a illustration of the female reproductive organs in an abstract, floral way.

Working with your Feminine Cycle to Boost Creativity

The feminine cycle is a creative superpower! It’s true. It’s just centuries of patriarchy that have repressed this. Think about all the different slang used instead of saying truthful terms like period or menstruating. Equally, consider all the slang words attributed to the vulva and vagina. Growing up, I doubt few people called them that. …

a photograph of a box of paints in tubes, a plant, brushes and paper.

How to be creative every day (without adding anything new to your routine)

I often hear people say they lack any time to be creative. Even I sometimes reach the end of the day dejected because I never found the time to sit and write. Recently, I felt especially miserable at how much I have neglected my art. Many creatives, entrepreneurs and influences encourage us to be creative …

Books stacked so there is a circular window opening where a woman with dark hair is reading a book through the aperture.

Competitive Reading

All right, I’ll admit it. I am totally guilty of setting myself a reading challenge on Goodreads. This year, I’ve lowered the bar to eighteen. In previous years, I aimed for fifty-two; a book a week. I achieved it (once, I think). Last year, I didn’t. I noticed my anxiety surge because it was November, …

Why I’m Not Participating in Camp NaNoWriMo.

April heralds the first Camp NaNoWriMo for 2023, and I’m giving it a miss. Why? Because, personally, NaNoWriMo never works for me. The Deadline I’m not against deadlines. I enjoy the adrenaline buzz those short periods of stress can propel me to achieve. Except, it doesn’t work like that with my writing methods, and combined …

Seascape Moody Sky Upton Bude Cornwall A empty bench is on the cliff looking out on a stormy sky.

The solitude life of a writer

For me, writing is a lonely activity. It’s paradoxical to think I spend long periods in solitude, writing about made-up people and their social interactions with other made-up people. Am I missing out on experiencing interactions with real people? Or am I learning more about myself and the human condition through the writing process? Imagination …

Photograph of a right hand holding a pen over a note book beside a laptop. There are words written on the wall in the background, "Life is a Journey, enjoy it."

Using your editing skills to check in on your mental health and rewrite your own story

Our ego is similar to a fictional story. It is our perception of ourselves in our reality. We write out the parts we feel do not matter to the overall story, and anything which doesn’t align with the narrative is skewed or ignored.  This article is about taking a step back and viewing our lives …

A close up of a woman with a book in her lap.

How to read books for free (which aren’t detrimental to the author)

Despite the likes of Amazon, Waterstones and big supermarket chains demanding massive discounts on bestselling, frontlist titles (which might be good from a reader’s point of view but not that of the author) the cost of living crisis means many of us cannot buy the books we would want to. Believe me, I would have …