Mint 13 is based on the more stable Ubuntu 12.04 LTS. If stability is your
thing then LTS is the way to go. It has a proven record. To play it is nice
to try newer things and discover adventure. Since I am inherently unstable
;-), I forego the LTS. Actually, I think that I have not upgraded my eeePC
yet, so I have a bit of stability yet.

I have not experienced any lockups in awhile. It could be hardware related,
but that would show in both boot OSes and not just one. Although sometimes
OSes run differently, especially if it is optimized for one and not the
other. It could be a memory leak in one application or running out of
resources in which case I would monitor the resources. Or it could be a
driver issue. You could have dust bunnies inside. There are many things
that could come into play.

I would be more interested in hearing about your writing as well.