Reading time: Less than 1 minute Have you ever had to work with someone who can’t manage to meet his or her deadlines? I think you’re going to find my post today very useful…. I don’t miss deadlines. I grew up in the newspaper business (my parents owned a weekly […]
Why you need fake deadlines Read More »
Reading time: Less than 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about a metaphor from Jack Hitt. I started reading the New York Times on my iPhone a few months ago. I love it! It’s relatively inexpensive ($3.75/week).
The figurative language of Jack Hitt… Read More »
Reading time: About 1 minute Increase your vocabulary and you’ll make your writing much more precise. That’s why I provide a word of the week. Today’s word: boffin. I lost interest in most popular music around 1979 when I graduated from university. I didn’t lose interest in all music, mind
Reading time: Less than 3 minutes When I say there’s value in writers collaborating I DON’T mean “writing together” as Google suggests. I’m referring to a more generic type of collaborating — more like helping and supporting each other. My kids inducted me into the Nerdfighters club, curated and executed by best-selling
The surprise value in collaborating as writers Read More »
Reading time: Less than 1 minute This is my weekly installment of “writing about writing,” in which I scan the world to find websites, books and articles to help other writers. Today I discuss an article on messy desks written by David Burkus… I’ve long advocated that writers clear their desks
The benefits (?!) of messy desks Read More »
Reading time: About 1 minute The next time you face a big communications challenge, see if you can use the benefits of humor… The Abbotsford Police Department is conducting a campaign for better road safety. Their secret weapon? Being funny. For example, there’s the ticketed driver who told an officer, “My dad could buy you!” The
Driving home the benefits of humor… Read More »
Reading time: About 1 minute Increase your vocabulary and you’ll make your writing much more precise. That’s why I provide a word of the week. Today’s word: empirical. Of course I know the meaning of the word empirical. One of the foundations of science, empirical evidence refers to knowledge that is
What does empirical mean? Read More »
Reading time: About 3 minutes Today’s message may seem a little strange but you can learn how to write faster by going on holiday or at least by pretending that you’re going to… We went on the worst holidays ever when I was a kid. We had no money so
How pretending you’re going on holiday can help you write faster Read More »
Reading time: About 1 minute Do you ever ask yourself, ‘how flexible should I be with my writing?’ If you do, here’s my answer… I’ve just finished writing a story that had to be signed off by a host of people from the provincial government. Of course such stories can never
Why writers need to be flexible Read More »
Reading time: About 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about a clever bit of personification from Anthony Lane. Is it possible to personify a person? I think it is, is if person is dead. And if the writer
The figurative language of Anthony Lane… Read More »
