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The Goodjelly Blog

On Inner Critic Love

By Christine Carron

It’s true. An active Inner Critic can wreak havoc on our writerly adventure. She* might keep us from sharing our work. It’s so not good enough! Seriously. Total dog doo-doo writing. . . . 

Or stop us from taking classes that will help us grow as writers. What...

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On Your Author Website Content

By Christine Carron

I have worked on software development projects for over twenty-five years. First as a business analyst, then as a project manager. There are many moving pieces involved in building a website that satisfies (and ideally exceeds) a client’s expectations, but the one I...

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On Yin Virtue

By Christine Carron

Have you ever noticed how much there is to do on the writing adventure? Learn how to write whatever it is you want to write. Write. Learn how to revise. Revise. Learn how to critique. Find a critique group. Learn how to keep your equilibrium while being critiqued. Write....

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On Creating Consistent Writerly Output

By Christine Carron

Imagine your favorite novel. Now imagine that same novel with no chapter indicators or chapter breaks, no indentations at the beginning of paragraphs, no line breaks at the end of paragraphs, no capitalization to begin sentences, and no punctuation to end them. Just one...

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On Aspects of Grit

By Christine Carron

slog: to plod (one's way) perseveringly, especially against difficulty
agog: full of intense interest or excitement; full of wonder or surprise
______________

From the age of ten to fourteen, I was a member of the Saint Louis Civic Ballet. It was a seminal experience of my...

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On Solving for Pie

By Christine Carron

How can I make it easy? This question is my current obsession in relation to my writing—both novels and blog posts. And since I also love pie, I'm going for full cliché easy-as-pie easy. 

Years ago, I read a book by Marshall Goldsmith called What Got You...

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On the Importance of Being Awkward

By Christine Carron

Once upon a time I was brought in to lead a team-building workshop with a research group that was having challenges with communication, trust, and collaboration. The opening exercise of the workshop was one that pretty much any adult who has taken any workshop or class has...

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On Wonder's Clear-Eyed Vision

By Christine Carron

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A child's world is fresh and new and beautiful, full of wonder and excitement. It is our misfortune that for most of us that clear-eyed vision, that true instinct for what is beautiful and awe-inspiring, is dimmed and even lost before we reach adulthood. If I had...

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On the Slow-Variable Game

By Christine Carron

I’m forging ahead on the Great Reading Reset of 2022 and working my way through three books this week, one of which is Resilience Thinking: Sustaining Ecosystems and People in a Changing World by Brian Walker and David Salt. This book, which is about systems theory and...

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On Finding More Time for Your Writing

By Christine Carron

One of the best management interventions I ever experienced happened at a time in my corporate career when I was overloaded with work. Cross-eyed with work. Like seriously trapped in a chicken-head-off cyclone of work madness.

My boss, located on the other side of the country,...

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On Making the Air Space

By Christine Carron

When I was in grade school, I was a member of the Saint Louis Civic Ballet. Stanley Herbert was the company's maestro. I learned so much from Mr. Herbert about discipline, technique, and art. He was also quite a character. A vivid memory is of him sitting in his regular spot...

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On Jellyfishing the Writing Adventure

By Christine Carron

A few years ago, I was at a workshop where the facilitator led us into a meditative state. During the meditation, I had a waking dream where I was floating deep in the ocean and jellyfish were all around me. It was an extraordinarily beautiful and soothing experience. 

It...

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