Writing
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The #1 Reason You Won’t Like Writing on Medium + Why It’s Better to Have Your Own Blog
Writing on Medium has made me grateful that I have my own blog. I’ll give a brief overview of the popular website before I get into the reason why you may not like writing on Medium over writing on your own blog. Medium is an online publishing platform where anyone – regardless of your writing experience and whether you’re a paying member or not – can write and publish articles. You can also read articles on an array of topics, but if you’re not a paying member, you’re limited to reading three articles per month. The website has been around since 2012 and has a large following. Per Wikipedia, the…
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A Non-Traditional Approach to Cope With Procrastination and Perfectionism as a Writer
How many times have you tried to “fix” your problem with procrastination and perfectionism by employing mainstream methods – quick fix hacks – that fail to address the reasons behind your deep resistance to and fear of writing? Having tried and failed at using traditional methods to crush, beat, and punch procrastination and perfectionism in the face, I decided to try a non-traditional method that focuses more on healing rather than “fixing” my problems. So I registered for a video course called YOU Are a Writer: Getting Past the Fear and Finally Moving Forward created by writer and writing coach Lauren Sapala. Right off the bat, if you are someone…
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Why I’m Taking a Writing Course to Heal Writer’s Block and Procrastination
A few days ago I enrolled in a writing course to try to work through my writing struggles. Over the years, I’ve tried “fixing” my writer’s block and procrastination on my own. Here are a few of the methods I tried: 30-day writing challenges Timed free-writing sessions Morning pages Scheduling writing sessions in my calendar All to no avail. I failed. When all else fails, seek help I’m at a point in my life where I feel like my back is against the wall. I just turned 51, and I feel like time is running out. How much longer can I put off going after my dreams and living up…
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My Resistance to Calling Myself a Writer
Are you a writer? How do you know? When can you call yourself a writer? Are you a writer ONLY IF you get paid to write? Are you a writer ONLY IF you have an audience of readers? Are you a writer ONLY IF you write books? What is your definition of a WRITER? One thing I know for sure: I am an overthinker. I joined Twitter recently and have started following people in the writing community. Big mistake for someone who struggles with the idea of calling herself a writer. In fact, in my bio I say: “I write. Sometimes.” My feed is populated with other people’s tweets about…
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Having Fun with Cliche Writing
cli·ché noun a phrase or opinion that is overused and betrays a lack of original thought. Sure, using clichés is considered “lazy” and uncreative, but there’s no reason why we can’t have fun with them. I took my first writing class when I was 22 years old, and one of our assignments was to write a story packed with as many clichés as possible. It was a fun exercise. Here’s that story I wrote – 27 years ago. Like a dream, he came into my life from out of nowhere and swept me off my feet. Winning my heart was a piece of cake for him, for I was eager…
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My Love/Hate Relationship with Writing
Writing is hard. If you write, maybe you have a love-hate relationship with writing too. As difficult as writing is for me, it has been a big part of my life. I started writing in journals and writing short stories and bad poetry at a young age. I did it for myself – because I felt compelled to. Writing was my refuge of sorts, a way to express my personal thoughts and feelings. A way to be creative. But my relationship with writing changed significantly when I attended university. The stress and anxiety of writing academic papers and foolishly pinning my self-worth on earning high grades worsened my perfectionist tendencies. …