My 1970s editions of The Lord of the Rings Even geniuses do terrible first drafts Thanks to everyone who read down to the end of the newsletter last week, and...

A brand new journal for September. So exciting! Start Stopping If you’re north of the equator, you know that September means wrapping up summer and Getting Ready to Go! There...

Ears for listening Can they hear you OK?   This is a joke that never seems to 1. get old or 2. be particularly funny. Person asks another person for...

Kendra, my editor, shortly before she plunges her red pen through my heart “I’ve got some feedback for you…”   I’ve got a new book coming out in June next...

Dreaming of hammock time while I’m working out The Most Important Type of Fitness About 45 seconds after I start to workout, a talktrack starts in my mind: Why don’t...

Look Mum, I’m a Viking! How to Get a Grip Over the last five years, my ring finger and little finger on my right hand have gone a little …...

I bought these from the National Portrait Gallery in London. We’re all individuals! (Yes! We’re all individuals!) So, what are the odds? The chances of an ordinary pack of cards...

A workout from Dave, my gym guy. EMOM. How to Reset That gloomy genius Sam Beckett made it sound easy. In “Worstward Ho!” he wrote, “Ever tried. Ever failed. No...

From my favourite Roncesvalles fruitier What are we seizing exactly? It’s hard not to be thrilled by the baby-faced Robin Williams inspiring the youth: “Seize the day, boys. Make your...

“Wrestle” by Scott Griffin. I keep this piece of art right by my desk The two hard things about making a choice The author Peter Block said that one of...

Me doing CBT “saw therapy” in my local hardware store Are you just acting? In my first year at high school, not only did we do the usual English, Math,...

You should trust Kaa from The Jungle Book Are you breeding snakes? We love machine metaphors. We wish life could be neat like that. Press a button, or pull a...