We’ve just finished the Write Without the Fight FREE 5-day Challenge, and this week, the fun continues, but over on Zoom. We have three FREE writing sessions coming up this week – a chance to apply some of the Creativity Enhancing tools we’ve learned.
- Sunday, May 15, 11-12pm (all times PACIFIC time)
- Tuesday, May 18, 3-4pm
- Thursday, May 20, 4-5pm
Times were chosen to accommodate varying time zones, and work schedules. I hope at least one of the times works for you. Come and write! For the Zoom link, check in the FB group, Write Without the Fight (ask to join if you haven’t already.) Or reply to this email – at least an hour before the start time. (I cannot see emails during the writing session!)
This is my tiny movement to get writers writing!
Now’s also the best time to join the Creative Mastery Class which starts on Monday, May 24th. Get writing. This week in one-hour free sessions, and continue with the group, every day for 5 weeks. When you join this class, you’ll write.
What Stops you from Writing?
For some of us, there’s a longing. A calling. A need to write. And we fall short.
- We stay busy and never write
- We start things and don’t finish
- We write and don’t sell
- We thwart our desire to write with compulsions – like overeating, drinking, overthinking, or shopping
You probably wouldn’t even call what you have “writer’s block.” Bec it is so blocked, so back-burnered that you think of it more as a silly notion that comes to mind, periodically. Do you think you should write a book or screenplay? Do you “scribble” and never do anything with your work? Do you work on other people’s ideas and wish you could get to yours?
If you wish to be a writer, write.
That sentiment was the mantra of my youth. I wanted to write, and for some reason, maybe I thought I needed permission, or a writing job that validated that desire. When I complained (and I did) people said If you wanna write, write. At the time, I didn’t know it was the advice of Epictetus an ancient Greek philosopher, and I thought they were being kind of mean, like saying “shut up, go away, and just write.” But now my perspective on it is different. Its meaning is simpler, kinder. Just write. Find a way to get writing and keep writing, and your voice will develop. It was an advice for indulging your devotion, not a smack-down.
If you wish to write, and you aren’t writing, there’s probably a reason, NOT linked to your talent or lack thereof. And not linked to procrastination.
It’s likely the mismatch between your creative strengths and where you are in the creative process.
You’re shutting down, without realizing it, and judging yourself (harshly) for not being able to do what “real” writers seem to be able to do. And “just write” isn’t sufficient advice.
If you consider yourself a “writer” at heart, but you just don’t get to the work that matters to you. Or you get it started and it stalls…. and stalls…. then help yourself out.
Join the 5-week Creative Mastery Class, starting Monday, May 24th. We will write together, daily. We give you three professional creativity assessments so you can get a grip on who you are creatively, and give you proven tools to get you through the parts that usually stall you. And after 5-weeks, you get to read 7 minutes of your work for a live audience. (on Zoom.)
WE WRITERS NEED THIS INFORMATION. We are suffering in the dark, when there’s a whole branch of psychology dedicated to helping people create better. I want to share that research and knowledge with the people I care about (oh, that’s you, btw.) Register now. You’ll be glad you did. It’s a firehose of information – a really good one. And you’ll be writing – alot – before you know it.
Here’s what people say about this 5-week class. Sign up here.
“I thought I’d learn about writing in this class, but I really learned about myself. That, along with the daily dedicated group writing time, was just what I needed to break free from the stranglehold of writer’s block I’d been experiencing. I wrote more in the five weeks of the class than I had in the previous nine months, and my good habits and enthusiasm are still in place weeks after the final class. I highly recommend Julia Roberts and her unique program for any writer!” – Laurie O’Connor Stephans
“Great class! Worth the time!” – Kathleen Frances Cosgrove
“[The Creative Mastery Course] was, in fact, a major help. It provided structure, insight into writing issues, and impetus to keep writing. Further, at the time I took it, it gave way to focus on writing. That was new to me. That focus has lasted. In and of itself, that was and remains a gigantic gift.” – Dean Landsman
“Julia, Thank you for sharing your knowledge. I have grown so much from your input. I’m so glad I have you in my life and hopefully soon an entire community will be benefiting from your knowledge too. 
” – Joanne Hall Scalf
What people say about the Creative Selfie (part of the 5-week Creative Mastery Class)
“It was really exciting, and I learned a whole lot. I realized that instead of playing to my strengths, I beat myself up about my weaknesses. Something shifted. I came away with a different appreciation for my strengths and a better understanding of my weaknesses and what to do about that, how to approach projects differently.” – Maria Archer
“Diagnostic is a key word. Taking the test was fun. But it wasn’t until you gave the results and we went over them together that I could see how I could compensate for some of my deficiencies. Okay I might have this issue, but who do I know that can balance that tendency for me.
I loved hearing what my main drivers are. It gave me a little checklist for how to make decisions going forward.” – Liza Dawson