Hi friend, When I was a kid, every summer I would check out a giant pile of books from the library for the long drive up to northern Wisconsin. I could actually read in the car back then, stretched out on the back deck of the family station wagon, surrounded by luggage. Now, I load up on audiobooks for summer road trips. My favorite place to do that is Chirp — a discount audiobook site. No membership or subscription, just audiobooks, and lots of them. And they run a lot of limited-time, steep...
18 days ago • 1 min read
Writing practices for dedicated writers Happy mid-June, Reader. As we approach the solstice, I bring you a few things to brighten your day in uncertain times: An almost-free audiobook A give-away book Encouragement to branch out Let's dive in. The Writer's Process audiobook for 99 cents Did you know there's an audiobook of The Writer's Process, my best-known book? I'm basically giving it away for the next few weeks on a service called Chirp (for listeners in the US and Canada). If you don't...
25 days ago • 1 min read
The Writing Voice exercise for June + more Hi Reader, Last time, I asked about your thoughts on AI. So many people responded—and, as you might guess, reactions to using generative AI were mixed. We have many cautious adopters on this list, and most of you draw a firm line under using AI to write—at least, for the writing that matters. Several people report using it for brainstorming and unblocking. One has experimented using AI for graphics for her blog (with mixed results). Morgan uses it in...
about 1 month ago • 2 min read
Writing Practices Mid-May Edition Hi Reader, I've been doing a lot of thinking and reading lately about AI and writing. Why? In addition to the unending flood of AI chatter, I wonder if I need to update my book about writing at work (The Workplace Writer's Process) with advice on where/how AI fits. If you have any thoughts, I'd love to hear them. (I'm not eager to do a second edition.) In case you're thinking about writing and AI, here are a few sources that have helped me wrestle with the...
about 2 months ago • 2 min read
Writing voice exercise for May Dear Reader, Did you try a "tiny writing experiment" in the last couple weeks? I'd love to hear how it went. People have been sending me theirs, and the experiments are as diverse as the people doing them! One writer is experimenting with changing the place she writes for a while. Another is aiming for simply "a single coherent paragraph about anything every day" — love it. Congrats to Karen for winning the drawing for the Tiny Experiments book. She plans to use...
2 months ago • 1 min read
Hi Reader, Writing nonfiction? If so, I've got a conference for you: the Nonfiction Writers Conference. Most writing conferences trend toward fiction. This one is all nonfiction, all the time! It happens May 7-9 and is entirely virtual, so no need to arrange travel or pack bags. When you register, you can: Attend sessions covering a range of writing and authorship topics, and sign up for recordings and transcripts for those you cannot catch in real time Hear best-selling author Roxane Gay...
3 months ago • 1 min read
Try tiny experiments instead How's your writing going, Reader? Are you where you want to be with it? Many people feel a sense of inadequacy or guilt when they fail to meet aggressive writing goals. In the past couple weeks, several people have reported problems doing their writing due to real life challenges: illness, caring for family members, work crises, etc. And they usually feel badly about missing their writing planned goals. So, in this email, we're going to talk about another way to...
3 months ago • 2 min read
It's time for another writing voice exercise Dear Reader, In working with nonfiction authors, I often recommend they break up a few long sentences to aid comprehension or change the rhythm of the work. If you live firmly in the "long sentences best serve my work" camp, beware. Too many long sentences can get in the way of comprehension, and then your relationship with the reader suffers. (No one wants to read a sentence twice to understand it.) This month, I invite you to attention to your...
3 months ago • 1 min read
2 posts, 1 book, and more good news Hi, Reader! We have a lot to cover this time, including: The March give-away Two writing posts! Good (writing) news Let's dive in! How to Submit: The March book drawing This month's book is a gem for anyone trying to figure out where and how to submit their poems, stories, essays, creative nonfiction, or books. How to Submit: Getting Your Writing Published by Literary Magazines and Small Presses by Dennis James Sweeney This book changed the way I think...
4 months ago • 2 min read