Reading time: About 1 minute This is my weekly installment of “writing about writing,” in which I scan the world to find websites, books and articles to help other writers. Today I discuss a useful blog post by Susan Weinschenk. I’m a big fan of Susan Weinschenk AKA the Brain Lady, a PhD psychologist who writes about how to […]
Four magic questions… Read More »
Reading time: About 2 minutes My husband and I recently returned from a three-week trip to Europe. Here is part 2 of a three-part series on each of the cities we visited. Today I focus on Prague with a piece on the importance of separating writing and editing. (Part 1, on Amsterdam, is still available for those who
Writing advice from the Czech president Read More »
Reading time: Less than 3 minutes How long does it take you to write something? How you answer this question may be one of the most important decisions you make… Our society lavishes praise on anything involving time and money. Is something expensive? It must be really good. Did you take a long time to
How long will it take you to write this? Read More »
Reading time: Less than 1 minute Have you ever had to work with someone who can’t manage to meet his or her deadlines? I think you’re going to find my post today very useful…. I don’t miss deadlines. I grew up in the newspaper business (my parents owned a weekly newspaper) and deadlines must be
Why you need fake deadlines Read More »
Reading time: About 3 minutes Would you like to banish your writer’s block? Here is an easy-to-implement suggestion that’s guaranteed to work… Clients of mine are sometimes surprised when I suggest that they write for only five minutes a day. “That sounds crazy, embarrassing,” they tell me. “What possible benefit could I get from that?”
The magic of 5 minutes Read More »
Reading time: About 1 minute This is my weekly installment of “writing about writing,” in which I scan the world to find websites, books and articles to help other writers. Today I discuss an article written for the New York Times by Danny Heitman… The debate over ‘writing short’ versus ‘writing long’ has been around since Johannes
Refining a draft is a process of elimination Read More »
Reading time: About 3 minutes Does your failure to do adequate writing planning ever lead to catastrophe? I know mine sometimes does… I have the kind of voice that often makes people ask me if I’ve ever worked in radio. I wish I could answer yes! My deep alto, with reasonably crisp articulation, would have
What a recording studio taught me about writing planning Read More »
Reading time: Less than 3 minutes What do you do in December? Is it a party month for you? Or, like me, do you enjoy the chance to reflect and plan…. My worst December memory? Actually, I have two. 1) My parents owned a struggling weekly newspaper and one Christmas — the only time of
What are you doing with the rest of the year? Read More »
Word count: 722 words Reading time: Less than 3 minutes Are you one of those people who thinks that change is bad? Read on to learn about the benefits of fluctuations… My husband and I went for a walk in Capilano Canyon last week. We skipped the famous suspension bridge and instead hiked up to
3 simple reasons to accept fluctuations Read More »
Word count: 706 words Reading time: Less than 3 minutes People often ask me how much writing success I attribute to hard work versus talent. But few people think to question the element of luck. Here’s the role I think it plays… A friend of mine, who’s travelled widely in S.E. Asia, recently told me
Is your writing “lucky” enough? Read More »
