How I Plan My Week

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I call it the Sunday Slay.

That’s my name for the hour that I spend each Sunday meticulously planning the week ahead and it’s one of the ways I manage to juggle a full-time teaching schedule with writing for several publications, running See Jane Write, exercising, and trying to have a social life.

Here’s how you too can use Sunday to can set yourself up to slay the week ahead.  (more…)

7 Ways to Beat Writer’s Block

Writing is a practice. Just as athletes have to practice to get better at their sport, we writers must practice to get better at our craft.

It was in Natalie Goldberg’s book Writing Down the Bones that I first saw this comparison made and the analogy has moved me ever since, especially because I’m a runner. I’m a very slow runner, but a runner, nonetheless, and whenever I’m running a race or training for one I’m also always thinking about writing. Lately, I’ve decided to dig a little deeper with this analogy between writing and running.

Runners train not just to get faster, but also to get stronger. Runners train to prevent injury. So, I started thinking, how can we writer’s train to prevent the injury of writer’s block?

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Why You Need an Elevator Pitch for Your Book

Earlier this week I finally sent my book off to my editor. During the process of writing my book there have been times when I have felt it was literally, physically fighting me. My body was sore. I found bruises and scratches on my body I couldn’t explain and I was always so tired. Jacob wrestled with an angel. I wrestled with words.

One day while taking a walk with my husband Edward he asked, “What is your book about exactly? I’ve been trying to tell people but I can’t. I don’t have an elevator pitch.”

The problem was I didn’t either.

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