Word count: 530 words Reading time: Just over 2 minutes Do you think that you must brush your teeth for 30 minutes or it’s not worth spending any time with a toothbrush? Of course not. Don’t think that about writing, either! When I was 11 years old, I went to […]
What’s your toothbrush level of writing? Read More »
Word count: 754 words Reading time: About 3 minutes Do you appreciate the value of a substitute or proxy? Sometimes, “replacements” can come in very handy for writers…. I am a perfectionist. This may sound like A Very Good Thing. After all, who wouldn’t want to be perfect, flawless or
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Word count: 730 words Reading time: About 2.75 minutes Do you have good luck when you shop? When you write? While luck is marvellous, it’s not something you should count on any more than you’d expect to be able to find a really cheap tuxedo. Read on to learn why….
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Word count: 750 Reading time: 3 minutes Many of the writers I know find math intimidating. I think it is, too. But that doesn’t stop me from using it! I passed math 11 only by promising to never, ever, take math again. At the time, I thought it was a
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Word count: 691 words Reading time: About 2.5 minutes Don’t be one of those writers who is reluctant to share specifics. You’re not sparing your audience – you’re depriving them! I celebrated Halloween last weekend by doing a “ghost tour.” The event wasn’t in Vancouver, where I’m already on a first-name
Why the devil is in the details Read More »
Word count: 702 words Reading time: About 2.5 minutes I had a pro come to help me clean my office. The cost? Minimal. The benefits? Extraordinary. I’ve never been a hoarder except when it comes to my office. You know what a hoarder is, right? They are displayed in all
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Word count: 648 words Reading time: About 2.5 minutes It’s interesting what people from different creative arts can teach each other. Here is a lesson painter Mark Rothko recently emphasized for me. Six days ago, the only thing I knew about painter Mark Rothko, was that he was an abstract
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Word count: 758 words Reading time: About 3 minutes Do you think being a multi-tasker is a good thing? I’m not sure it’s even a possible thing… Back when my husband was young enough to wear short pants, his mother used to do the family ironing while talking to her mother-in-law,
Do you think you’re a multi-tasker? Read More »
Reading time: About 3 minutes I’m a writer who’s more than ready to sing a battle hymn –- just not one like bestselling author Amy Chua. Much in the news in recent months, the book Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother, irritated me. I’d read the comments in the New York Times, the Guardian, and
Trade the tiger mother for the rooster writer Read More »
Word count: 654 words Reading time: About 2.5 minutes Do you tend to criticize yourself while you write? This self-sabotaging behaviour can spell the beginning of writer’s block. Here’s how to nip it in the bud. One of my 17-year-old daughters sometimes slaps the side of her own head and says,
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