Small Move, Big Change by Caroline Arnold

Did you set a resolution in January that has yet to pan out? Good news: you’re not alone. Great news: this book might help you get back on track. Arnold, Caroline. Small Move, Big Change: Using Microresolutions to Transform Your Life Permanently. New York: Viking, 2014. Print. Summary: Arnold unpacks a methodology for setting teeny-tiny… Continue reading Small Move, Big Change by Caroline Arnold

When the Sharks Gather

When the Sharks Gather: How Rituals Can Make Us Better Writers Before I write, there’s this little thing that I do. Call it a ritual. I do it the same way every time. And according to neuroscience research, my little ritual is actually priming my brain to deliver a focused and confident writing session. Here’s… Continue reading When the Sharks Gather

The Brain’s Way of Healing by Norman Doidge

Doidge, Norman. The Brain’s Way of Healing: Remarkable Discoveries and Recoveries from the Frontiers of Neuroplasticity. New York: Viking, 2015. Print. Genre: Nonfiction (although don’t be surprised if you often think you’re reading scifi!) Summary: Imagination heals chronic pain. Meditation reverses blindness. Walking stops the onset of Parkinson’s. Red LED lights heal arthritis or physical disabilities caused… Continue reading The Brain’s Way of Healing by Norman Doidge

Stoke the Soul Fires

    You see that up there? White space. Blank, empty, open page. Writers face (and curse) that every day. “What?” The vast white screen chins at us. Aggressive. Challenging. Mocking. What are we going to put on it? What ideas, characters, settings, emotions are we daring to scrawl on that pristine open void? It’s… Continue reading Stoke the Soul Fires

The Art of Smart: Creativity Proves Good for Growing Brains and Brains Growing Older

Recently, I published an article with the Durango Telegraph about recent studies in neuroscience showing how the brain definitely benefits from doing art. Singing, dancing, painting, writing, riffing, you name it! Art stimulates various regions of the young brain, helping it mature, while staving off the atrophy of old age. And, as an added bonus,… Continue reading The Art of Smart: Creativity Proves Good for Growing Brains and Brains Growing Older