perfectionism
Keep writing
The five-minute rule for restarting a stalled draft
Your draft has been sitting for weeks and the guilt is getting heavier than the plot. Here's the smallest possible way back in: open it, write five minutes, stop.5 min read
Keep writing
What to do when you stop believing in your own book
Mid-draft doubt feels like the truth about your book. Usually it's proximity, not evidence. Here's how to tell the difference and get perspective without a rewrite.5 min read
Keep writing
The plateau every long draft hits, and how to write through it
Your project stalled somewhere in the middle, and that's not proof it's a bad book. Here's why the flat stretch happens, and how to keep moving anyway.4 min read
Craft
The case for writing a bad first draft
Perfectionism doesn't fail novels for lack of talent. It fails them by revising sentence three before sentence four exists. The two jobs have to stay separate.4 min read