“Part one: Neglect everything else” is good advice for a good life
In the course of researching the lives of really productive, creative people, I've found that one they invariably do is strip their lives down to a couple essential
Stephen King on writing as “creative sleep”
One of the arguments I'm building in the rest project is that for creative people, work and rest are not opposites, but partners. We think of rest as
Ray Bradbury on the muse, and ten years of practice
Of all the writers I know, Ray Bradbury is probably the most eloquent proponent of the idea that inspiration is unbiddable and uncontrollable, that his stories came from
“Do what you love” is terrible advice
Is there a more common piece of career advice today than “do what you love?” I’ve heard it for ages, and I certainly think that being in a
“The reality is: Things never clear up”
Joli Jensen, a University of Tulsa professor who leads writing workshops for academics, has some sound practical advice about scheduling time for writing: One of the most widespread myths
“I was determined to rebrand myself as a digital copywriter”
Ever since I finished my last book The Distraction Addiction, I’ve been thinking about the economics of creative work, and the whole question of how you can do
Phyllis Rose on the lives of writers
From Phyllis Rose’s 2013 American Scholar essay, "Examined Lives:" Writers’ lives seem interesting after the fact because writers have irradiated and transformed their own experience. But there is
“I discovered me in the library:” Ray Bradbury
The Paris Review has a fantastic series of interviews with authors and poets. This one with Ray Bradbury is great: I discovered me in the library. I went to find me in
C. S. Lewis
In Surprised by Joy, C. S. Lewis describes his time living in Great Bookham with William Kirkpatrick, a former school headmaster who tutored students preparing for university entrance
“Being a writer can’t be treated like it’s a job”
I think it’s fair to say that unless you’re an academic*, everyone who writes a book hopes that it’ll do well enough for them to start writing full-time.