Logic within Language

I know I wrote earlier about my different languages and how one language might have expressions for things another doesn’t. Now, I feel I have to write a little more about them since it’s not only on the level of words where the culture is reflected:  this time, I’m thinking about the internal logic of...

The Best of Both Worlds

This week I got introduced with: ”This is Johanna, a writer”.  I almost corrected them: “No, I’m Johanna, the psychologist.” I’m glad I didn’t. Trying to balance out two careers I love in a way that works is not easy. But I enjoy both of them too much to be willing to sacrifice either one...

The Myth of Being Born an Artist

“She is so gifted.” “We all knew immediately there was something special about him, he was simply born an artist.” We’ve all heard these statements. And yes, we all have our specific sets of skills and talents. Some artistic tendencies we are born with. But it’s not too many decades ago when the skill of...

The Many Faces of Writer’s Block

I don’t know if I’ve ever experienced the stereotypical writer’s block: I can’t remember sitting in front of a blank page, attempting to force out an incredible piece of fiction. This is probably the case because, for me, writing has always been about saying something I feel worth saying or writing stories I enjoy venturing...

The Emotional Balance and Well-being of a Writer

I have pondered in my blog already, how psychology is applicable to developing characters and understanding one’s personal perspective to writing. But it is also more widely applicable to being a writer. How could we support our emotional and psychological well-being? How is psychology related to the way we think and take care of ourselves?...

Recurring Expressions and Ideas

My writing tends to go in phases. I have certain phrases that I overuse for a couple of months –just to find a new pet peeve to take its place. There have been quite a few – some, like, whilst, sort of, thing, that – just to name a few from throughout the years.  Usually,...

Knowing Myself?

I originally began blogging to ponder how psychology has affected my writing. When studying psychology, I learned very early on that it is important to know yourself. Later, when working, I soon saw this principle in practice: it’s impossible to help other people with their emotions if you can’t even separate what their emotional reaction...

The Social Side of Writing

We humans have been called social animals more than once – for a reason. Even the most solitary ones of us need contact with others to thrive. From a psychological point of view, I couldn’t help wondering, what the social aspects of writing are? There must be some social relevance to what we are doing,...

Life versus Drama – Lessons Learned

I can’t deny that as a psychologist I, like everyone in the field, had moments where people's incredible fates would make me wonder how incredible real life is compared to stories told. Also in my regular life, I remember encountering at least one moment, when I thought that I’ll never watch a film again since...

The Fantastic Realism of Writing

Personal confession: I did love fantasy novels growing up. For me, fleeing the boring everyday life to dream-like adventures was not as much about escaping reality as figuring out the boundaries of life through imagination. It was an intricate game of “what if” played at an age when none of us knew who we were...