Spiritual Direction for Writers Featured on the Mind Love Podcast with Melissa Monte
Last month I was able to have a lovely conversation with Melissa Monte and the Mind Love Podcast about so many aspects of Spiritual Direction for Writers®, all of which are discussed in the forthcoming book, Spiritual Direction for Writers: Everyday Rituals for Your Writing Life, (which will be out on September 3, 2026!)
The Mind Love episode is now live, and you can listen to it wherever you listen to podcasts. There is a fee to access the entire podcast library, but you should be able to listen to a few episodes at no charge.
Below are 11 main points I covered in my conversation with Melissa.
More details about these points and and why they matter to the creative process, the writing life, and the spiritual life can be found below.
And, as I mentioned above, even more details are in the forthcoming book, Spiritual Direction for Writers: Everyday Rituals for Your Writing Life.
1. Misconceptions that delay writing
I named several common forms of resistance that can show up for writers: idealizing the writing life, internalizing rigid rules and expectations that don’t even serve the desired outcome or goals, obsessing over the finished product when the focus should be on the importance of the process, and thinking about marketing and social media reactions from others before actually getting anything on the page.
Naming these obstacles and misconceptions is important because it helps when writers recognize that their stuckness is often about insecurities, pressure, and absorbed stories that don’t even serve them, not evidence of a lack of talent or desire. Once you recognize these dynamics in your writing life, you can be more intentional and thoughtful about why you want to write without feeling like there’s too much to overcome to sit down at your desk and start writing.
2. You don’t have to write every day
I once again challenge the very dumb rule that “real writers write every day.” I know plenty of fantastic writers who don’t write every day and plenty of mediocre writers who do. So the frequency of writing or following word count rules are unnecessary gatekeeping around credentials or output that mean nothing in the long run.
We don’t have to have so many high barriers to entry for people who want to be writers and make their art. I prefer to make sure everyone who wants to write knows that they are welcome to do so. They can cultivate a nourishing and sustainable writing practice that works for their particular circumstances. Letting go of rules that others have around what it means to be a writer can free people from shame and perfectionism so they can actually begin or continue working on that poem, story, essay, or novel.
3. Creativity and spirituality move together
From my earliest spiritual direction work and encounters with writers, I observed that whenever there’s an opening in someone’s creativity, there’s also an opening in their spiritual life. And when there’s a closing in one area, the other has a closing as well. This makes sense because we have one soul. The creative soul is the spiritual soul is the soul.
Understanding and noticing how these openings and closings occur can help writers move through creative resistance and spiritual dryness. If your creativity feels more closed up, you can use any current spiritual energy available to find your way back to more creative energy. And vice versa.
4. Curiosity over judgment about resistance
During my conversation with Melissa for the Mind Love podcast, I also discussed how I encourage writers to respond to resistance with curiosity rather than self-judgment. It’s so much better to ask questions like “Am I exhausted?” or “What happened today that made me not want to write?” instead of shaming yourself if your writing session doesn’t unfold how you had hoped.
A curious, compassionate approach to our creative practice makes it easier to discern underlying needs—rest, nourishment, or emotional processing—and to respond in ways that lead to genuine freedom and nourishment rather than more inner oppression and depletion.
5. Belonging to yourself and writerly identity
I also spoke a good amount about why it’s important for writers to have a sense of belonging. Have strong ties to the self affects our ability to embrace our is writerly identity. We must belong to ourselves first if we want to experience belonging in other areas. So many writers struggle to say “I’m a writer.” If that’s true for you, I highly recommend starting there. How can you become more comfortable introducing yourself to others as a writer and honoring your writerly soul?
Feeling disconnected from the self can affect how you show up to the page, have a negative impact on how you share your work with others, and hinder your ability to build the creative life you want to have.
6. Writing as essential to wholeness and mental health
I talked about how things can get off track when I’m not writing regularly. I can have more snappiness, funk, or depression, which can inhibit my quality of life, as well as those around me. I think this is something that we should normalize and discuss because so many many creative people write to survive, heal, and navigate mental health challenges.
Having a serious writing practice isn’t just a luxury or hobby. For many people—even people who don’t write for publication—writing is a crucial practice of care for one’s own soul, heart, and mind, especially for those like me who live with conditions like bipolar disorder.
7. Contemplative spirituality as a framework for writing
I also shared a bit about how contemplative spirituality and practices like silence, solitude, liturgy, and nourishing rest have shaped my life and helped me navigate living with bipolar disorder. Contemplative spiriutlaity has saved my writing life, helping me manage stress, overwhelm, and have better sleep rhythms.
Contemplative practices are super helpful for writers and others who make art. Establishing a sustainable, spiritually grounded way to steward time, attention, and energy can help us write and make our art without losing our souls or sacrificing our health.
8. Resistance instead of “writer’s block”
I mentioned that I prefer the language of “resistance” or “creative closing” over “writer’s block,” emphasizing cycles and seasons, depletion, and practical ways to address resistance like putting myself in the way of others’ art. Listening to music, looking at visual art, watching a film, or binging a TV show are some of the things that I know will get my creative juices running again.
It’s normal to experience ebbs and flows in creativity. But it’s important to know what helps you come out of seasons of resistance. Give your attention to the reality of your body, mind, and soul. Know which practices and nourishing rhythms will help you feel creatively refreshed, and put yourself in the way of those things.
9. “Write what only you can write”
I also discussed that if you want to discover the themes and topics that only you can writer, you can start with creating timelines of different seasons of your life and freewriting on any subjects that come to mind. You mist also confront the belief that no one wants to read your writing on a subject that others have already written about. One way to do this is to focus on and zero in on your unique relationship to a topic.
Shifting your attention from trying to be original (since “there’s nothing new under the sun”) to originality of perspective and belonging and personal experience, gives all writers permission to add their voices to ongoing conversations about any topic they want to write about.
10. Nourishing rhythms to honor the creative soul
I spoke about how I view nourishing rhythms (read, write, walk, pray, put yourself in the way of art—adapted to each person’s life and season) as a flexible framework rather than a rigid formula. I also included an example of a client whose rhythms became “sing, write, nap, cry” while she was in a difficult season of life.
It’s so helpful for writers to have a realistic, compassionate way to support their creative souls within full, busy, demanding lives. You can still make progress through small, consistent practices that are still legitimate and powerful even if you only engage with them for 10 or 15 minutes at a time.
11. “All of life is the writing life”
I often say that “all of life is the writing life,” meaning that even on days you don’t write, everything you live, notice, and experience is still forming you to be the person who will write later when it’s time to write. This mantra has helped so many people have more freedom in thier writing life. We don’t use this mantra to avoid writing, though. We use it to dignify and honor all parts of life and their importance while also knowing we still need to sit down and do the work.
This perspective holds together grace for our limits and commitment to our vocation as writers.
About Charlotte Donlon
I am an author, certified life coach, and trained spiritual director who works at the intersection of creativity and contemplative spirituality. After earning an MFA in creative writing and training as a spiritual director, I began working almost exclusively with writers and artists—and spent 8 years observing the direct parallel between creative health and spiritual health. My book Spiritual Direction for Writers:Everyday Rituals for the Writing Life is the distillation of that work. I live with bipolar disorder and have been openly writing and speaking about mental health, faith, and creativity since my diagnosis in 2007.