A little over a year ago I wrote a post about the benefits of having a writing accountability partner. I had a writing buddy and we would meet once a week at a coffee shop to work on our books and it worked out really well… until he got a new job AND got married…
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An oft-quoted study found that 81% of Americans want to write a book someday. (I think the other 19% are realists.) But what kind of book do you want to write? In the context of what I discuss here, we’re talking about a book for your business. When I first talk with someone about their…
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Many times when I write about something, I’m really clarifying my thoughts and giving advice to myself. The process of physically writing something out helps me to organize the information, sort through what is pertinent and what is not, and (hopefully) create a logical progression that leads to clear direction. This happens when you teach…
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Easy Read vs. Deep Content I was discussing a recently-released book with a friend the other day. We had both read the book…. Well, he had read it; I was on Chapter 4 and not eager to get back to it. Disclaimer (Not an excuse): I will flat out state that my buddy is a…
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“I always want to say to people who want to be rich and famous: ‘ try being rich first’. See if that doesn’t cover most of it.” – Bill Murray If you think you want to become famous, let’s talk about how NOT to become famous first. Bad Ideas: Being an asshole because you…
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Poach my clients? Not a good idea. Early on, I had someone in one of my networking groups poach one of my (small) clients. She represented a few hundred dollars a month to me. He charged a lot more and convinced her that more meant better. Maybe. Maybe not. All I know is that at…
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Getting free publicity for your book is not difficult if you’re willing to put in the time. Some people are fortunate enough to have the money to hire a publicist, but most independent authors do not have that luxury. Prepare to roll up your sleeves. I work, for the most part, with people who have…
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You’ve decided to hire a book editor and now you need to figure out where to best spend your money. To a large extent, your budget will determine your decision. A smaller budget might afford you only proofreading services whereas a robust budget could hire an editor for copy as well as one for developmental…
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“Edit your own work at your peril,” is the warning you will hear from just about every source. It’s somewhat akin to serving as your own lawyer. It can be done; it’s not recommended. Yet Amazon and other online platforms are filled with self-edited works, both in print and in ebook format, giving rise to…
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There are several types of editing (and editors), but for our purposes, we’ll look at the broad categories of copy and line editing. How do they differ? Copy Editing and Proofreading The copy editor looks for mistakes on a very technical level. Copy editors look for typos, grammar, and spelling errors, but they are more…
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