ARE YOU MISTYPED? Many ENFJs and ESFJs on the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator are mistyped or struggle to identify the differences between these related personality types outside stereotyped YouTube parodies and online quizzes that don’t take into account tertiary cognitive function. Too often, they assume an ENFJ is deep; an ESFJ paddles in the shallows.  I propose a better way […]

BOOK DEVELOPMENT: THE MINDSET PIECE  When we build your book together in #WRITTEN, The Writing Cycle’s 4-Month One-on-One Coaching Program, I first emphasize the importance of mindset work.  This is the piece many writers skip when they set out to go from concept to development. Of course, you need to be passionate about an idea. […]

As a young writer, I assumed everyone had a process similar to my own. It was only in an MFA that it dawned on me most writers do not work the way I do. This distinction increased starkly once outside an academic environment. Bestselling guides advocated following concrete rules, and, above all, chasing market trends. Community critique groups […]

What element is most important when writing a novel or memoir? In ten years teaching creative writing, this is the question I’m most frequently asked. Writers want to know, is it plot? Character? Subject matter? I insist it’s none of the above. The most important element of craft is voice, and the most valuable asset a […]