damarisyoung

The Natural Sleep Remedy

I have recently started reading before bed, instead of watching TV or scrolling through the internet on my tablet. I started the New Year with a string of disrupted night’s sleep with fleeting nightmares that woke me up every few hours. I knew that this was triggered by watching too many late night filmsContinue reading “The Natural Sleep Remedy”

Writing and Reading Resolutions

I only have one New Year’s resolution this year – to make sure I write and read every day. It doesn’t have to be much, just something. Even if it is just writing a sentence and reading a page! After the time off over Christmas and New Year I feel rusty when it comesContinue reading “Writing and Reading Resolutions”

The Next Generation of Writers

I remember learning to write by copying the story of ‘The Little Matchstick Girl’ word for word into my notebook. I didn’t know what each letter meant or even how they all fit together; they were just scribbles I laboriously traced over. All I can remember is that I desperately wanted to capture the taleContinue reading “The Next Generation of Writers”

Be Brave

I still find it difficult to write something that other people will read. Writing is very personal and it’s a complicated form of expression. I have never written very openly, I was always the last person to read out my written work in class. But I need to stop seeing it as a potentially terrifyingContinue reading “Be Brave”

Write Yourself Happy

I find it hard to write when I feel down and low. I lack the energy and the motivation to try and string together a coherent sentence. I feel like it is one sentence forward then two deleted. I am my own worst critic when I feel unhappy. It becomes an exhausting process trying to writeContinue reading “Write Yourself Happy”

Slowing The Pace

I have started on my second novel and I’m finding it much easier this time round. I’m glad I finished the first one but I am also happy to now put it aside. I felt under so much pressure writing the first novel, that I wrote as though an agent or publisher was reading itContinue reading “Slowing The Pace”

The Unknown

I usually know almost everything about a book or a film before I sit down to enjoy it. Word of mouth, reviews online and even the blurb can give away so much of the content that you can sometimes predict exactly how the story is going to go. I recently watched ‘What Maisie Knew’ withoutContinue reading “The Unknown”

The undercover Writer

I sometimes feel like I have a secret identity. ‘The undercover writer’ During work hours I sit in the office and dutiful work for my paycheck. But in the quiet moments, maybe during a rainy lunch break or while on an extended tea break, I write. While I type, the grey walls disappear and theContinue reading “The undercover Writer”

The Urge to Write

Sometimes the urge to write is so strong I feel distracted and unfocused until I write something down… It doesn’t have to be profound, or even any good, but I always feel calmer once I have written down any tangled thoughts. Worries or anxieties that are pacing around in my head seem much more harmlessContinue reading “The Urge to Write”

Time is never wasted on a book

I never feel like I am wasting my time when I am reading. I can sometimes feel like I am creating ‘dead time’ by browsing social media, internet window shopping and watching another boring program on TV, just because I have nothing better to do. But when I read, I feel like I am gainingContinue reading “Time is never wasted on a book”