Member Spotlight: Oona Metz

Why is writing important to you and why do you think it’s an important medium for the world? I write to help people feel less alone. For this current book, I had important knowledge to share and I feared that if I kept it all in my head, I’d become a hoarder of insights and ideas. I think feeling less alone is something we can all benefit from.

What are your tried and tested remedies to cure writer’s block? Sometimes I get writer’s block when my TO DO list is too long. So, to cure the block, I take care of other business and then come back to my writing.

What is your favorite time to write? My favorite time to write is during the day on the weekends. I work full time M-F and have never been able to be an early morning daily writer no matter how many writers have suggested it. I need long blocks of time for writing.

What’s the best piece of writing advice you’ve ever received and would like to impart to other writers? My friend Christie Tate once told me that a big part of the work of writing is reading books. That advice really helped reduce my guilt when I read instead of writing. My writing coach Katie Bannon encouraged me to write as much as possible without editing and then go back later to edit.

What excites you most about being a writer in today’s age? I have been a therapist for 30 years and a writer for 3 years. It has made my brain happy to learn so much in such a short time period. How to write, edit, pitch, query, submit, and promote my writing has been a stimulating challenge. I have loved making new writer friends both online and in real life. I have found that writers lift each other up in a way that gives me hope for our world.

Oona Metz’s Unhitched: The Essential Divorce Guide for Women is out now with Gallery Books.