I went book shopping yesterday. I don't know why I picked up anything. I already had 130 books on my TBR list, three of which were recent arrivals via my boyfriend that I wanted to check out. And I already had six or seven that I have been sitting around various places in the house, [...]
The Outcome Can Terrorize You If there's a thousand ways to do something, there's a thousand ways to do it right. And a thousand ways to muck it up. And the truth is -- you'll never find the process that works for you, without stumbling through a few of those. In On Writing Well, by William Zinsser, [...]
There’s a bunch of apps out there to help you be a better writer. You may want to try a few to see what works for you. May I recommend Oblique Strategies? It’s available for both Android (here) and Apple (here) This sleek, straightforward app is designed to give you simple food for thought and […]
It's a difficult thing, a solid thing, a hard thing: to let go. To release. But, decisions change the world.
Congratulations! You've finished the initial drafts of your manuscript. Maybe you even went through developmental edits or critique partners already. Now, you think you're ready for content editing or line editing. Not so fast. You want everything to be as clean as possible—you want to save yourself the time and money of making editors do [...]
In my years as a developmental editor, ghostwriter, and book reviewer, I've come across a few tricks to breaking down a good story, and a few tips for assembling one. In the discussion about different types of writers -- "planners" vs. "pantsers" -- I tend to come down closer on the side of "planner." I [...]
Ad copy and poetry are about emotion. What's the result? The old tricks work for both.
There's a problem with doing something well: Once is rarely enough. When you do something well, two things can happen: Other people begin to expect more of you, and You begin to expect more of yourself For a writer, this can be great. A well-done piece deserves the admiration it receives, and you [...]
Writing emotions is complicated. Do all your characters' emotions make sense? Tips for writing fiction and nonfiction.
Writers, editors, and others who stare at computers for a long time are at risk of eye strain. Tips to keep your eyes healthy.