The Washington Post reported a charming tale of an 8-year-old kid named Dillon who wrote and illustrated his own book, then snuck it into the stacks of his local library in Boise. Dillon later admitted that what he did was “naughty-ish.” But the covert act of analog sharing not only won over the librarians, they…

It’s true. Doesn’t matter if it’s true. Hate them. “Just be yourself,” and “Do what you love and you’ll never work again,” and “Life begins where your comfort zone ends.” Cliches are like hit songs without a good hook. It’s like just hearing them triggers a muscle in the back of my eyes, causing them to roll…

You’d think I’d like book clubs. I mean, I like to read. I like small group discussions. But in the experiences I had with them (which were admittedly a long time ago), it got under my skin. I usually found myself in a roomful of people who were less interested in conversation and more interested…

I made my Canada TV debut this week! During the interview, the hosts of The Morning Show asked me what getting laid off taught me about following my passion. In a word? Nothing. That advice wasn’t helpful then, or really at any other time. First and foremost when you leave a job (or it leaves…

The best compliment you can get when someone reads your work is that it “sounds” like you. Why? Because it means you’ve channeled not just your ideas but your personality, your likeness, onto the page. That you’re literally true to your word. Doesn’t mean it’s easy, but it’s worth it. So I felt pretty great…

I could craft an entire scrapbook JUST from things I’ve learned and things I love about my friend Ilise Benun. One of the things she taught me to see different was…my own value, and why that was different from what I was “worth.” Because, of course, no one can tell you what you’re “worth.” They…

Wait, before you answer that. Let me ask you this: Where were you when you first heard of YouTube? The platform launched in 2005. I was working as an associate editor at Body+Soul magazine and YouTube was something I heard a few other editors laughing about over a cubicle wall. “Oh, it’s stupid,” my editor…

Your work is less a line drawing, and more like one of those Magic Eye posters from the 90s. You know the ones—they looked like a random, digitized page of color blocks and blips. But when you put your nose right up to it, and let your eyes refocus, BOOM! Dolphins leaping through the sea,…