Reading time: About 5 minutes Here are my 10 favourite articles or posts from last month, focusing on the most useful, helpful and healthful pieces for writers. Covid, fires, floods, police violence, demonstrations, elections… What’s next? Swarming locusts? If you want a break from all the horror, check out 10 […]
PubCoach top 10: September 2020 Read More »
Many clients tell me — with something approaching shame in their voices — that they have no writing talent. Usually, they are surprised when I tell them it doesn’t matter. While talent makes life easier, it doesn’t eliminate the need for hard work. And many people with talent can’t be bothered doing the hard work.
Do you have a growth mindset? 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 several similes from American journalist Farhad Manjoo… Don’t panic or anything, but machines are learning how to write. New artificial intelligence software, called GPT-3, has been created
The figurative language of Farhad Manjoo…. Read More »
Reading time: Less than one 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: punctilious… In a riveting novel, a young nun is sent by the Vatican to investigate allegations of misconduct at a Catholic school
What does the word punctilious mean? Read More »
Reading time: Just over 3 minutes A simple strategy like time-blocking can make a huge difference to your writing productivity — and to your ongoing happiness… Did my headline get your attention? If so, you may be wondering about the connection between better writing and better living. I’m also sure
How time-blocking can improve your writing — and your life Read More »
If you’re like many of the writers I work with, you often run out of time for writing. You may have a demanding family life. A difficult boss. Or a lot of people who depend on you. But the bigger problem may be your inability to say no. If you want to write, you need
Do you know how to say no? 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 series of similes from author Ling Ma… Chinese American novelist Ling Ma (pictured above) won a 2018 Kirkus Prize for her first novel Severence. Her work
The figurative language of Ling Ma… Read More »
Reading time: Less than 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: maieutics… When I read the memoir Uncanny Valley by Anna Wiener, I encountered several new-to-me words. One was chelonian and the other,
What does the word maieutics mean? Read More »
Reading time: Less than 4 minutes If every day is a bad day, you may be facing trouble. Here are nine ways to prevent and recover from burnout…. Burnout is a stealth operator. I experienced it when I was in my mid-20s, working in stress-laden environment — my parents’ business,
How to prevent and recover from burnout Read More »
Thanks to the Get It Done group, I have the chance to have many delightful conversations with many interesting people — all of you! I’m currently working with my webmaster to try to devise a way in which we can all be in broader conversation with each other more easily (watch for developments in the
What are the benefits of writing? Read More »
