Lauren Sapala

Search results for: “infj writer”

  • Do You Have to Make Money from Your Writing to be a “Real Writer”?

    Do You Have to Make Money from Your Writing to be a “Real Writer”?

    “So, what do you do?” is a common question in society that makes most creative people cringe. Whether you’re socializing at a dinner party with friends or you’re meeting your significant other’s parents for the first time, the “what do you do?” question is one that we’ve all come to know and expect, and that fills us with dread every time.

    For most people, answering this question is easy. They give the person their job title and maybe the company they work at and then the conversation moves on. But for creative people, it’s very likely that their official job title does not match what they are most passionate about in life, and their job title is not the work they truly identify with on a deeper level. So, the job title they have at the moment feels irrelevant, and mostly impersonal. It doesn’t say anything about who they really are. (more…)

  • 5 Signs You’re an Intuitive Writer

    5 Signs You’re an Intuitive Writer

    While I most often get clients and students who are well aware that they have problems writing, they don’t often know that the reason for this is because they are an intuitive writer. Intuitive writers work in a way that deviates from the norm, and it’s this deviation that can cause a lot of misunderstanding and pain to the writer who is struggling, because intuitive writers tend to get blocked and shut down when they try to use mainstream writing methods.

    I put together a basic list of 5 clear signs that indicate you are most likely an intuitive writer. If you hit every one of the items on this list, then chances are high that you’re going to have writing problems if you try to use mainstream methods. (more…)

  • Help for INFP Writers Who Have Trouble Choosing Between Too Many Ideas

    Help for INFP Writers Who Have Trouble Choosing Between Too Many Ideas

    There is one common problem almost all INFP writers struggle with, and that’s choosing just one creative project to work on. Most INFP writers have a million ideas, and many have started multiple writing projects in an effort to bring every one of those million ideas to life. Then the INFP writer becomes completely overwhelmed because they have too many projects going on—most of them in various unfinished states—and they don’t know how to focus themselves on finishing any one thing.

    If you are an INFP writer, you have probably been through this cycle many times. And you have probably also beaten yourself up for being “scattered,” “unfocused,” or “not dedicated enough” to follow through on finishing things. Rest assured, you are none of the above. What’s actually going on is that you are a highly creative person, and because of your INFP personality type, you work in a different way than most other people when it comes to creative projects. (more…)

  • How to Write Without Triggering Your Writer’s Block

    How to Write Without Triggering Your Writer’s Block

    In my last article, How Your Brain Sabotages Your Writing Process (and What to Do About It), I talked about how writers with trauma around creativity and self-expression are often taken down during the writing process because their nervous system gets freaked out when they sit down to write.

    When the nervous system gets freaked out, it sends danger signals to the brain warning that the creative process needs to be shut down immediately. The brain then sees any creative effort the writer is making as an imminent threat in the vicinity and takes action to stop the writer from writing, usually through some insidious form of writer’s block (freezing, paralysis, distraction, sleepiness, etc.).

    The big question most writers have when they discover this is what’s going on with them and why they have so many problems writing is: How do I make my nervous system stop doing that? (more…)

  • You Really Want to Be a Writer. So Why Do You Have So Many Problems Actually Writing?

    You Really Want to Be a Writer. So Why Do You Have So Many Problems Actually Writing?

    Being a writer is hard work, any writer can tell you that. But what many writers won’t tell you is exactly how deep their writing problems go. There are countless writers out there who deal with constant guilt and shame around the writing process. Either because they’re not writing very much, or they’re not writing at all.

    Sometimes these writers can admit they have a bad case of writer’s block, and sometimes they just think they’re bad writers and writing is something they should give up on. Usually, when a writer has gotten to this point, they’ve tried everything. They’ve used different writing plans and schedules, made outlines and lists and writing maps, and they think about writing all the time and how they can conquer their writing problems.

    But still, when it comes time to sit down and write, the writer procrastinates. Or, they make themselves sit down but are filled with anxiety and dread. They freeze, get overwhelmed, and then become paralyzed, and another day goes by without any writing being done at all. (more…)

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