"It's been important for me to acknowledge the judgmental voice, the inhibitions which tell me I have nothing worthwhile to say and no good ideas, but not to let them stop me. I just give myself permission to write and know that if it's terrible I can come back and correct it, or throw it away or whatever. But it won't be anything at all if I can't get it out onto the page. Just let yourself write, no matter how ridiculous the idea feels or how stilted the words are. Something will take shape eventually if you keep putting words on the page!"

Samantha Mansfield is a writer and educator living in Peterborough, Ont. She leads programs for the local homeschool community, teaches yoga and is currently at work on a YA fantasy novel. Her story Bell Island made the longlist for the 2017 CBC Nonfiction Prize.