Do you believe in writing myths?
You’d never call Cheryl Strayed (pictured) a shirker. Today, her books regularly hit the bestseller lists, her memoir Wild was made into an Oscar-nominated film. She’s successful and prolific by any measure. But for years she was stuck – she didn’t write a thing. She...
Build a rock solid writing routine with the psychology of habits
‘How to build a writing habit’ is clickbait for writers. Habits are a magic bullet to kill procrastination and end struggles with willpower. But beware! Writing does not meet the scientific definition of a habit so striving for the gold standard will end in failure....
Writing systems: finding yours, why it matters
Everybody writes differently but one thing’s the same. The writers who have a more balanced, easier and less wrung-out relationship with writing have all developed some kind of personal system to keep them going and to stop them from stalling. Before lockdown I used...
How to make time to write – 4 approaches to finding time in busy schedules
The main barrier to writing is not a lack of ideas but a lack of time. Our lives are packed to the brim with important and urgent things to do. Don’t wait for the perfect writing opportunity to arrive – you must make time. Learn about four approaches that other...
Epic procrastination: What Darwin’s 20-year delay teaches us about writing fear
June the 18th 1858 should go down in history as the day when one of the world’s most influential, revolutionary books was finally sparked into life. On that day the English naturalist Charles Darwin – who was little known at the time – was opening his morning mail...
How to set a writing goal: the ultimate guide
Writing goals are important because they give you something to aim for. They give you the structure, direction and clarity you need to keep moving forwards with your project. However, the wrong goal can become a millstone that demotivates and leads to delay, and make...
Say it, write it, draw it – 8 visualising exercises for writers
Getting clarity on your writing dreams helps you take action to achieve them. From visualising a simple goal, to a story about the future, to getting creative with sticky tape and crayon, here are 8 expert exercises to help you visualise writing success. 1. From...
All good things must begin: how visualising success helps writers
Visualising success can feel a bit woo-woo, but research shows that mental practice is an component of expertise. “I shall be a bestselling writer” wrote Octavia E Butler in 1988. She is not alone in fantasising about writing chart-topping books - I’d wager most...
How being observed helps you write
There are many things that can kickstart your writing and keep you going when motivation is low, life is busy and you have no time to write. Find out how observation can help you build the tools, tactics and techniques to keep you writing long term. Yesterday I was...
The writing epiphany that changed Kevin Kelly’s life
Kevin Kelly had something of an epiphany in the early years of editing Wired, the iconic magazine he founded in the 90s. It was an epiphany that taught him a lesson about writing, creative practice - and about life. In many fields – writing included – a myth pervades...
The Artist’s Way for Writers
“Eat, Pray, Love would not exist without The Artist’s Way.” Elizabeth Gilbert isn’t the only writer who credits their success to Julia Cameron’s The Artist’s Way. With a variety of fans from authors Patricia Cornwell and Russell Brand to songwriters Pete Townshend and...
How to manage your writing distractions – a lesson via George R.R. Martin
Back in 2009 writer Neil Gaiman was replying to a fan who’d contacted him through his blog. Gareth – the fan – wanted some advice, and to have a bit of a moan. Not about Gaiman but about George R.R. Martin, the massively successful author of the A Song of Ice and Fire...
