I take an unfinished notebook idea “in stride” to see what it’s made of. You might hear me ambling through a working poem, stabilizing the foundation of a think-piece, or stepping into a brief portal of fiction. Always 10 minutes or less because that’s plenty long to test out raw material and short enough for you to enjoy something imperfect (I hope). This podcast comes to you from my Patreon, The Write Balance, which I created to show mainly myself, a high school English teacher, that there is no right way to carve out time to write—I just need to do it.
Attribution:
(https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/21/briefing/suicide-prevention-research.html)The words from Alina's mystical dictionary come from John Koenig's amazing project The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows, which is (and will continue to be) a massive influence for this work in progress. You can purchase the dictionary/book (https://www.thedictionaryofobscuresorrows.com/buy-the-book) here (which is awesome), and you can also peruse the words online (https://www.thedictionaryofobscuresorrows.com/words?843c8602_page=4).
This idea in stride comes to you from my Patreon, The Write Balance, where you can read and hear the final version of each practice piece (with touches of music and SFX). And you can even engage in the feedback process to be more connected to every final product. To learn more and subscribe, go to www.patreon.com/thewritebalance (http://www.patreon.com/thewritebalance). And now, if you want to avoid another subscription but want to support me, you can buy any of my finished products individually or as a bundle on Gumroad. Click here to pick your favorites (https://thewritebalance.gumroad.com/?_gl=1*1jk4rhf*_ga*ODUzNjk0NTI1LjE3NzI5MDYyNTE.*_ga_6LJN6D94N6*czE3ODAyMzU2MjAkbzIzJGcxJHQxNzgwMjM1NjM3JGo0MyRsMCRoMA..).
I created The Write Balance to show mainly myself—a high school English teacher—that there is no right way to carve out time to write—I just need to do it. So for me, these brief episodes are a way to practice publicly on that tightrope of creativity. There are countless ways to fall into procrastination, neglect, fear, and doubt, and whether you’re a teacher or not, we all have a balancing act, and this is my way of looking up instead of down.
1 Jul 2026
The Grey Matters (Part 1)
Notes:
(https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/21/briefing/suicide-prevention-research.html)The two words defined in this story come from John Koenig's amazing project The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows, which is (and will continue to be) a massive influence for this work in progress. You can purchase the dictionary/book (https://www.thedictionaryofobscuresorrows.com/buy-the-book) here (which is awesome), and you can also peruse the words online (https://www.thedictionaryofobscuresorrows.com/words?843c8602_page=4).
This idea in stride comes to you from my Patreon, The Write Balance, where you can read and hear the final version of each practice piece (with touches of music and SFX). And you can even engage in the feedback process to be more connected to every final product. To learn more and subscribe, go to www.patreon.com/thewritebalance (http://www.patreon.com/thewritebalance). And now, if you want to avoid another subscription but want to support me, you can buy any of my finished products individually or as a bundle on Gumroad. Click here to pick your favorites (https://thewritebalance.gumroad.com/?_gl=1*1jk4rhf*_ga*ODUzNjk0NTI1LjE3NzI5MDYyNTE.*_ga_6LJN6D94N6*czE3ODAyMzU2MjAkbzIzJGcxJHQxNzgwMjM1NjM3JGo0MyRsMCRoMA..).
I created The Write Balance to show mainly myself—a high school English teacher—that there is no right way to carve out time to write—I just need to do it. So for me, these brief episodes are a way to practice publicly on that tightrope of creativity. There are countless ways to fall into procrastination, neglect, fear, and doubt, and whether you’re a teacher or not, we all have a balancing act, and this is my way of looking up instead of down.
5 Jun 2026
Update: Online Store
Featured Products:
"Chekhov's Diner (https://thewritebalance.gumroad.com/l/avznsq)" (short story)
"Jumbo (https://thewritebalance.gumroad.com/l/qctpo)" (one of my favorite nonfiction pieces)
"When We Named the World (https://www.thewritebalance.life/home/fiction-teasers/)" (brief synopsis on my website)
If you are a listener and have never reached out, I'd love to hear from you!
Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/thewritebalance/)
collinvarney@gmail.com
Music Attribution (EpidemicSound subscription):
"Chasing Horizons" (Victor Lundberg)
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Podcast Authority Score: 27 / 100
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YouTube
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Engagement
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