The most useful textbook & academic writing posts of the week: May 21, 2015

Undoubtedly your semester has either ended or is very rapidly coming to an end. Will you take a small break from your writing? Time to unwind and focus on something else like family or vacation? This week I came to a revelation about writing and how much writing is like this favorite quote of mine, “Fitness is a journey, not a destination.” Now replace the word ‘fitness’ with ‘writing’.

Become a more productive writer: 5 Tips from authors

Productivity is key for any writer looking to stay on track and complete their writing project on time. These authors share five tips to help you become a more productive writer:

1. Jump-start the process instead of staring at a blank screen or page.

“Like stretching before exercise, I start my writing day with a heavy edit and rewrite of my previous day’s work. That seamlessly catapults me into today’s writing.” – Jerry Jenkins


Life’s labyrinth: Honoring your accomplishments

It is the time between late spring and early summer. A male cardinal crunches on sunflower seeds at the feeder, the leaves on the tall trees along the creek behind my house are bright green, and purple martins dip and sway high in the sky that is the blue color of my Irish grandmother’s eyes.

All of life—nature, animals, weather, plants and people—have their cycles and their seasons. When we learn to embrace this instead of fighting it, denying it, or running from it, then we can learn to live in balance and beauty.

Here we are at the end of the academic calendar—and this is a great time to learn how to go to the center of the labyrinth, find wisdom, and come back out again.