Power Writing began as a weekly newsletter in April 2006. Its purpose? To give tips and advice about writing, to tell interesting stories and to help writers everywhere work faster, better. I distribute the newsletter by email to thousands of readers around the world every week and, since March 2012, it has become the Tuesday entry of my blog.
You can read many Power Writing entries here – I back-entered all columns until the beginning of 2009, and a handful of ones that were earlier than that. But I hope you’ll consider subscribing, too. Just enter your name and email in the box next to my photo on the home page of my website. If you do that, you’ll not only receive Power Writing by email each week, you’ll also automatically get access to a 10-minute video on how to unblock your writing.
Reading time: About 3 minutes Do you find yourself ignoring the writing you need to be doing? Or avoiding thinking about what went wrong in the past? You may be suffering from recency bias…. Even if you don’t know it by name, I’ll bet you’ve experienced recency bias. That’s the formal name for the human […]
Is recency bias harming your writing? Read More »
Reading time: About 3 minutes If you can’t answer the question, “what is bike shedding,” you may be doing it yourself — to your own disadvantage as a writer… My son phoned me recently to talk about… bike shedding. When he used the word, I was certain I must have misunderstood. He’s a keen cyclist,
What is bike shedding? And why you need to stop doing it Read More »
Reading time: About 4 minutes Are you a person who thinks slow writing is inevitable? It needn’t be. If you want to bump up your speed, question the assumptions you’re making…. I’ve just read a marvelous non-fiction book by self-confessed productivity geek Oliver Burkeman. The name of it is, Four Thousand Weeks. And here’s the deal
How to make your slow writing go faster Read More »
Reading time: About 4 minutes What is a form letter? The word “form” should give you a clue. Here’s a detailed explanation as to why you should never send one…. Are you guilty of sending form letters? I have a long-established blog about writing and I get about a dozen form letters a week from
What is a form letter? And why you shouldn’t send one Read More »
Reading time: About 3 minutes If you’d promised to become a more regular writer in 2022 and you’re already failing at your resolution, here’s how to stop putting off your writing… It’s nearing the end of January, the time when New Year’s resolutions start to fade into the background. Soon, they will become like the
How to stop putting off your writing Read More »
Reading time: About 3 minutes If you’ve ever chafed against limits — time, money, raw materials or client demands — read today’s post to learn how to be more creative despite constraints… One of my clients emailed me this week with an important question about habits. “I often try to balance between routine and getting
How constraints help you learn how to be more creative Read More »
Reading time: About 3 minutes If you don’t know how to meet deadlines, my hunch is that you frequently say something like, ‘I’ll do this by the end of the month.’ Here’s why you should stop… How often do you tell yourself the lie that you’ll finish your project, report, chapter or even entire book,
Stop saying, ‘I’ll do this by the end of the month’ Read More »
Reading time: Less than 4 minutes If you’ve never learned how to deal with guilt, make doing so one of your most important goals for 2022… I have many flaws and shortcomings. For example, I’m blindingly impatient, especially with myself. I’m so persistent that you might be inclined to call me stubborn. And I occasionally
How to deal with guilt Read More »
Reading time: About 4 minutes Are you the type of person who finds editing to be a discouraging, torturous process? Here’s how to come to terms with editing…. Many of the people I work with start off by detesting writing. Instead, they’d much rather be editing. In fact, I’d say this describes about 80% of
Come to terms with editing — here’s how Read More »
Reading time: Less than 4 minutes Is it worth even thinking about writing during holiday time? If your answer is “maybe,” consider the ways in which you might be able to improve your focus… While many writing bloggers are currently addressing burning issues like best holiday gifts for writers and how to take a break during
How to improve your focus — during or after holidays… Read More »
