My teen’s insight into the human experience of storytelling — My son’s final project for a high school English class involved the creation of a piece of literary work. Students were given a list of submission options that included choices like a collection of poetry, a short story, or a novel chapter. …

They exist if you dig deep enough — Siblings love to get on each other’s nerves, and my kids are no exception. I try to mediate. I have them take turns listening to each other, I repeat what each of them say for clarification, and I help them identify common ground. …

How to add to internet content without making it worse — What if you’re a writer without a Ph.D.? Does that mean you can’t write about anything other than first-person accounts about your divorce or your favorite family recipes? I recently wrote a piece about creating a healthy family environment at home. I’m not an interior designer, nutritionist, or psychologist, but…

Why you’re never finished after taking just one photo — If you’re a writer looking for images that haven’t been used by anyone else, the easiest solution is to take the photos yourself. Stocks sites have quality images shot by professionals with high-end SLR cameras, but if your sole purpose for using an image is to illustrate a web article…

A dog walk story — “I love your dog — he’s so beautiful!” She was young and dressed impossibly well for someone doing light gardening in her front yard. My Siberian sensed he had a fan and leaned against his leash to get as close to her as he could. “His eyes — they’re so…

What I’m hoping my spreadsheet will tell me — I’m a data nerd. I track stuff, and I make excel spreadsheets. My kids have learned to avoid me with certain types of questions because they know I’ll hand them a blank, dollar store composition book and say “write this stuff down so we can see if there’s a pattern.” …

Questions to ask yourself about the time you’ve just spent online — The internet is an interesting place. We use it to socialize, order things, educate ourselves, and make money. Sometimes we even let it think for us, without reminding ourselves that it’s a widely inclusive place where almost anyone can publish a website or post an article without anyone else’s input. …

Connecting with nature for at least 20 minutes each day can help with symptoms. — Green time is time spent outdoors in a natural setting, surrounded by plant life such as grass and trees. Research indicates that it’s the green space setting, not the activity, that can reduce ADHD symptoms for both children and adults. As little as 20 minutes can be of benefit, but…