Posts by Hillary
Ann Patchett on Surviving Creativity’s Core Disappointment
Ann Patchett has many useful things to say about writing in her new essay collection, This is the Story of a Happy Marriage, and in particular about the core creative challenge of surviving the fatal moment when, having finally summoned the courage to bring your vision to life, it immediately disappoints: “Only a few of us…
Read MoreWhat is the biggest barrier standing between you and greater productivity?
In my case, it used to be perfectionism that shut down the creative process before it started. I spent nearly five years writing and rewriting the same novel chapter because I was terrified of having others see it and judge it. Then – as I got less perfectionist – my biggest barrier became time management.…
Read More10 Ways to Seduce a Writer
No, not that way, silly! They’re all fine suggestions, but they missed the best one of all: Buy his/her book!
Read MoreOn The Importance of Going OFF the Internet
Going off the Internet seems a radical act, but for most people it’s essential for creativity. The Internet is inherently and continuously interruptive, and that’s not a good mix with creative work, or productivity in general. In classes, I quote Jonathan Franzen (“It’s doubtful that anyone with an Internet connection at his workplace is writing…
Read MoreWhat Muhammad Ali Can Teach You About Getting More Work Done
“Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.” That famous quote from Muhammad Ali really does captures the spirit and essence of productive, joyful work. Let’s break it down: 1) “Float like a butterfly.” You move lightly and freely around and through your work until you see an aspect of it that inspires you. (Inspiration…
Read MoreJohn Scalzi on Why You Should Never Let Your Reviewers Get You Down
The Inimitable One offers a list of one-star reviews of books that later went on to win science fiction’s celebrated Hugo award. My favorite is this review of Scalzi’s own novel Red Shirts, which actually uses the word “onanistic”: This is an onanistic shallow and very disappointing book. Little or no character development. What should…
Read MoreNew Yorker Cartoonist Shows What to do When You’re Stuck on a Piece
Please check out this wonderful piece by New Yorker cartoonist Drew Dernavich, in which he discusses his creative process for a cartoon. He submitted it in 2007, but it was rejected. At that point, he did NOT do what many perfectionists would do, which is to either: (a) despair, and maybe give up cartooning,…
Read More“Essential Guide to a Better Authorship”
A fantastic review of The 7 Secrets of the Prolific from The Metapsychology Online Reviews: The book constantly reminds the reader that moralistic labels are useless and poisonous. Lightened up by the witty illustrations by Barry Deutsch (just to quote one: the monolith a la 2001: A Space Odyssey vs. a spaghetti snarl) it is…
Read MoreHello Crewel World!
And knitting world, scrapbooking world, decoupage world, etc.! Check out my post on How to Get More Crafting Done in 2014. Many thanks to Lois Winston, author of the fun Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series, for the opportunity to guest blog at Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers.
Read MoreCheck out my BoomerCafe piece!
For BoomerCafe I wrote a piece on how, in my fifties, and in the face of a growing realization of my mortality, I’m finally learning to play defense in terms of my ambitions. All this would be a bummer if I didn’t have so much to be grateful for and defend. Check it out!
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