The Writer's Workout

As writers, we all aspire to have people read the words we have so carefully crafted, don’t we? Well, I suppose there are some who write and hide their work in desktop folders or in repurposed shoeboxes buried deep within their closets, never meant for the public eye. But, hey, if you’re perusing this site—which means you have at least a marginal interest in improving your craft—you likely don’t fall into that second category. We might choose to write for a myriad of reasons

As has been noted in previous posts, I am fairly new to the neurodivergent world. I have ADHD and OCD but didn’t know these conditions are called neurodivergence. Apparently, self-discovery is a never-ending process! That said, since starting this blog series—and the research that comes with such an endeavor—I have received quite an education about neurodivergence. Some terms were new to me (even if the symptoms and challenges associated with them were not), such as executive

It’s been said that love and hate are two sides of the same coin. Both are intense emotions. Both are characterized by passion. They even activate similar areas of the brain. But they don’t mean the same thing, of course. “Love” reflects feelings of deep affection or pleasure in doing something, while “hate” suggests an equal level of animosity. So this begs the question: Is it possible to experience these seemingly conflicting feelings at the same time? If you’re neurodiver

The advice on writing routines is endless and contradictory. Many aspiring novelists will be familiar with the idea that you must write every single day, preferably at the same time of day, and hit the same word count. Spend some time digging for it and you will surely find the opposite advice too—don’t force yourself to write when you don’t feel like it because if you don’t like doing it, you won’t do it at all. Contradictory advice becomes frustrating when you feel like yo

Imagine yourself sitting at your computer late one evening, curled up in a blanket, soft ambient music playing alongside a burning candle and with nothing but uninterrupted time to write. The conditions are perfect. The words should flow from your hands to your manuscript easily. But there’s one problem: you’re hit with an intense writer’s block that is so debilitating, you end up doom scrolling for hours on the internet instead. And your manuscript remains unchanged. And i

Sometimes the universe is a kind and generous place, handing us a word so perfect it demands our reverence. May I present to you… SPUDDLE . “Spuddle” is a verb from the 17th century meaning “to work feebly or ineffectively, often because your mind is elsewhere or you haven’t quite woken up yet.” Another definition puts it this way: “to be extremely busy whilst achieving absolutely nothing.” I don’t believe anything has ever resonated with me more. While this meaning of the wo

It seems that neurodivergence has been trending lately. Which is interesting because being neurodivergent isn’t exactly a new thing. But like many human dimensions that have existed for centuries, we didn’t always have a name for it. I don’t claim to be an expert on the history of the term, but a cursory internet search suggests the word “neurodivergent” has been around for only 15 or so years. Then in 2020, the coronavirus pandemic thrust the term into the limelight as iso