Why writers are crazy masochists

On Sunday, I was scrolling through Facebook (never a good thing), and thinking about how most people spend their time on weekends. For most people, those days off are dedicated to fun, letting loose, getting out and about (or, that’s what Facebook implies). For me, weekends are a little angst-ridden. I struggle with how much to work on — Read More

On persistence

I’ve been doing a lot of thinking recently about how we only get about 10% of any one person’s story. We see only the parts they are willing to share–the happy parts, mostly. We shield others from our heartaches. If we do share, we share a small sliver. For example: On Facebook, which I consider an exaggerated — Read More

On “following your passion” (or not)

This post may sound contradictory to my last “push through rejection and keep writing” post, but I don’t see it that way. It could be a footnote to that post, or a part 2. If part 1 was “keep going,” part 2 is, “but don’t quit your day job.” When I was in my early twenties, I — Read More

On rejection

If someone told me they wanted to be a writer, I would say, “Ok, I hope you’re good with rejection.” It’s funny how writers are some of the most sensitive people and publishing is such a harsh, brutally blunt industry. Some fun facts: Robert M. Pirsig received 121 rejections of his book Zen and the Art — Read More

Why We Write: Continued

As I said last week, I just finished reading Why We Write: 20 Acclaimed Writers on How and Why They Do What They Do. As promised, here are some words of wisdom from the contributing writers: “Whenever I am writing, or more accurately, whenever I have written, I feel better and more at peace as — Read More

Why We Write

I just finished reading Why We Write: 20 Acclaimed Writers on How and Why They Do What They Do. I’d recommend it, mostly because proceeds go to 826 National, a nonprofit dedicated to writing and tutoring centers. I didn’t think the entries were all that compelling. In fact, my favorite part was the introduction by — Read More