General and Informational

6 Reasons to Outline Your Book

There's nothing wrong with pantsing a manuscript -- I've done it and loved it. But here, I give you half a dozen reasons why plotting it all out makes sense. https://youtu.be/W9m26GIxVMw Watch/Subscribe For me, when...

Takingdictation.com Goes Biweekly

Dear readers, Those of you who follow my work know that I have maintained a weekly blog schedule for a long time. I have no shortage of ideas and advice I want to share, so...

Portmanteau: When Smashing Words Together Sets Writers Free

If you know me really well, you know that I absolutely love bad TV. We're talking Xena tossing around a baby in the middle of a fight, classics like The Blob, and of course, Mechagodzilla...

5 Places to Write That Aren’t Coffee Shops

The picture is familiar -- a writer, furiously typing away at a laptop, sipping a beverage, contentedly pausing here and there to people watch as people come and go from the coffee shop. The first...

28 of the Most Inspirational Quotes About Writing

Sometimes, when I sit alone at my desk writing, I get despondent. What is it all for, all this sitting and typing and churning out words? Who in the world possibly could understand? In fact,...

8 Influential Books That Changed My Life

Write for the right reasons. There are other professions where it's way easier to make money, so focus on making a difference with influential books or other content. Because I didn't have a lot of...

Why I Ditched My Social Media Scheduler (and How I Survive Without It)

For years now, I've used one social media scheduler or another, planning my posts in advance. I don't plan for any particular campaign strategy, but rather to gain flexibility in my schedule. But just this...
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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...
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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...
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5 Truths No One Tells Writers (But Totally Should)

If you’re taking writing seriously, then you probably already are familiar with some of the most common truths of the trade, such as the fact lots of great manuscripts end up in the slush pile....