Monthly Archives

April 2018

The Hard Truth about Writing: Sometimes You Seriously Just Want to Give Up

I can’t tell you how many times I have wanted to give up on writing.

This is not something people usually expect to hear. My circle of friends and colleagues know that writing is something I am deeply passionate about; it’s the thing I sacrifice my free time and extra sleep for, and the thing I seemingly never stop pursuing.

But what they don’t know is how many times I have really, seriously, TRULY thought about throwing in the towel. Continue Reading

You Do Not Write the Story. The Story Writes You.

Why is learning how to write so hard?

If you want to be a writer, there are countless MFA programs, online courses, and more advice than one person could ever read on the internet. There are a bajillion writing guides on Amazon. And if you jump around on social media for even two minutes to see what writers are up to, you will quickly find more how-to guides, tips, tricks, hacks, and everything else an aspiring writer could ever want or need.

So, with all this information available, why is learning how to write still so hard? Continue Reading

Those Who Make It as Writers Tend to Have One Big Thing in Common: Patience

There are a lot of tips and advice out there on what makes for a great writer. I’ve written on this topic many times before, myself. It takes persistence and determination, say the experts. Writers have to be brave, says Charles Bukowski. You have to be clear on your goals, ready to receive hard feedback, and have an organized daily schedule, says the internet.

However, I’ve actually met and befriended hundreds of real life writers and I can say with a good degree of certainty that not all of us are all of these things. Or, we’re only some of these things some of the time. The rest of the time we’re disorganized, self-doubting, afraid, and not at all ready to hear harsh criticism of our work. Continue Reading