(5 min read.) This big creative writing advice can help you write work that matters to strangers. It’s also part of why bad books sell so well. Have you read “Twilight” or “Fifty Shades?” How about “The DaVinci Code?” They didn’t tell good stories. But… Read More »Creative Writing Advice: Make Chances to Feel
(3 min read.) There’s as much creative writing advice on the internet as there is plastic in the polluted ocean. As a writing coach, I see this doing damage. I’m not against advice. On this blog alone I’ve got dozens of practical strategies, big and… Read More »Overwhelmed by Creative Writing Advice? It’s a VIBE.
(4 mins read) Here’s my honest mantra for writer’s block. It’s factual, helpful, and based in neuroscience. I’m a trained deep work facilitator and award-winning author who writes a million words a year. Borrow this. Your Mantra for Writer’s Block Your mantra for writer’s block… Read More »Need a Mantra for Writer’s Block? (Honesty is the solution)
(7 min read.) Forbidden writing tip: I edit as I write. It makes my writing better. Here’s how to edit a first draft WHILE you write it. I’ll also share quotes from a few famous folks who do it, and offer some good practical reasons… Read More »How to Edit a First Draft (Forbidden Writing Tips)
(3 min read.) During private writing coaching sessions, the question I ask my clients the most often isn’t exactly about writing craft, motivation, habit, style, structure, or anything else complicated. The question is very loving and kind out loud, but in print it seems sort… Read More »My Private Writing Coaching Question that Makes People Cry?
(5 min read) If you’re a perfectionist writer, I want to tell you right now that it doesn’t have to f*ckin’ matter. You can keep all your perfectionist tendencies and still be productive, make work that’s beloved, and (like me) even have a professional writing… Read More »Practical Tips for the Perfectionist Writer (I really live this way.)
(3 min read.) If you can read this, stop playing small. It’s our job to save the world. By writing. And I don’t mean some touchy-feely “creativity helps us save ourselves” hand-knit pottery crap, I mean we’re gonna save each other. In practical terms. Like… Read More »Ooops, It’s Time To Save the World by Writing?
(5 min read.) Perfectionism is awesome. I’m a professional writing coach and I heart perfectionists. Being perfect is not an unattainable standard. Some of us ARE perfect. (At least some of the time.) People have made perfect books. There will be more perfect poems. There… Read More »I LOVE PERFECTIONISTS: Perfectionism is not a Problem
(6 min read.) Repeat your best ideas. This quick creative advice can help make your work more unique, more impactful, and (yeah, I’ll admit it) easier to make. If you do it with some flair, repeating your best ideas can even make people LIKE your… Read More »Realistic Creative Advice: Repeat your Best Ideas
(5 min read.) Writing a first draft is a thrill. I’ve written thousands of first drafts in my 20+ year career as a creative writer. Some were easy, some were hard. I’ve learned STUFF. I hope my sweat and mistakes can save you some time.… Read More »Writing a First Draft: How to Do It, Y’all (5 Tips & What to Avoid)
(3 min read.) Ok, here’s my real tea on the writer-reader relationship. I’ll give you four practical rules to write by at the end, but first I need to explain why they matter. The Core Writer-Reader Relationship Your reader owes you nothing and you owe… Read More »Nailing the Writer-Reader Relationship
(3 min read.) “It all made sense at 2am but I forgot it when I woke up.” Lost your creative idea? Here’s some comfort from me and from Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. If you had a good creative idea and feel like you lost it, that’s… Read More »Forgot Your Creative Idea? (Pep Talk: Good Ideas Can’t Be Lost.)