058: A Mindfulness Manifesto for Writers

Hello Word Nerds! Thanks for joining me today. Man, it's been a while since I've done a solo show. It feels like it's been forever since I've had a chance to chat with you. We’ve been doing so many awesome interviews, and we have a bunch more coming up, but today I felt like it was time to have more of a heart-to-heart.

In this episode, I've decided to share some mindfulness tips that turned my approach to writing on its head. I call this my Mindfulness Manifesto for Writers.

This was a very tough episode for me. I had been resisting the idea for a while. You see, I’m very pragmatic and my creative process is very linear. Plus (how do I put this nicely) I always felt like the whole idea of mindfulness, of meditation, all that mind/heart/soul was a little to “woo woo” for me.

The thing is, being intentional about where your thoughts go is really important to writing. This skill is the essence of mindfulness and challenging myself to be open to it has changed my writing for the better.

I used to really hate meditation. I thought that sitting and breathing and clearing my mind was so boring. What I didn’t really realize then was that mindfulness is more about being present, about not thinking about what is coming or what has passed (I call this time travelling). And being fully present can be exciting. Especially when you’ve got a lot going on.

To learn more about my mindfulness manifesto for writers plus the show notes, head on over here: DIYMFA.com/058