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: Less than 3 minutes People often laugh when I use the phrase “crappy first draft,” but I’m serious about it. Producing one is exactly what will turn you into a professional writer… Every beginning writer I know abhors the idea of a crappy first draft. It’s embarrassing, mortifying and humiliating. […]
The JOY of the crappy first draft Read More »
Reading time: Less than 3 minutes Do you suffer from the toxic combination of writing and perfectionism? If so, I suspect the heart of the issue may be your own grandiosity… I’m not typically grandiose about my writing but I do have overblown, elaborate or pretentious moments in other parts
Is grandiosity hurting your writing? Read More »
Reading time: Less than 3 minutes Has anyone ever told you that sitting is the new smoking? Here’s what I’m doing about that…. I didn’t make a new year’s resolution to use a standing desk. It just kind of crept up on me… If you’ve read my column for any
Hello, meet my new standing desk Read More »
Reading time: Just over 2 minutes When making your holiday plans, think about the neuroscience of willpower and writing before taking your break… I’m a sucker for free shipping. In fact, that’s why there’s never any shipping charge for my own book. So, when I bought a bunch of Amazon titles for Christmas recently, it
Holidays, writing & the neuroscience of willpower Read More »
Reading time: Less than 3 minutes Have you ever wondered how to fight perfectionism? I’ve battled it for many years. Let me share my strategy… Born into a highly competitive family, with a father — a writer — who believed his five children always needed to try a whole lot harder,
Why writers need to practice generosity Read More »
Reading time: Less than 3 minutes Here’s a new verb: to satisfice. And let me explain why you should satisfice your writing… When my triplets were born in 1994, I knew I needed help. That said, we didn’t want to hire a nanny. We had no space in our house
Why you should satisfice your writing Read More »
Reading time: Less than 3 minutes Is writing a chore that you dread? Here are some suggestions for how to make writing more fun… Would you rather write a blog post or go play a game of Hearts? Do your household budget or read a novel? Produce a report for
How to ‘game’ your writing Read More »
Reading time: About 3 minutes Looking for some book suggestions in time for Christmas? Here’s my roundup based on my reading so far this year. My habit is to post for you the names of all the books I’ve read, twice a year. Last July, I told you about the
Recommended books: Christmas 2014 Read More »
Reading time: About 3 minute Are you afraid of self-editing? Here’s how to make editing less daunting. Instead of vaguely aspiring to make your text perfect, pass through it many times looking for specific problems…. One of my clients used to find writing horrifying, frightful and nerve-racking. But as a
How to make editing less daunting Read More »
Reading time: Less than 3 minutes Side projects are things we do that aren’t our main jobs. Does that thought invigorate you or make your heart sink? I’m firmly in the former camp… This blog/newsletter started as a side project. Back in 2006, I had a writing/editing contract with a big corporation that
How side projects can help keep you sane Read More »
