Hillary Rettig's Blog, page 13
December 19, 2014
How to Deal With Your Nonactivist Family
For many activists, holidays are incredibly stressful. If you’re a vegan, for instance, there’s nothing like being compelled to watch your loved ones eagerly consume the carcass of a poor, dead bird, while you yourself are singled out for your “weird” refusal to do so, to make you feel like an outsider, and cause you […]
October 27, 2014
It’s NaNoWriMo / AcWriMo Time!
It’s that time of year again! Visit our NaNoWriMo Resource Center so that, come November 30, you’ll be partying like SuperWriter!
October 4, 2014
Now Through Monday – Get a FREE ecopy of The 7 Secrets of the Prolific at Amazon
Thought people would like to know that the e version of my book The 7 Secrets of the Prolific: The Definitive Guide to Overcoming Procrastination, Perfectionism, and Writer’s Block is available for FREE from Amazon (only) until Monday night. It’s a great book for anyone interesting in productivity and time management, especially relative to writing. […]
October 2, 2014
The 14 Rules of Prolific Writing
The proper goal for all writing projects should be to “Get it done.” (Not fabulousness, comprehensiveness, to create a best seller, “revolutionize my field,” impress my advisor/family, make a fortune, etc. See Rule #13 on Quality, below.) Use a speedy, free-writing, free-revising technique. Aim for a large number of quick drafts where you make a […]
September 10, 2014
Why an Animal Activist Life is the Very Best Life
This summer we shared two posts discussing how emotionally and socially challenging animal activism can be. You’ll find them here and here. The interesting thing is how many activists persevere despite these challenges. Some of this surely comes from a desire not to abandon animals in need, but there’s something else going on as well: We, as individuals, […]
August 13, 2014
How Filtering Your Facebook, Twitter, and Other Feeds Can Make You a Happier and More Effective Activist
Dear Hillary: “How do I enjoy myself when so many horrors go on continually?” Consider this a continuation of last month’s column on how to be happy in a world filled with suffering, in which the importance of: (1) consciously deciding how much of your life you want to devote to animal activism or advocacy, and (2) […]
How to Be Happy in a World Full of Suffering
Dear Hillary: “How do I enjoy myself when so many horrors go on continually?” Dear Animal Activist: Thank you for your question, which was actually the most-submitted one. It saddens me to think that so many animal activists—whom I truly consider to be among the best and noblest people on the planet—struggle to find joy. […]
June 5, 2014
Meet Compassionate Objectivity, The Antidote to Guilt
*“I should succeed at this job despite the fact that we’re severely under-resourced and my boss is chronically disorganized. If I don’t, I’m a loser.” *“If I don’t sacrifice everything to my kids, I’m a terrible parent.” *If I don’t get my hour of exercise in every single day, I’m just a lazy slob.” *“If my book doesn’t […]
May 30, 2014
Why Amazon is This Writer’s Best Friend
Right now, there’s a contract dispute going on between Amazon and the publisher Hachette Book Group, with the result that Amazon is delaying shipment of some Hachette books and removing “pre-order” buttons from listings of others. Read some news stories and you might think all authors are pro-Hachette and anti-Amazon. But that is not at […]
May 27, 2014
Why a Course on Weight Loss for Writers?
On June 9, I will be thrilled to start the second run of my SavvyAuthors’ exclusive Weight Loss for Writers class. To my knowledge, you won’t find another class like it anywhere. But why a class on weight loss just for writers? Well, for one thing, writing is a sedentary occupation, so it’s easy for writers […]
