Give Yourself a Break Ever seen a toddler race in the Olympics? Yeah, me neither. It’s a cute thought, right? But one we’d never expect in reality. How could a little person, just learning to walk, compete with grown adults, athletes, … Continue reading →

The Secret When you start something new, it’s easy to feel like an idiot. You may stumble and flail, and show your ignorance. It’s true that many veterans may condescend to new people learning the endeavor. If you’re lucky, you’ll … Continue reading →

Give Up Your Goals Here’s a radical idea: give up your goals.  Seriously.  I didn’t say give up writing, but what if we gave up our “finish line”? By definition, that finish line is in the future, whether it be completing … Continue reading →

Puzzling Out Mosaics I stumbled across a beautiful café, featuring the owner’s mosaics. Even the tables were inlaid with her gorgeous work. That’s when I realized the artist had done what I do as a writer: create a variety of different pieces … Continue reading →

Consumers Vs Creators I was chatting with a friend recently, who had begun to paint again after a long absence from her art.  She explained she felt she had been consuming a lot—news, information, social media—and it was getting her down. “I … Continue reading →

Adding Fun to Our Writing I read an article about how a woman, after a frustrating commute in Boston, began a campaign to have the public transit system install googly eyes on its trains.  Googly eyes. On trains.  And it … Continue reading →

Problem Exploration I came across this concept of “problem exploration”. It’s the exact opposite of problem-solving, the default mindset we’re most often taught. It’s about taking the time to examine a problem from all different angles—not with the focus of … Continue reading →

Writing Isn’t JUST Writing Do you ever run out of things to imagine? Yeah, me neither. My mind is always active, thinking up new worlds or new stories or new characters. I have journal after journal after journal of jot … Continue reading →

Find the Magic YOUR Way Back in elementary school, my Grade 5 class put on a play, The King’s Creampuff, in which the Witch of All Witches steals the King’s royal recipe book, causing uproar in the royal kitchen when the … Continue reading →

Write the Unexpected I had a minor “huh” moment recently. I’d washed a flower vase and had left it to dry on the kitchen counter. I’d then taken two eggs, to prepare an omelette. I set them on the drying … Continue reading →