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Perched on a lattice is a tiny bird. It’s familiar but there’s something missing that I can’t quite place, until I do. It’s the hum.  For some reason it’s strange watching this symbol of high energy pause for a few moments. I don’t remember ever seeing a hummingbird that was not in motion before.  It makes … Continue reading Even the hummingbird rests

It seems that part of the struggle that we can have with writing is a subtle, almost undetectable fear of permanence when writing. Questions can come up like: what if this changes? what if this isn't quite right and I want to change it later? What is it's not quite perfect? When our thoughts and ideas … Continue reading Four Steps to Break Through Your Need for Your Writing to be Perfect

I was walking down the hallway and several of my lab mates shared that they really enjoyed the workshop that I just gave them and that they found it really useful. They told me they had never thought about writing that way before. They hadn’t realized that others found it hard too and now they … Continue reading I just can’t believe it – why is that?

Door to door it usually takes me about 13 min to get to my train platform in the morning and my train departs at 616am.  One winter morning, as I turned the key and I looked at the clock on the dash I saw: 603am.  Thoughts started coming up like: There’s no way I can get … Continue reading Timing for the Train

I was sitting in lab meeting after lunch and my mind kept wandering to wanting  something sweet- maybe a cupcake or banana bread or a cookie.  After lab meeting, I walked into the lunch room and there are a plate of leftover cakes and breads from a meeting. I paused.  I know I just spent … Continue reading Are you procrastinating about writing? Try talking to your future self.

In the still, tender moments between "lights out" and dreamland provide space for questions to rise up and out of my five-year-old daughter Maggie like “How does an owl know how to build a nest?” “Well, they probably find a twig and check to see if it works or fits. Maybe it fits, maybe it … Continue reading How to know how long your writing will take when it feels like it will take forever

Last winter, my husband had noticed that I had been sharing progressively worse symptoms of a sinus infection over a couple of weeks and kindly pointed out to me that maybe I should go to the doctor the next day. My response was a sigh, followed by the abrupt, defensive statements: I don’t have time. … Continue reading Your most important resource

Have you been chasing after something--maybe it was research result, or getting your MSc or PhD, or a grant or a journal that you wanted to get published in...once you have completed it, how does that feel? Does the feeling last or does it fade faster than you expected? What I hear from my clients … Continue reading Letting Go of the Chase

Have you ever wondered why it seems like you need a lot of time to get into the groove of writing? You are not alone. I have often heard researchers say that it takes at least an hour or more to “get into” the mood for writing. This is part of why it feels like … Continue reading Get Started Writing with More Ease