What does it take to be a writer? The one thing that all writers have in common is very simple: they write. But more than that, a writer writes – no matter what. It seems obvious, but it’s the ‘no matter what’ that causes all the problems.

To be a writer it helps if you have things like talent and imagination, but what you really need are things like discipline, stamina, determination, courage and a willingness to fail. Superlative time management and organisational skills wouldn’t go amiss either.

These things are important because writing is difficult and life is complicated and messy. And to make matters worse, the inside of your head is probably pretty messy too. You may have talent oozing from every finger and a powerful desire to see your words in print, but if you can’t marshal your thoughts when it matters, you’ll never achieve your dream.

You won’t get far if every time you sit down to write, your mind kicks off and distracts you with stuff you don’t need to be thinking about. So if you want to actually get some writing done, you need to master your mind.

How do you do that? I’m so glad you asked!

Thankfully, there’s a solution in the form of mind training.

Unfortunately, mind training doesn’t mean developing telekinetic powers and learning to lift weights with your mind. But it does mean doing the equivalent of some mental heavy lifting – meditation.

And wouldn’t you know it, I’ve just released a book about this very subject. Excuse me while I blurb at you:

Free Your Pen: Mind Training for Writers
59 Slogans to Cure Writer’s Block & Free Your Voice

Free Your Pen is a meditation practice designed to shut down the inner critic and dissolve the fears that block your writing. Based on the Buddhist practice of mind training with slogans, this is a practical guide to freeing your mind from bad habits and emotional blocks. It includes chapters on each of the 59 slogans, plus writing exercises designed to free your pen.

Whether you’re happy with your writing but would like to go deeper, or feel blocked creatively, this book will help you to:

• Free your mind from fear and doubt
• Write courageously with increased self-knowledge
• Discover your authentic writing voice
• Become the writer you were born to be

As a writer, your mind is your most valuable resource, but you tend to take it for granted. You wouldn’t go for a run without warming up, and you wouldn’t run a marathon without training first. Writing is the same. Free Your Pen explores the importance of mind training for writers and gives you the tools you need to take back control of your mind.

When you free your mind, your pen will follow

It’s true, and more importantly, it works! You can find out for yourself here:

Amazon UK / Amazon US / Others

Over the next couple of weeks I’ll be sharing the opening chapters from the book, so stay tuned – or get the book! In the meantime, if you’d like to explore some of the slogans, you can read extracts here.

Read the first extract here: The Importance of Mind Training for Writers