It’s easy to measure our level of success by arranging our milestones in rank order. A job promotion here, a half-marathon there, maybe a new record for sales or articles published in a month. With our most impressive highlights, we map out a picturesque mosaic. While these are necessary to…
Posts published in “Creativity”
The goal of writing shouldn’t be to make your reader feel bad about having a smaller vocabulary than you. Good writing shouldn’t demand that the reader have a dictionary on hand just to read your sentences. Making the reader feel as if they are unqualified to read your writing is exactly…
If you’re reading this, you’re likely here to improve as a writer. If you’re looking to improve as a writer, it’s likely you write. Maybe you write for a living, maybe just as a hobby. Either way, if you write, it’s likely that you also edit. Editing is necessary for…
I have lived abroad in Southeast Asia nearly one full year now. People from home — balmy, halcyon California — still ask me what I’ve learned from leaving the country after graduation. Many of these conversations revolve around potential regrets (I have none) and decisions I would change if I could (also zilch here).…
Despite the fantastical landscapes and stories they craft, writers are people too. And writers, like non-writers, enjoy when others applaud their intelligence and wit. Writing isn’t done for the compliments, though human vanity takes them into consideration nonetheless. One way to accrue praise as a writer is through language. Language and…
People often talk about flow in writing. When the flow is flowing, creativity is available in full force. Writing feels good and happens naturally. Time passes quickly. Meals and restroom breaks are forgotten. Excessive force isn’t necessary. Sentences are pieced together almost unconsciously; meaning drips from each written syllable. Things process smoothly. There is a predictable rhythm and regularity…