TakingDictation

balance

How to Balance Spontaneous Creativity and Planning as a Writer

Your brain is prone to find solutions when you let it wander and don’t think too hard. So you have to be ready to write anytime, anywhere. You can't force the story, article, or other...
printing-stamps

5 Powerhouse Writing Tools No Author Should Be Without

Writing is EXACTLY the same as any other profession in that a few great tools can make a world of difference in the results you get. I’m compiling a list of some of my favorite...
Picture1-1

6 Benefits of Having Multiple Writing Projects

With a Type A personality, I have to admit there’s something beautiful in being laser-focused on just one thing for a while. You can get into a state of flow that enables you to produce...
building

5 Things You Should Be Doing to Build a Writer Platform

A “platform” as a writer refers to the channels you use to engage with your audience. The more channels you use and the more people you engage with regularly, the bigger your platform is. So...
MLK

Yes, Opinion Writing Is Real Writing with Real Value. Here’s Why

Let me start by saying I don’t lose the irony that this entire post is opinion writing. With that out of the way (phew!), I’ve been trying to spend more time interacting with writing groups...
Picture1

Should You Write in Multiple Genres?

A while back, I had the opportunity to attend the Northwestern Christian Writers Conference (virtually, thanks to COVID-19). In one of the panels, another writer asked a relatively innocent question: Is it okay to write...

7 Ways to Boost Your Writing Confidence

Writing can be incredibly rewarding, but it’s not for the faint of heart. It takes patience and tough skin, so you have to be confident in what you’re doing to be successful. That confidence isn’t...
Picture1-1

The Three Main Options to Publish Your Book

You’ve got three big options if you want to publish a book: traditional publishing, independent publishing, and self-publishing. These three options are very different animals and will suit different authors in different ways. Traditional publishing...

Why Every Writer Should Keep a Gratitude Journal (and How to Make One Work)

You’ve heard the buzz, right? About gratitude journals? Keep one and your fairy godmother will magically appear, boop you with her wand *boop!* and make all of your woes go poof. At least, that’s the...
snail

Querying? Here’s How to Speed Up the Process

Nature photo created by wirestock – www.freepik.com Regardless of whether you’re sending off a short 300-word article or a novel, querying is a major part of a writer’s life. The trouble is, it can take...