Creative burnout is a scary thing.
You’re blazing along, doing your work, trying to reach that elusive mirage we call success, and then all of a sudden you come up empty. No ideas, no juice, no words. Or maybe you’re still writing but the joy has gone out of it and the thing you used to love feels like a chore. Maybe you even stop writing, or maybe you make yourself sick worrying and fretting that you’ve forgotten how to write.
This can be terrifying or depressing or both.
The world is a book, and those who don’t travel read only a page. – St Augustine
I believe that travel is the single best investment you can make as writer.
I remember the first time I travelled by myself – I was sixteen and already too tall to be comfortable in the cramped window seat. My mom was sending me to Nepal to spend some time with older sister. Forced bonding time because we hated each other.
The plane taxied down the runway, building speed for take off. The sound of the engines built inside the cabin and the vibrations rumbled through my bones. Fear and excitement twisted tighter and tighter in my belly.
Writer’s block. Blank page paralysis. Fear of finishing. Fear of beginning. Fear of rejection. We’ve all been there in some form or fashion. But can writing workshops help you move past this stagnant state?
For Christmas, I found this really cool gift for my daughter. It’s called IlluStory by LuLu Junior, and it’s a kit for kids to make their own books, then send them off to be published. Pretty cool, right? (And don’t we wish it was that easy for adult writers?!) The kit comes with a How … Read More
I recently started watching Emeril Lagasse’s new show “Eat the World” on Amazon. Have you seen it? I’m absolutely in love because:It’s free on Amazon.It supports everything I believe about creatives working together.Emeril himself says, in the opening credits of the show, “When chefs get together, magic begins to start happening.”OMG!Did you see that?? “When chefs–” and we … Read More
I’ve been reading a lot about creativity. It fascinates me. What is this thing, this voice, that whispers stories and characters and other worlds to us? Some authors claim they have ghosts whisper untold bits of history to them. Others feel this cannot-be-ignored pressure to write. Others sit down and pour out the hard stuff, … Read More
By Steena Holmes, NYT & USA Today Bestselling AuthorWhen I tell people that I’m going on a writing cruise I get one of two reactions.“A writing cruise? Really? You’re just looking for a write-off, right?”, or “Are you serious? A working cruise? This is legit?”Regardless of which response comes up, I smile and admit that … Read More
Stuff your eyes with wonder, live as if you’d drop dead in ten seconds. See the world. It’s more fantastic than any dream made or paid for in factories. – Ray BradburyI love that, don’t you? The idea of stuffing your eyes with wonder. One of my favorite things is discovering something new, someplace I’ve … Read More
By Shelley Adina, Amazon Bestselling Author, RITA Award® Winner – 2005When I graduated from high school, lo these many years ago, unlike many of my peers, I didn’t go to university (I did that years later, finishing up with an MFA in Writing Popular Fiction). I graduated on Thursday and on the following Tuesday started work … Read More
Does this picture make anyone else want to run back to their hotel room? Writing conferences are prime places to meet new people, make new connections, and network. Ugh.If you’re anything like me, the word networking makes you want to be sick and join a convent or a monastery and take a vow of silence, all at the … Read More
