New Podcast!
Check out Wise & Shine’s new podcast. In our latest episode, I talk with Wynne Leon about “Finding My Father’s Faith,” her memoir. Enjoy! Continue reading New Podcast!
Tag: Writing
Piecing Together My Thanks
I realise that writing a book is like doing a giant jigsaw puzzle. Except you have to make the pieces first. You make the pieces and then work out where they go. You move them around until everything just sort of clicks into place. Then you flesh out the spaces in between. The hardest part for me is discarding the pieces that don’t fit. That’s … Continue reading Piecing Together My Thanks
Month In Review
We’ve been working hard to mold Wise & Shine into a community for readers and writers. This summary post is intended to provide a peek into the collaborative efforts and other content you may have missed. Please sign up for the newsletter to get information on content and contests. Don’t Miss These Posts Work and Life: The Elephant In the Cockpit AP2 writes a moving … Continue reading Month In Review
The Wise & Shine Podcast: Coming Attractions
If you’re a regular reader, you know I’ve been posting recently about the new Wise & Shine podcast. We’ve published four episodes, and I’m working hard to plan and record others. Our goal is to begin posting a new episode each Tuesday. I’d like to preview a few upcoming episodes. This weekend, I’ll be talking with Wynne Leon, one of our writers about two topics. … Continue reading The Wise & Shine Podcast: Coming Attractions
A Radical Idea. (I’m Going To Write a Book.)
Just imagine, you’re sat fat, dumb and happy when BAM! Your engine shits itself. (And so do you.) Suddenly you’re forced to divert. You need to get on the ground pronto! Before you know it, there you are. Grounded with a bum engine – a million miles from the original destination you had in mind. So, you find yourself sat around in your underpants on … Continue reading A Radical Idea. (I’m Going To Write a Book.)
The Horizons of Meaning
In search of meaning in life Continue reading The Horizons of Meaning
Building the Muscular Mind (Installment Two)
I apologize for the lateness of posting this. I had an unexpectedly hard time finishing the follow-up to my first installment. I actually completed it more than a week ago, but I didn’t feel good about what I’d written. It felt like the tone was all wrong. I was being too strident and too dark, so I ended of scrapping the entire first draft and … Continue reading Building the Muscular Mind (Installment Two)
HOW TO DECLUTTER
Salaam aleikum! Last time I wrote to this beautiful audience we were pointlessly overthinking. A lot has happened since then. For starters, we just concluded a protracted general elections in my home country Kenya. This event takes place every five years here and is one of the most mentally and emotionally gruelling periods. Away from the ballot, I have lost some opportunities and gained others. … Continue reading HOW TO DECLUTTER
I’m Back
When Micheal Jordan returned from the NBA after an extended hiatus his publicity manager was unsure how they should announce the news. So, he wrote a number of press releases for Micheal to choose from. But Jordan didn’t like any of them. He said, “I’ll do it myself.” before picking up a pen and writing down the following message, “I’m back.” That was it. The … Continue reading I’m Back
Adding Innovation to Grand Theatrical Tradition
In March 2020 when Seattle went into lockdown at the beginning of the pandemic, my 4-year-old daughter and I were scheduled to go to a show at the puppet theater. The theater company founder and director was a Seattle fixture who had been delighting families with shows for over 30 years with her troupe of puppeteers. That show was canceled as was the next and … Continue reading Adding Innovation to Grand Theatrical Tradition
A Mercifully Brief Post About Knowing Nothing
Like most people, I’ve led an unusual life. For me, part of its unorthodoxy is my insistence on trying to make a living as a writer. Let’s just say, it’s been an uphill climb. But occasionally I comfort myself with the knowledge that there are a million reasons why things either gain recognition or fail to. So, here are a few quick and hilarious examples. … Continue reading A Mercifully Brief Post About Knowing Nothing
Beware: Garbage In, Garbage Out
If you’re a long-time reader of my blogs, you know that I spent about two decades living the life of an expatriated American. I am proud of that time in my life. I first went abroad as a Peace Corps Volunteer, to Poland, not long after the collapse of the Soviet system, and then lived in the UAE, Turkey, and Egypt. Prior to my leaving … Continue reading Beware: Garbage In, Garbage Out
Books for Writers: 6 books every writer should read this summer
Great writers are great readers. The more you read, the more you allow yourself to dive into a free-flowing headspace to unlock your inner creative genius. If you’re looking for encouraging books for writers, here’s a handpicked list I’ve crafted that has helped me keep the apathetic idling—what some call writer’s block—at bay. That’s if you believe in the whimsical not-so-whimsical force that calls us … Continue reading Books for Writers: 6 books every writer should read this summer
Pardon Me While I Get This Off My Chest
I’m amazed by how my mind works. I never know when an idea for a blog is going to come to me. For example, this morning, just after pulling into a parking space upon arriving at my work and then killing the engine, I immediately realized that I do a lot of the same things in my job that engineers do in theirs. So why … Continue reading Pardon Me While I Get This Off My Chest
The Mysteries of Nature
A poem on the search for peace Continue reading The Mysteries of Nature
Happy Bloomsday!!
Why James Joyce’s seminal novel is worth the considerable frustration it may sometimes induce
Continue reading Happy Bloomsday!!
A Creative Leave of Absence
So my muse decided to take a holiday recently. He packed his bags and went to Hawaii or somewhere. And I know he’s been sitting in the sun drinking Pina Coladas the whole time. That smug bastard. Now, I should say I told him to take a break. The problem is, I’ve found it hard to get back into the flow of things. It turns … Continue reading A Creative Leave of Absence
Great Writers Are Great Readers… and Listeners
Over the past 3 years with Pointless Overthinking, I’ve loved getting to know our community of bloggers and blog-lovers. I’m surrounded by inspiration and aspire to give back even a fraction of the amount of motivation I’ve received. Through this community, I connected to a podcast created for writers that explores topics of the writer’s journey such as: the fear of failure, rejection, trusting the … Continue reading Great Writers Are Great Readers… and Listeners
I’ve Been Thinking about Thinking
As someone who manages a couple of writing centers at Palo Alto College in San Antonio, Texas, USA, I’m often asked, by faculty members of one sort or another, to do writing workshops for students. Exactly one week ago today, I did a critical thinking activity with a class of writers. It’s a workshop I’ve done innumerable times with countless pupils. Toward the end of … Continue reading I’ve Been Thinking about Thinking
The Result of “Bad Living”
I almost never have writer’s block, but I’ve had it recently. That’s at least partly a function of having published somewhere between 150 and 200 pieces on this website. Here’s the thing. Writer’s block does exist. It’s often a byproduct of mental fatigue. It can also be caused by what I’ll call “bad living.” In my particular case, my being creatively blocked—sounds a lot like … Continue reading The Result of “Bad Living”