Sunday Reads No. 1: Routines, Reviews, and Roadblocks

I wish I had more time to read.

I wish I had more time for other things, too. Like, watching Elizabeth Banks commercials, or melting cheese on anything, or eating cheese with Elizabeth Banks. I somehow manage, during times I should be doing other things, to read a little every day.

(Don’t tell my boss.)

Actually, tell my boss. Reading’s essential to be a writer. I think Stephen King or Steph Curry said that once. Lots of my blogging friends put together a list of favorites every week, and I’m honored they have the misguided tendency to include me sometimes.

So, I’d like to share each week some of the stellar stuff I’ve been reading.

At the Tallahassee (Fla.) Democrat newspaper, I was in charge of putting together a good Sunday Read for the sports section. I’d design a centerpiece, find a meaty feature story. Instead, I’ll share five posts I read the week before, with a quote from the author.

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How Routine is Unhelpful for me

Rosie, of Rosie Culture

My takeaway: I’d love to have a routine that must get done with enough adventure and unpredictability mixed in. I’d like for a routine to cover mundane stuff – early, if possible – so that I can feel free to schedule time for churros and binge-watching Hawaii 5-0.

I like planning ahead, I like knowing what my week is going to look like. What I can’t stand is the consistency of boredom, the feeling that things might not ever change. – Rosie

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Scientific proof that yoga works for over 30 and counting health conditions

Lucy Edge, Elephant Journal

My takeaway: The universe seems to converge to get me back on the yoga mats, as a veritable armadillo among foxes in the class at work. I think Fridays are for beginners, which, after years away now, I’d qualify for. I’m gonna go.

My analysis of those 300 clinical studies proves that yoga works in 164 ways-–both mental and physical. From modulating DNA damage in radiotherapy, to improving the handgrip of arthritis sufferers. From improving sleep quality to reducing perceptions of pain. – Lucy

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The book you’ll want to throw in your beach bag: Every Last Lie

Ashley, of Happy Pretty Sweet

My take: I’ve done something actionable, after reading this. I added this book to my reading list (listening list, at the library. It’s a button away from being on hold for me.) Sounds like my kind of intrigue.

Reading Every Last Lie is like watching a spider spin its web. There’s a purpose to every point in the story, but it takes reading the whole book in order to unravel the truth about what happened. I really liked this psychological thriller because it felt grounded in the real world. – Ashley

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Remember Reminder #11: Speak up

Corey Wheeland, of Nostalgia Diaries

My takeaway: I’ll write honestly and fearlessly, in a Google docs draft or messenger window. I’ll stop and listen when my girls speak, even before. The impact I can have in speaking out is finding the quiet so that I can continue to encourage their voices, too.

It’s also really, really important for me to speak up: I have a daughter now, a little girl who wants to be like me in every way possible and models her behavior after mine. Because of this, I make an attempt every day now, in my actions and in my words, to teach her—and myself—that a life without a voice is not a life well lived. – Corey

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photo credit: First order stromtroop via photopin (license)

This Common Belief Could Be Blocking Your Creative Potential

Stefanie Flaxman, Copyblogger

My takeaway: This applies not only to my work as a web copywriter but also as a blogger and aspiring author. Sometimes you have to toss the words on the page and see what happens.

No matter what you’re working on, give yourself the freedom to try different techniques without getting discouraged if one method isn’t right for you. You can cross it off your list and try something else. – Stefanie

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