Hi Folks, Soon I’ll begin a blog post series on being a professional writer. As a preface, this post will provide an overview. If you have friends who are writers, please tell them about the series. This will be an important series for anyone who is serious about being or becoming a professional writers. Generally, I’m going to take a different tack with these posts too. Instead of telling you what I think you should do, … Read more
Hi Folks, One of my StoneThread Publishing authors and I were discussing possibly giving away a “sampler” that contains, say, the first 20 pages or so of four different books. If I have 32 books, I’d create 8 samplers. The author originally was talking about creating printed samplers in POD. The discussion led from why I wouldn’t prepare printed samplers to what I could do and what the author could do. I decided it’s is an … Read more
Hi Folks, When I was first learning to play the guitar at the age of 14, I was frustrated. Even after I learned to chord cleanly, nothing ever sounded quite the way it had when I’d heard it on the radio or when my uncle or others had played it. I checked and double-checked my chording, the progressions and timing between chords, and even how I was holding the guitar. Nothing seemed to make a difference. … Read more
Hi Folks, When I edit a manuscript, my sole purpose is to make the reading experience seamless for the reader, thereby enhancing the writer’s reputation for excellent writing. When I’m finished there should be no rough edges over which the reader can stumble, no ambiguity or lags in the flow of information that can momentarily confuse the reader, and no punctuation that fails to direct the reading of the work and help convey the mood of … Read more
Hi Folks, The Microsoft Word for Writers series will return on October 30, but right now I wanted to share this very important reprint with you. I’ve trimmed away the non-essentials but kept the main points and the rationale. I’ve indicated omissions with an ellipsis. This series of excerpts is reprinted with permission from “The Book Marketing Expert newsletter,” a free ezine offering book promotion and publicity tips and techniques. http://www.amarketingexpert.com. Where I added anything, it’s … Read more
Hi Folks, At this writing, the first post in this series (Preaching to the Choir) garnered one response from a writer who thought perhaps I was being “snarky”—that well-intended comment led to Preaching to the Choir, Part Two—and two more comments that brought to mind an old quote. I can’t quite remember it, but to paraphrase, “A piece of writing is never finished, but the deadline comes anyway.” In the first post of this series, in … Read more
Hi Folks, First, a housekeeping note: I intended for the following post to sound a bit cynical and humorous. When it came out this morning, I heard a note of seriousness in it that I did not intend. Please read beyond the words and take it as a tongue-in-cheek piece. Thanks, Harvey After I posted Preaching to the Choir and wagged my finger, I guess, at writers everywhere who submit work that isn’t ready to be … Read more
Hi Folks, As the title implies, I suspect what I’m about to write will do little good, if any, but I guess I kind’a sort’a gotta write it anyway since I took on the role of Writing Instructor what sometimes seems like a millennium ago. Okay, so here goes. Ready? Okay. Here it comes. DON’T SUBMIT WORK THAT ISN’T READY! Now I can understand submitting work that you believe is ready. For example, say you’ve finished … Read more
Hi Folks, I work with computers a lot, for both my personal work as well as for editing and cover design and web design clients. I transitioned from my IBM Selectric to my first dedicated word processor—a Brother with a 1” tall by about 6” wide screen—in the early ‘90s, and from that word processor to my first computer in the mid-‘90s. I developed my first website in 1996. You can’t do that without learning pretty … Read more