I have an office in a workspace so that I can’t use housework and parenting to procrastinate, and I use the Freedom website blocker to make sure that I don’t fall victim to digital distractions. I’m not the kind of person who can listen to music or watch TV and write at the same time. As someone with an editorial background, I can tell you that an outline is an essential tool for revision. I’m an outline evangelist-I usually write an outline before I compose the first draft of a novel, and I revise the outline when I’m ready to revise my draft.

But I also love the way it makes outlining and reordering my work simple. For one thing, I can use it on any device, including my phone. I write almost everything using my own software, Bookflow. And I write articles encouraging growth mindset because I truly think that everyone is a writer and everyone can benefit from writing. I write about productivity because I think that finishing what you start is gratifying. I could write forever on how to improve one’s writing craft because mastery is soul-nourishing.

I often tell people that I’m trying to start the “slow-thought” movement. We do a lot of communicating, but we’re not encouraged to do the kind of deep thinking and self-reflection that writing is all about. In a world awash in social media, one in which we’re constantly in touch with others via text, video, email, etc, we’re constantly reacting to stimuli. My other main subject is writing itself, and how it’s the creative art with the potential to teach us the most about ourselves. I’d say most of my writing is about the importance of family and friendships and reveals the humor and emotion in mundane events. I’ve written over twenty novels for younger readers-think Young Adult and tween audiences-but I also write poetry and essays.

I’ve been a bestselling novelist, an editor at a Big Five publishing house, and a writing instructor at almost every level, from third grade to a Master’s degree program. I’m Lisa Papademetriou, and I’m the founder of Bookflow, which is software that helps writers stay motivated and organized. Lisa Papademetiou writes for our publication but is also connected through other writing projects (if I can get my act together, you might hear her in a new season of our podcast). |a Hayley helps out with the family tea shop by baking, but her talent may have pushed away her best friend, Artie, and the boy she is crushing on just may be Artie's new boyfriend. |a Taking the cake! / |c Lisa Papademetriou.

Taking the cake by lisa papademetriou