Narrative therapy is not the dominant therapeutic framework I utilise in my clinical work, but like most eclectic practitioners, I have enough of an understanding
Category: Psychology for Writers
Developing a Character with a History of Sexual Assault
There’s many things I love about the landscape of writing, but one of the most wonderful discoveries is the breadth of knowledge out there waiting
The 5 Keys to Writing with Depression
Anyone that has ready book Grit for Writers knows that I share my personal story of grit and the challenges that mental health means for a
Eye Witness Testimony for Writers
We’ve explored the fallibility of our memory when exploring The Girl on the Train, discovering that that memories are malleable – influenced by our internal
Adding Complexity to your Scenes
Humans like complexity; puzzles, questions, layers. They all fascinate us. My guess it’s because there are so many complex systems in nature that our brain
Jumping to Conclusions: Great Character Driven Conflict
The brain loves short-cuts. I don’t blame it, so do I. If I’ve got a whole heap of research to do, I’ll skim the document
The Psychology of High Concept
The term high-concept got on my radar at this year’s Romance Writers of Australia conference. I listened to a couple of panels where a mix
Growth Mindset for Writers
It’s not always the people who start out the smartest who end up the smartest. – Alfred Binet, inventor of the IQ test As I’m
The Power of the Character Wound
We’ve talked about the character wound on PsychWriter before when I explored the negative core belief. We know it’s a painful past event that changes
Is your character pretending to be something they’re not?
We all spend some time pretending to be something we’re not. We pretend we’re feeling happy when we’re not, we maintain a façade of polite
Childhood Trauma and its Impact on Your Character
The word ‘trauma’ is derived from the Greek term for ‘wound’. Very frightening or distressing events may result in a psychological wound or injury –
How Your Characters’ Beliefs Colour their Perspective
Whether its first person, third person, or the see-all-know-all omniscient point of view, the power of a story is the vicarious adventure of living someone
When Your Characters Form a Group: What Writers Need to Know
When Frodo agreed to take that cursed ring to Mount Doom, he didn’t know he was going to join a group of fellow fantastical and
Your Book Needs These 6 Psychological Ingredients
Psychology has given us such a wonderful understanding into human behaviour that’s it’s a veritable gold-mine for writers. It not only lets us understand our
Is Your Character Ready to Change? The Stages of Change for Writers
Narratives are all about change – protagonists changing their perspectives as they see, hear and learn new things, choosing to do things differently as
Therapy for Writers: Dealing with Perfectionism
The perfectionism trap is easy to fall into. We live in a culture that’s all about success and achievement, and the writing world is no
