My fourth of seven writing tips for writing just about anything is one that too many of us forget: Avoid passive sentences in favor of active writing and more vigorous sentence construction. Passive: This charming house will save you money. Active: Save money and...
As you may remember, rule number one for writing just about anything boils down to simply getting started. Don't worry about how your piece reads until you have a solid beginning and a plan for where you're headed. That gets us to rule number two, which I'll keep...
Is your business card getting round-filed hours or days after you give it out? If you’re honest with yourself about what you do with most of the business cards you receive, the answer is probably yes. Even if your business card avoids the trash can, in a stack of...
People often assume that choosing a writing coach or a blog coach to work with implies that you’re incapable of writing on your own and need someone to hold your hand. That may be true, and there’s nothing wrong with that. But a writing coach relationship extends way...
These days, the publishers’ buzz word is platform, which means that writers have to bring to the table an audience they’ve built up through giving speeches, conducting workshops, writing articles or columns, or having a visible web presence. In short, in addition to...
Why do so many people try to write without writing an outline? In most cases, it just doesn’t make sense. Say you want to drive from San Francisco to Manhattan. You know that you have to head east, so you jump in your car and start driving. You may eventually reach...
Writers crack me up. We’re so insecure, we wonder if we’re good enough to be coached. When we get past that, we think we have to perfect first draft copy before letting a writing coach see it. That makes about as much sense as cleaning your house before the maid...
Like it or not, our written words reflect upon us way longer than we would sometimes like. That’s especially true in business, where email communication has supplanted many a phone conversation. As a writing coach, I work with people who love writing and those who...
Sometimes, I crack myself up with my own writing. I suppose that’s not PC to admit, but if we writers don’t appreciate ourselves, what’s the point? So there I was writing about my first Pilates private session. I knew exactly how I was going to start the piece. For...
Packaging isn’t everything, but it’s not chopped liver either. A mediocre or downright shoddy book can look lovely with a sophisticated design on quality paper. But even a beautifully laid out quality piece of work can be cheapened if printed on inferior text stock....
