How walking – and then a pilgrimage – lifted Guy Stagg’s depression

A 60-mile trek brought deep calm. So the author headed for Jerusalem, 5,500 kms away

A new generation follows the pack as tarot makes a comeback

Onstage readings, elaborate books and artworks thrive in an ‘age of uncertainty’

I was scared of losing my sight… then writing brought me clarity

After being told disease would destroy her vision, Paola Peretti wrote a children’s novel – and found a template for life

In these dark times, embracing laughter is an ethical choice

Laughter has optimism embedded in it. It allows us to see that, while we are all human and we fail, we can change

‘I tried to drill a hole in my head’: how Lydia Ruffles recovered from unbearable migraines

The symptoms were so debilitating that she had to stop working and barely left the house. Now, her diagnosis has helped her forge a new career as a novelist

Best ‘brainy’ books of this decade

Writers and experts select their favourite book on physics, feminism, medicine, health, economics, psychology and more

Know thyself… by writing your first novel

Dig deep inside, battle self-doubt and become the person you know you can be. Richard Skinner on the healing powers of writing a novel

Asperger’s Children by Edith Sheffer review – the origins of autism in Nazi Vienna

In popular legend, Asperger was an Oskar Schindler figure who shielded his charges from euthanasia. The truth is more uncomfortable

Richard Ovenden, Bodley’s librarian: ‘I feel a huge responsibility. I don’t want to screw it up’

The author and Oxford fellow on the joys of the city’s Covered Market, the importance of tea and debating with his daughter

Matt Haig: ‘As a young man, I wanted everything loud and intense’

The writer talks about combatting his fear of the future, anxiety and appreciating life on low-volume