Welcome to Mind+Craft
Motivation for your writing craft, tidbits about personal growth, and sprinkles of joy.
This is me on one of my most serene trips. I thought to include it to set the vibe of this newsletter. A sunshiny disposition, mixed with shadows and seas of opportunity ahead.
I took a ferry off the coast of Australia to Kangaroo Island. I was alone, with no phone to distract me, and felt completely disconnected from the world. I was finally able to listen to my own thoughts and be present. I highly recommend doing this at least once in your life.
The Power of Solitude:
I’ve been thinking and writing about this lately. Solitude is so important for any creative. Especially for writers. If you feel like you don’t have enough ideas to write about. Schedule some alone time with no distractions and observe your thoughts. Thank me later.
This Weeks Writing Tidbits:
Book recommendation: Bird by Bird by Annie Lamott.
What I learned: You need to break your writing project down into small chunks and focus on one at a time. Don’t overwhelm yourself.
Search for and try to delete these words in anything you write: Just, so, really, very. It will make your writer instantly crisper.
What I’m Reading:
The Art of Thinking Clearly by Rolf Dobelli
This is an interesting read. It has about 99 short chapters which go over every possible way the human thinking process can be clouded. Since the chapters are short, it’s an easy book to pick up and put down multiple times during the day. See a quote from this book at the bottom.
Will by Will Smith and Mark Manson:
This has been a very interesting read so far. Will Smith has presented himself in a raw and vulnerable way. He calls himself a coward and narrates his journey to stardom. I have reached the part where he is offered a part in ‘Fresh Prince of Belair’. It’s about to get juicy.
Favorite Quote This Week:
‘Self-imposed deadlines will work only if the task is broken down step-by-step, with each part assigned its own due date. For this reason, nebulous New Year’s resolutions are doomed to fail. So get over yourself.” — The Art of Thinking Clearly by Rolf Dobelli