Why We Procrastinate (and How You Can Stop!)

I think one of the biggest questions I get asked is why we procrastinate. As writers, we want to complete these grandiose projects, but we can’t seem to get started. Original photo by Kari Shea  And while I have covered how to stop procrastinating before, I feel like it’s time for an update. I have […]

How to Stop Procrastinating: A Fool-Proof Way to Conquer the World

For the majority of my life, I felt I didn’t know how to stop procrastinating. I fell into the trap of putting stuff off, and kept telling myself that I needed the pressure to actually get shit done. Original photo by Milos Tonchevski This is stupid and false, and the same damn trap my students […]

Writing Only Gets Harder

Paradoxically, writing only gets harder the more you do it. Original photo by rawpixel.com You can practice for years. I’ve been actively writing since I was 8, and I can say conclusively that it’s harder to write now than it was then EVEN THOUGH NOW I CAN READ MULTI-SYLLABLE WORDS. You can dedicate several years […]

The 10 Stages of My Writing Process

The writing process is a mythical one. It’s a lot of emotional drudgery painstakingly scrawled on Post-Its purloined from former employers on my way out. It’s a lot half-full cups of cold coffee sloshing over the rim of the mug as I attack my keyboard with the fervor of 1000 feral cats. It’s a lot […]