A look at the economic and behavioral implications of this question for kids. — “I can’t wait to go to college,” my ten 10-year-old announced one afternoon on our way to soccer practice. “Why is that?” I asked. “Because then I won’t have screentime. I’ll play video games as long as I want.” My heart sank. It was not the answer I wanted to…

So we must set boundaries until their brains are fully developed. — Let’s face it, setting limits on our kids’ tech use is tough. And it certainly causes conflict. Parents often rationalize handing over screens to kids because they think this will help them learn to moderate screen use. But it doesn’t. In theory this sounds like a good idea, but kids…

Because too much of a good thing may throw off our pleasure pain balance — The post hit a nerve. By the time I read it in a popular parenting and technology group there were 457 comments and 634 reactions. A frustrated dad had tapped into a concern shared by parents around the world. This is his post (republished with permission): Two of my biggest…

Why Screen Time Limits May Not Be the Best Guide for Children’s Media Usage — As we finish 361 days of online learning my 7 and 10-year-old sons have become experts at choosing virtual backgrounds, customizing cursors, creating clever screen names, and conducting entire Zoom chats with emojis. They’ve also experienced the challenges of staying focused while online. My eldest quickly discovered it was possible…

It’s time to make the news boring again — “After all, we are in the entertainment business.” — Rupert Murdoch Two years ago, I was living in the United Kingdom when I got notification it was time for my routine visit to the women’s doctor. When I arrived at the doctor’s office, I dressed in my disposable gown and…

Design your writing journey to reward incremental progress — A professional writer is an amateur who didn’t quit. — Richard Bach When I completed the first draft of my middle grade fantasy I knew it needed some work, but I still loved the plot and hoped someone would recognize its promise. Eagerly, I sent it to a literary consultant…

When you focus, you’ll take advantage of momentum — “I don’t care how much power, brilliance or energy you have, if you don’t harness it and focus on a specific target, and hold it there you’re never going to accomplish as much as your ability warrants.” — Zig Ziglar Have you ever experienced the frazzled feeling of having too…

And how to find the motivation to keep going after a rejection — We’ve all heard J.K. Rowling’s rags-to-riches story or Stephen King’s account of hanging all his rejection letters on a nail in his wall until the nail would no longer support the weight of the letters (then he hung them on a spike). But did you know Herman Melville was turned…

Beware of ‘dud action’ in narrative beats — During the SCBWI Summer Spectacular I eagerly watched Deborah Halverson’s digital workshop, “Submissions Studio: Writing Queries, Strategizing Submissions, and Ten Ways to Translate ‘No’ to ‘Yes.’” After all, Deborah Halverson was an editor at Harcourt Brace before she became an award-winning author in her own right. She also founded the…