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 Are you writing for the right reasons? You might want to consider the words of singer Freddie Mercury before you continue… Every day — I try and I try and I try — But everybody wants to put me down They say I’m goin’ crazy […]
A writing lesson from Freddie Mercury Read More »
Reading time: About 3 minutes Do you ever need help finding information? There’s nothing better than exactly the right reference. Here’s a list…. One of my dirty little secrets is that I have a Facebook account but check it only about once every three months. Juxtapose this with the habits
A plethora of references to improve your writing Read More »
Reading time: About 3 minutes Improve your writing habits by ensuring you get a change, even if you can’t get a rest… I recently hitched my wagon to a Bombardier Regional Jet (followed by a rental car) and spent five days wandering Saskatchewan. I was speaking at a conference for
Do your writing habits need changing? Read More »
Reading time: About 2.5 minutes Mothers, doctors and engineers all benefit from charts. But it’s a strategy that many writers overlook. Have you ever thought of drawing up a writing record? Sixteen years ago, I spent much of my life feeding babies. Heck, in those days, I spent all of
Why you should chart your writing like a doctor Read More »
Reading time: About 3 minutes We know music has charms to soothe a savage breast. But can a little background music help the savage writer? Read on to find out. After I’d graduated from grade 12 and moved on to higher learning — English 100 and Philosophy 120 — I
Does your writing require some background music? Read More »
Reading time: About 3 minutes I was a drip this weekend — fortunately, not the kind of drip who left her writing ’til the very last minute. Are you equally prepared to stop procrastinating? It was Friday night and I was sitting at my computer studying Google maps. I had to
Are you a drip who needs to stop procrastinating? Read More »
Reading time: About 3 minutes Are you having trouble persuading yourself to write? If, like many of us, you marinate yourself in guilt, perhaps it’s not so surprising you have writer’s block. Here are five ways to cure the problem. One of the few benefits of aging is that you
5 questions to help you beat writer’s block Read More »
Reading time: About 3 minutes Many people sing the praises of a 12-step program; others make jokes about them. Have you ever thought of trying one for your writing? I’ll give you the formula, below. I’m no hockey fan, so when I was tired and bored one evening last week,
A 12-step program for writers who care about readers Read More »
Reading time: Less than 3 minutes When you write do you ever feel the urge to tell your readers everything you know about your subject? Today’s column is a lesson on why we all need to learn that less is sometimes more. I spent three days last week in a
When a little learning is memorable Read More »
Reading time: About 2.5 minutes Does the thought of storytelling make your blood run cold? Do you worry that you don’t have the time for it? Or that your client really isn’t interested in it? Here are my thoughts on how to make storytelling your friend — and a key
How to use storytelling in a “hurry up” world Read More »
