(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 creative advice is backed by neuroscience and can help you please readers and build a fanbase. It also makes writing easier. Yup. Repetition makes reading your work more fun. It makes writing less stressful and strenuous, because… 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.)
(2 min read.) You don’t have to write every day. I promise this is better. It helped me build a writing habit without burnout, and now I write a million words a year. Plus, I always have a “just tough enough” level of challenge. This… Read More »How to Build a Writing Habit Without Burnout (My “Four Easy” Rule)
(5 min read.) This is the truth about how I write, plus something at the end that might help you write, too. “What’s your creative process like? What’s your creative writing process?” The creative writing process is not the same for everyone, but we can… Read More »How I Write (Oops, my actual creative writing process.)
(4 min read.) What does a writing coach do? What does a writing coach NOT do? People sometimes come to my sessions confused about this, so I want to help you figure it out. Here’s what to expect from me as a private writing coach.… Read More »What Does a Writing Coach Do?
(5 min read.) Here’s the advice I give most often in my sessions as a private writing coach. Ten little ideas, some practical and a few theoretical. Wrote ‘em up as neat as I could because sharing is caring. They’re also the ten things I… Read More »10 Tips a Private Writing Coach Wants You to Know