Liberty

Six years ago I wrote a personal post about the challenges of being a full-time digital nomad, “Starting over with nothing at 32.” Over the years it’s gotten more traction than I expected so I thought it was time for a reprieve. I recently turned 38 (during the winter solstice) and I still have just about nothing to show for …

When I finish my PhD, I’ll finally be able to use my love of research to write about truly interesting things. One my next projects will be “Paid to Create” – which, originally was going to simply be about how to make money with your creativity, kind of a practical manifesto for this blog. However I’m realizing that won’t satisfy …

Since finishing my PhD in literature, my wife and I are truly location independent and write full-time. One of the biggest productivity hacks I’ve found is to put myself in beautiful and inspiring environments (that are mostly distraction free). While some argue they can “write from anywhere” – I’m a firm believer in what Cal Newport calls the “grand gesture” mode …

A common question I see on Facebook or in writing groups from newbie authors is, “How much can I expect to earn publishing my book?” This is a pretty easy question to answer, but it might discourage you. Further, the way that some authors overcome this discouragement is fascinating – almost to the point of willful insanity. If you’re hoping …

This week I wrote and published 3 adult coloring books, with several more in the works. This is one of my favorites. It’s a very different kind of adult coloring book. There are no lines. It’s more like a guided set of self-actualization exercises, which asks you to imagine and draw specific scenarios. I’m giving 5 copies away – you can …

For the past 2 years I’ve been procrastinating on my PhD program. Classes were hard, but I finished my credits with a high GPA. That’s not the problem. One of the requirements for graduation is submitting an article to a peer-reviewed journal and getting it published. This was a major hurdle for me. In part, because I don’t like writing …

Today I saw this post about Richard Prince taking other people’s Instagram photos without permission or warning and selling them in a New York art gallery for $90,000 each. It’s not his first offence: he’s previously taken photos from magazines or from other photographers and changed them just a little bit (like cutting out and swapping them figures). He’s been …

The world is changing quickly, and a large part of that change is the shift from standard 9 to 5 career jobs to life-affirming, self-fulfilling creative small businesses. But the edge between creative expression and commercial success is a harrowing journey demanding delicate and dangerous balance. Can our love for creation persist amid client demands and expectations? Should we be …

I just clicked on a few goal-setting articles like this from Facebook, and they sucked. So I wrote my own. For me, and a lot of other people I know, 2014 was a solidly mediocre year – some growth, some sales, some new experiences, but also a lot of mediocrity and boring stuff. That’s not good enough for me. I …

I spent the last four days in Portland attending the World Domination Summit (a congregation of people living remarkable lives in a conventional world). It’s my second time – immediately after the first one I attended (2013) I bought tickets for myself and my mother to return this year. Since I wrote a little about my experiences last year, I …