Nothing makes me happier than when people tell me their own stories of small. Yesterday, after a book party, a woman approached. “Would you mind if I told you a small story?” she asked. Would I mind? I’d be thrilled! “My name is Mary,” she …
Many of the writers I work with aren’t aware of just how much the environment in which they write affects their facing the blank page. I learned this lesson accidently, when we needed my study for my step-daughter’s bedroom, and Stephen created a studio for …
I’m in good company when I see and think small. Among my fellow small enthusiasts: Stendhal: “A very small degree of hope is sufficient to cause the birth of love.” Aeschylus: “From a small seed, a mighty trunk may grow.” Lao Tzu: “The journey of …
While limiting their writing time to 15 minutes helps many writers face the blank page, it doesn’t work for others. Even if they give themselves permission to write for only five minutes, some writers cannot sit down and begin. Something else—a phone call, a chore, …
I’m just back from a week-long writers’ conference on Ambergris Caye, in Belize, where I taught for a week. The morning after I read from my new book, “Small: The Little We Need for Happiness,” two of the writers in my workshop presented me with …
Starting a New Piece. Writers have been writing about the blank page for centuries. Mainly about its terrors. Few artists, if any, anticipate with relish beginning anew, whether it be a piece of writing, a painting, or a musical composition. Facing a pure white canvas, …
I picked up a book called “Rewiring the Brain” by Rick Hanson at my acupuncturist’s the other day. My own book “Small” is really about happiness, I thought. “This book might be relevant.” I’m glad I didn’t read this before I wrote “Small. I might …
Recently I met a woman for coffee. WE didn’t know each other, but she wanted a signed copy of my book. I usually say no to this sort of encounter. I’m busy with my clients and my own writing, and prefer to keep my free …
When I picked her up from school on Tuesday, my six-and-a-half-year-old granddaughter told me she didn’t feel good. After we arrived home, I touched her forehead. It was warm. “I think you have a fever,” I told her. I offered her a snack and a …
For well over a month, each time we met, one of my clients repeated that he was almost ready to begin writing. “I’ve got just about another week or so of thinking this through, before my writing will really take off,” he kept assuring me. …