every morning. The Artist’s Way. Natalie Goldberg recommends writing daily for at least twenty minutes. Free the writer within. Keep your hand moving, lose control, and don’t think.  Writing Down the Bones. Stephen King prescribes the writing routine of butt-in-chair habitually. Set writing goals and write… [Read More]

Best Books for Writers
by,
May 16, 2014

In the special part of my brain reserved for book related ephemera is a running list of my all-time favorite novels. I update the list quarterly in the event that I must spend the rest of my life on a remote island and will only be permitted ten books. So when this happens, I’ll be ready. I’ll shrug and say, “Sure, give me a minute…. [Read More]

Writing the First Draft of Your Book Manuscript
by,
April 27, 2013

“Every first draft is perfect,” wrote Jane Smiley, “because all a first draft has to do is exist.” Her words soothe like balm on a writer’s spirit. This simple truth about the process of writing a book is that every author starts with a first draft. Smiley’s words carry the weight of wisdom since her best-selling A Thousand Acres received the Pulitizer Prize for Fiction in… [Read More]