A brain dump is a highly effective way to combat overwhelm, reduce stress, and calm your mind. All it takes is a couple sheets of paper, or a notebook, and a pen. You can brain dump when you’re feeling overwhelmed by a massive task list or when you’re planning a new project.

What’s a Brain Dump

At its most basic, a brain dump is a list of everything that’s inside your mind at any particular moment. Essentially, it’s a form of brainstorming. …

We are our worst critics, plain and simple. We’re too hard on ourselves, believing everything we produce must be perfect.

We need to let go of perfect.

• Reality Check
  Are your expectations realistic? If not, it might be time to reevaluate.
• Show Weakness
  It’s hard, but be vulnerable. Everyone makes mistakes so celebrate yours.
• Reevaluate Success
  Success isn’t a binary yes or no. Embrace the process and remember something is better than nothing.
• Guidelines, not Absolutes
  Ideals for success and accomplishment should be guidelines, not benchmarks. …

The space in which we do our work can have a massive impact on the quality. Many beloved authors had a dedicated space in which they worked. Famously, Roald Dahl converted a shed in his garden into his writing space (and you can go see it!). But how do you create that space if you don’t have a garden shed? Your ideal writing space could be anywhere from a spare room to a corner of your living room to the kitchen table. It’s possible to create a perfect space for writing anywhere.

This list is by no means exhaustive, nor…

We are so busy! There’s always something happening: we’re at work, we’re out with friends, a sibling’s birthday. Hell, many of us even have a side job in addition to our regular ones. The constant hustle and culture of busyness create stress in our lives and without reigning it in, can cause burnout. And when we’re so busy, we neglect the most important person in our lives: ourselves.

Take a step back from what you’re doing and schedule a little time for yourself. I promise you’ll feel better for it.

Get Balanced

I don’t mean yoga, I mean balance your plate. Eating…

Hi, my name’s Leanne and I’m a project hoarder.

At any given time, I usually have 2 or 3 writing projects, and a few freelance projects on the go. I used to suffer from massive overwhelm, get burnt out, miss deadlines, and otherwise freeze up. But this year, I’ve stumbled into a system that actually works to help to keep everything straight, meet deadlines, and even add Medium stories to my already packed writing life.

This system is something I call draft cycling. Much to my dad’s chagrin, it has nothing to do with the Tour de France and everything…

There are a lot of things people think about writers. Very few of them are true, at least in my experiences. I’ve compiled a list of the top five misconceptions people have of writers that I’ve come across.

Writers all want to be teachers

Nope! I’m sure many writers want to become teachers and I enjoy teaching the occasional workshop, but I definitely do not want to be a teacher.

I do, however, believe that educating and mentoring others, particularly new writers, is a responsibility we have as writers. I also believe that this is something that can be accomplished outside a classroom environment.

Writers have no social life

Also not…

I stopped writing while I was in University. I didn’t mean to, but with papers and exams, I didn’t have enough time to write for myself. It’s a pretty common thing that young writers go through. The problem wasn’t that I stopped writing while in school. No, the problem was it took me eight years to pick up a pen again.

Eight years.

It was easy to stop writing. Getting back into it, though, was one of the mentally hardest things I’ve done.

If you’re in a similar situation, I hope you find these strategies helpful enough to get more…

Writers’ groups aren’t for everyone. Those who have found a good group recognize the value it brings to their writers’ toolkit. But how do you find a good writers’ group?

The short answer is trial and error. I’ve been a part of many groups over the years. Some have been good, filled with people who motivated and inspired me to get more writing done. Others, not so much.

When shopping around for a new group, these are a few hallmarks of a good group and things to look for.

Stable Membership/Attendance

I’d argue that the number of members doesn’t matter as much…