Writing Mindset is a blog for everyone that focuses on using a notebook to build a more positive life.

Nobody Hugs a Cactus is a humorous and heartfelt story about Hank, a cactus who prefers to be left alone—until loneliness begins to change his perspective. With expressive illustrations and minimal text, Goodrich captures the tension between independence and connection in a way that feels both playful and deeply relatable. Also, the grumpy cactus might be the cutest thing you have seen in a long while.

This story reminds us that sometimes what we think we want (space, quiet, distance) isn’t what we truly need. For writers, Nobody Hugs a Cactus becomes an entry point into exploring character, perspective, and internal change, showing how feelings shift over time and how those shifts shape our actions.

In this post, you can find…

• Tips for using this book as a mentor text for writing

• Ways to use the book with preschoolers, grades k-5, grades 6-8, grades 9-12, and for disciplinary literacy projects

• Journaling prompts linked to the book (including nature journaling)

• One grammar exercise to access grammar instruction

• and LOTS of pictures of cacti from right here in Arizona

Outside In, written by Deborah Underwood and illustrated by Cindy Derby, is a poetic meditation on the quiet, persistent ways the natural world moves through our lives—even when we think we are separated from it. I would argue this is the perfect mentor text for a teacher that feels they cannot get outside in nature or wants to do more outside work with kids, but perhaps cannot because of time, budget, or access to natural spaces.

Through rhythmic, lyrical language and richly textured illustrations, the book shows how “outside” is never truly outside. It seeps in through light, sound, memory, breath, and presence. The world is always reaching us, even in stillness.

For writers, Outside In becomes an invitation to explore observation, contrast, and connection—especially the invisible threads between environments, emotions, and experience.

In this post, you can find…

• Tips for using this book as a mentor text for writing

• Ways to use the book with preschoolers, grades k-5, grades 6-8, grades 9-12, and for disciplinary literacy projects

• Journaling prompts linked to the book (including nature journaling)

• One grammar exercise to access grammar instruction

The Tree in Me is a quiet, powerful exploration of growth, change, and the deep connections between humans and the natural world. Through lyrical language and expressive illustrations, Luyken invites readers to see themselves reflected in trees—rooted, reaching, bending, and growing.

I especially love the colors throughout this book. The pages evoke a pink sunset, with bright oranges and pinks that seem to jump off the page.

This book reminds us that growth is not always linear. Like trees, we stretch toward the light, weather storms, and change with the seasons. For writers, The Tree in Me becomes an entry point into reflective and metaphorical writing, where personal experience connects to the natural world.

While the book primarily focuses on the trees within us, these ideas can extend to other elements of nature as well. We might consider the storms within us, the flowers that grow inside us, or the gardens we cultivate with our thoughts. In this way, we are deeply connected to the natural world and to one another.

In this post, you can find…

• Tips for using this book as a mentor text for writing

• Ways to use the book with preschoolers, grades k-5, grades 6-8, grades 9-12, and for disciplinary literacy projects

• Journaling prompts linked to the book (including nature journaling)

• One grammar exercise to access grammar instruction

I spent a couple of months using the Sterling Ink N2 Common Planner because I was searching for something smaller, lighter, and easier to carry. At the time, my Sterling Ink B6 Common Planner was starting to feel bulky—especially once it filled out and became my everything book.

And while the N2 did solve the portability problem, it created a different one:

It limited how I think on paper.

That’s when my system shifted.

Instead of trying to make one planner do everything, I moved to a two-book system:

• A B6 Common Planner for structured planning and long-form space

• A N2 Weeks Size Notebook (or jotbook/quick notes journal) for daily capture, thinking, and overflow

Now, the two work in tandem—and honestly, it feels much more aligned with how I actually live and write.

Remember, by Joy Harjo and illustrations by Michaela Goade, is an invitation to reflect on who we are, where we come from, and how we are connected to the world around us. Through Harjo’s poetic repetition and grounding language, readers are reminded that memory is not just something we recall—it is something we carry.

The text moves gently through reminders of connection: to the earth, to ancestors, to breath, to belonging.

This book encourages us to slow down, to listen inward, and to recognize that our stories are part of something larger. For writers, Remember becomes an entry point into reflective writing, where memory, identity, and observation can meet.

In this post, you can find…

• Tips for using this book as a mentor text for writing

• Ways to use the book with preschoolers, grades k-5, grades 6-8, grades 9-12, and for disciplinary literacy projects

• Journaling prompts linked to the book (including nature journaling)

• One grammar exercise to access grammar instruction

I start each day in a very similar way. After getting up and getting ready, I help our preschool-aged daughter prepare for school. As part of our daily hair routine, we always say our affirmations. These words set the tone for each day, and it is a non-negotiable part of our routine.

I want her to know what to say to herself when she doubts she can do something or feels unsure. I want her to be able to remind herself of how great she already is and how wonderful a person she is becoming.

Affirmations are more than flowery phrases—they are the inner dialogue we create for ourselves. Who I Am: Words I Tell Myself, by Susan Verde and illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds, is a powerful exploration of identity and the quiet language we carry within ourselves. Through simple, intentional phrases, the book reminds readers that the words we repeat internally shape how we see ourselves and who we are becoming.

Each line invites reflection:
I am strong.
I am creative.
I am enough.

This text is both grounding and expansive. It creates space for readers to notice their inner voice and begin to shape it with care. This book is not just something to read—it is something to return to. It becomes a mirror for identity and a starting point for daily reflection.

For writers, journalers, students, and caregivers, Who I Am offers an invitation to build a daily practice of affirmation writing—using a notebook or journal as a place to shape identity through language.

In this post, you can find…

• Tips for using this book as a mentor text for writing

• Ways to use the book with preschoolers, grades k-5, grades 6-8, grades 9-12, and for disciplinary literacy projects

• Journaling prompts linked to the book (including nature journaling)

• One grammar exercise to access grammar instruction