The Alchemy of Wisdom

As you live—and as you write—you are in a perpetual state of transformation. You are not the same person you were five years ago…you’re not even the same person we were five hours ago. You’ve had life-changing events. You’ve had life-changing thoughts. You decided to...

Word Mandalas

We write, we collect words, we move forward. We build a portfolio word by word, piece by piece. This time, however, let’s veer off in a new direction. Instead of thinking of our words as inviolate, start thinking of them as ephemeral. And when I say this I don’t...

High Flying Writing (Without a Net)

I enjoy when pithy sayings impart big knowledge. I like when they get me to think. Most quotes and aphorisms meander in and out of my consciousness. But one quote sticks with me: “Leap, and the net will appear.” It’s generally attributed to John Burroughs, but...

Siren Song of The New

I’ve been thinking about the evolution of writing tools over the course of my career. With the dizzying array of programs, apps, and web-sites, writers have unprecedented access to tools, training, and research. Technology has fundamentally changed the way we...

On Creativity

I participated in a writing workshop a few years back. One of the ice-breaker activities was the assignment: think about creativity. Specifically, we considered these three questions: In your own words, define creativity. Where does it come from? How does it work? I...