If you write about complicated topics, start listening to nonfiction podcasts—popular ones about science, the economy, or current events. The best podcasters know how to keep an audience’s attention while explaining abstract concepts. Since the pandemic started, months, I’ve become a loyal, consistent listener of NPR’s Planet Money podcast. Why? Because it does an excellent […]
How Nonfiction Writers Can Use Their Powers for Good
What responsibilities do nonfiction writers have in a time of violent social unrest, soaring inequality, and widespread suffering? What can you do to make a difference? I’m not asking what you can do as an individual: as a member of your community, a citizen, a neighbor, a person of faith, a parent or child, or any […]
Adopting a Writing Mindset
Immersing yourself in a writing project changes the way you see the world around you. It shifts you into a writing mindset.
Finding Your Pace When Writing
In many of life’s major, endurance-related endeavors, pacing is the difference between success and burnout, achievement and frustration. Start a marathon at a sprint, and you may enjoy an early lead but run out of steam halfway through. Start too slowly, and everyone may have gone home by the time you reach the finish line. […]
How to Take a Meaningful Pause
The events of the past few weeks have made many people re-assess the lives they were leading before the pandemic. How about you? Do you marvel at how you spent your time when there were no restrictions on your movements? Do you see your relationships with others differently now? If you are not working on […]
Navigating the Need for Closure: Writing Lessons
Writing Lessons from the Coronavirus Pandemic Even while most of us are shut at home, we’re stretching our ability to adapt to changing realities and fluid public health situations. There’s so much we do not know yet about the virus or how to handle it. Advice that seemed solid four weeks ago now appears quaint […]