It hasn’t taken long for me to settle into life in Boston. In fact, it has been surprisingly easy – I have great roommates, an amazing apartment, possibly the best job I could have hoped for, and a new place to explore. All of these things have made my transition pretty painless. In many ways,… Continue reading A New Normal
Blog
An Attitude of Adventure
“You’re moving all the way to Boston?” It’s the first thing people say, but it’s often followed by something else. “It’s cold there.” “I hope you’re ready for the snow.” “Boston’s expensive!” And they’re right, Boston is full of things I’m unfamiliar with, from the cold to Dunkin’ Donuts. But rather than see those as… Continue reading An Attitude of Adventure
Moving Forward When You Aren’t Sure Where You’re Going
Happy 2016! Like most years, this one began with a sense of newness. But this isn’t just the “I’m going to write every day” kind of New Year. This year it’s more like “I’m going to get a job and move to a new city and probably change my whole lifestyle.” It’s made me realize that… Continue reading Moving Forward When You Aren’t Sure Where You’re Going
Embracing the Wiki Loop
“Wiki loop” is one of those phrases that has popped up to describe a phenomenon we’ve all experienced: getting stuck reading endless Wikipedia articles. If you’re like me, you may wonder why this could ever be considered a bad thing. But I guess some people have better things to do on Friday nights than click through… Continue reading Embracing the Wiki Loop
Getting to Know Your Main Character
This is my favorite part of writing. Your main character will make or break your story, and unfortunately they will not just appear from your head fully-formed, Athena-style. That is why this getting-to-know-you stage is arguably the most important part of writing. If you’re not sure what I mean by “getting to know” your main character,… Continue reading Getting to Know Your Main Character
The Creating Process
Creating a story is like creating anything else. It takes time, some reflection, and a little bit of improvisation. Of course, like anything, your story might not exactly come out right the first time. The good thing is that it’s easier to rewrite a sentence than it is to fix a painting or remodel a… Continue reading The Creating Process
Deciding Not to Settle: A Writer’s Job Search
A few weeks ago I went to the career fair and left with a bag full of trinkets, a free shirt from a company that told me they didn’t have any jobs for me, and whole lot of questions. Needless to say, it wasn’t particularly fruitful. I would even go so far as to say… Continue reading Deciding Not to Settle: A Writer’s Job Search
What Makes a Storyteller
I will admit that I am often that person who tells a story that garners absolutely no reaction. It’s frustrating, and usually embarrassing, especially when the story is about something that means a lot to me. So why is it that our stories fall flat, whether they’re oral or written down? What makes a good story,… Continue reading What Makes a Storyteller
Confidence: A Writer’s BFF
Sometimes it’s hard to have confidence in words, even when they come from your own brain. We write them down, question them, write them again. Then we stare at them, wondering if they say what we want them too. It’s only second nature, but it’s also damaging when we don’t trust our words. I’ve been… Continue reading Confidence: A Writer’s BFF
Trusting the Workshop
We tend to think of writing as a personal, internal experience. Thought to paper, right? And that idea is fine until someone actually reads your work. Then you have to think about what your writing means, its relationship to reality, what people think of it–all the stuff you would rather avoid while just continuing to write. I… Continue reading Trusting the Workshop