"I believe that all blogs should have at least one set of rhyming words. Just because. Does. Fuzz. Was."
~ New York Times bestselling author, Jon Scieszka, The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales: ($12.69 from Amazon.Com)

Everyone knows, to improve you have to practice. Writing regularly sharpens your skills and helps you learn and perfect your craft.

Getting your work seen can be a huge challenge sometimes. When you connect with people on a personal level, they are drawn to your work and will automatically recommend you to their friends.

Staying motivated as a writer is important yet sometimes can be hard. Writer's block can feel very real, so it's important to stay active and avoid it.

Blogging about interesting topics requires research and can be exciting while offer learning experiences for not only your readers but yourself as well.

When you go for periods of time without writing, your mind gets stale and uninspired. Writing daily keeps it active and motivated.

What better reason is there than that? Right? Everyone has at least some levels of stress. Blogging can help relieve that and make you feel more relaxed. This can lead to lower blood pressure and improved circulation. Read to learn more? Here is a quote from an article on the very subject and a link to the article at the end.

Scientists (and writers) have long known about the therapeutic benefits of writing about personal experiences, thoughts and feelings. But besides serving as a stress-coping mechanism, expressive writing produces many physiological benefits. Research shows that it improves memory and sleep, boosts immune cell activity and reduces viral load in AIDS patients, and even speeds healing after surgery. - Scientific American magazine  

Thanks for featuring my item "Invalid Item" , Brooke! Your essay about stereotypes was excellent! I love anything that mentions The Breakfast Club, which totally defined my teen years. That script, so underrated as a brilliant portrait of American youth in the 1980's, was one of the main reasons I wanted to be a writer. Your analysis that the stereotypes served a symbolic purpose was right on! In fact, the entire movie is about shattering every single one of them. John Bender displayed his intelligence, sensitivity, and authenticity, Brian Johnson gained depth and found value in his intellect, Claire Standish (great last name, by the way) admitted that her popularity was a rollercoaster she wasn't sure how to get off of, Andrew Clark challenged his father's values and displayed sympathy for those physically weaker than himself, and Allison Reynolds literally transformed from ugly (chaos) to beautiful (order), physically, emotionally, and socially. And the common denominator for all of them was confession, forgiveness, and understanding by their peers. Above all of this metamorphosis, hovering like a grumpy thunderstorm cloud, is Principal Richard Vernon who only saw stereotypes when he looked at these kids, itself another stereotype. The ending of the movie is perfect, when he is reading their essay. I daresay the educator in him was proud of every single one of them, and it's in that moment that he also transforms from the cynical, dominating authority figure to the caring facilitator of emotional and intellectual growth that a teacher should be. Not bad at all for a movie that was supposed to be typical teen schlock. John Hughes will get his credit in due time.

Thank you so much for featuring my Flash Fiction Piece in your newsletter!! I really enjoy reading your newsletter each week, and it's an honor to be recognized!! This story got such positive feedback I decided to turn it into my First ever NaNoWriMo Novel!

I'm not a stereotypical writer but I appreciate this column. And it was also needed. It points out all of the mishaps for writing or creating a stereotypical character

Character is hard for me. I am a plotter. This has given me some thought. In the beginning of my new novel I showed the main character's flaws and character by having him be OCB in what he and his siblings did around their homes. its something each reader can read, smile and say, "There's a little of that in my family." It doesn't affect the rest of the story but the reader might think about it as they read on. I'm going to have to add more to the story to bring in those character traits a little more.

It was a pleasant surprise to see one of my own stories appear in this newsletter, as I love to review these items myself!
So thank you :)

DDB