Yes, there is a positive side to LDRs no one is talking about
The year was 2014. I sat in an uncomfortable chair at the airport’s departure hall — my eyes fixated on the big screen.
I watched as the flight to Brussels changed from ‘boarding’ to ‘last call’ until it ceased to be there. The flight’s disappearing act released me from the slumber that had taken over my limbs and woke me up to a bitter reality.
I’d been left behind.
Disturbed by the realization that unfolded before my eyes, I shook the stupor that had taken over me. …
The only real use of social media for rising artists and creators
As content creators, sometimes we all wish things would be a little bit easier.
Most days, I wish Instagram’s algorithm hadn’t shadow banned my content. I wish people would read my articles without having to invest hours or days promoting them. I wish I didn’t need to spread myself too thin across so many social media platforms. I wish these platforms wouldn’t restrict my organic reach whenever I need to take a short “sanity” break.
I think most content creators feel the same way I do. …
A story about how hidden resentment was poisoning my life
We never truly understand our parents until life confronts us with the same choices, obstacles, and doubts our parents had to contend with.
As I dive deep into my thirties and the enigma of motherhood and the end of the fertile period of my life stand before me, I find myself thinking about the silly teenage angst that almost drove my parents insane.
As life baths me with hard choices, I feel my parent’s love stretching from the early days of my childhood. …
But there is a good reason to keep writing anyway
I walk the streets of Milan holding a warm drink in my cold hands. I feel its sweetness perfusing through the air and enveloping me in a bubble of cinnamon, freshly peeled oranges, and fermented grape juice.
My husband is chatting happily with a Spanish couple we just meet in the being of the walking tour. I smile to myself. He has the kind of laughter that creates an irresistible vortex of joy around him. The kind of voice that reminds you of a warm fireplace, Christmas sweets and old stories. …
It’s time to break free from the tyranny of numbers
You spend hours writing your article.
You use every online writing aid you know, then religiously read your article out loud, print it, and read it out loud again.
All you’re missing now is the perfect picture and a punchy version of your title that will make people curious enough to click through.
After 20 failed and miserable attempts, you manage to find the one version that doesn’t sound so terrible in your head.
You stare at your draft, feeling slightly nauseated and unsure. …
What I’ve learned as an introvert, marketer, and writer in the age of social media
The world has become a noisy place
Maybe it is easier now to make a name for yourself as a writer. But there are so many of us, it’s hard to find an audience in the middle of all the creative souls scattering their words to the four winds.
This all seems so awesome in theory.
The shattering of the glass ceiling, the downfall of the middlemen, the easy access to free and powerful means of communication.
There are no obstacles anymore… except for the ones we’ve built for ourselves in this new world.
In the land of opportunities, attention has become the world’s most coveted currency…
The real potential of Instagram remains untapped as new writers fail to understand how to market themselves on this platform
You can find many writers on Instagram if you search for #writersofinstagram, #writingcommunity, and #writerslife among many other hashtags.
Our community is not one of the largest, but it’s definitely eager to keep growing, experimenting and it continues to do so while trying to find its unique visual identity.
But, it was my love for books that brought me to Instagram in the first place.
I started my bookstagram account almost one year ago. At the time I was eager to learn and follow the footsteps of the mega-influencers that populated my feed. …
Experiencing life through different cultural lenses has forever changed how I approach work and life.
As I glance at my empty little flat and feel the weight of the cardboard box on my arms, I’m once again reminded of the cyclic nature of life.
I close the door behind me and I don’t look back.
Instead, I remember sitting on a porch with my childhood friend dreaming about our adult life. “Do you think you’ll stay in Portugal?” she asked me.
“No,” I said. “I don’t think I will.”
It all started with “Bedknobs and Broomsticks.”
I remember being 5 years old, wearing my pink pajamas and sitting on the living room floor as I…
Scarcity can be our greatest and wisest teacher.
11 I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. 12 I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. 13 I can do all this through him who gives me strength. — Philippians 4:11–13 (NIV)
Three weeks ago I was shaking hands with important Professors in front of an audience of colleagues and family…
And what you can do to change that.
Do you find yourself nodding and smiling when somebody you just met throws an outrageous comment at your face?
Are you constantly looking for praise? Do you apologize often?
And every time you do it, do you feel a little less sure about yourself? A little less confident and a little less proud?
Being a people-pleaser is a toxic behavior that spawns from the dark side of empathy.
We become people-pleasers when we mold our actions solely to the wants and needs of others. And we forsake our self-respect.
The problem is: we don’t do it out of love for…
Ana C. Reis, PhD
Microbiologist 🔬 Science Writer by Day 📖 Fantasy & Science Fiction Writer by Night 🐉Traveler 🌍 Web-marketer 💻 Visit My Website www.poweredbybooks.com
