They had lists of reasons, y’all. — I’d been warned before the book club meeting. “They don’t usually read romance,” the host told me. And yet, I went in hoping that the book I wrote would shake loose that hidden part of them that roots for love to conquer all. The first warning sign (I mean, after…

Most people fail to do this. — In another episode of life with the struggling writer, we have Crissi Langwell, procrastinator extraordinaire and filler of all time pockets. This last week was not much different than any of the others. My full-time job took up most of every day. A few freelance jobs were nearing deadlines. …

Life can be the ultimate teacher. — When I was young, my dad took my sister and me to a swimming hole in Glen Ellen, CA while my mom stayed home with our toddler sister. Once we’d had our fill, my sister and I stayed in just our swimming suits as we traveled the windy road back…

Because we were all beginners once. — Back in 2019, I wrote my very first article here on Medium. I had no idea what I was doing, but I felt so passionate about the subject, I wanted to share it with a wider audience. I’d been reading articles here for a while, so I had an idea…

Let’s get you back into your flow. — When the project you’re working on just isn’t flowing the way you want it to, you may need to step away from it for a moment. But don’t just stop writing. Writing prompts are an excellent way to get your mind unblocked and encourage creativity once again. Here are a…

Tim Denning’s list is fine, but I think it’s incomplete. — Tim Denning posted a crowdsourced story about things you need for a better life, with ideas people shared on Twitter. You can read it below: Here Are the Cheat Codes to a Better Life Crowdsourced from the internetbetterhumans.pub TLDR: The list includes pursuing your goals in private, a spouse/partner, a dog or cat, daily writing, surrounding yourself with people you admire, doing with…

Reading about imperfection makes us realize we’re not alone. — When I first started writing, I was naive enough to think that all I had to do was write. I could live in my own self-obsessed world and write about me, me, me and the world would come running to read all the brilliance I put on the page. Boy…

Hate to break it to you. — When I first started writing, I thought I had something to say and people wanted to listen. I felt it was my duty to share my thoughts because it was a benefit to the world. I thought everything I wrote was original, never before uttered, a completely new idea. Boy…

Feeling sluggish with your writing? Same. — I’m going through a bit of a drought in my writing life. I just published a book a few months ago, which was exciting after a two-year hiatus in the publishing world. And after every book I publish, I tend to experience an energy slump that lasts a month or…