Writing Strong Endings
by Ana @ The Writer Today endingstipsJust as the beginning of a story is important, so is the ending. Once you get the reader hooked on your story, then your ending should be the clincher in which the reader says: “Wow, this was a great book. I can’t wait to read the next one!”.
5 Writing Tips From the Editor-in-Chief of Alive Magazine
by Laurie Pawlik-Kienen @ Urban Muse Writer adviceeditorstipsIt’s rare for writers to get an inside peek into the editor-in-chief’s job, so when I received this email from Terry-Lynn Stone, the big kahuna at British Columbia-based alive magazine, I jumped on the chance to share her tips!
Creating Multiple Streams of Income for Writers
by Laurie Pawlik-Kienlen @ The Adventurous Writer moneytipsFinancial expert Brandon Wilkins describes how successful writers can create multiple income streams – and why we want to! The ideal way to earn money is to find something that fulfills your passion, talents, and motivation – not just your desire to be a rich famous published writer. For more info on creating wealth, click on Wilkins’ book, Getting Rich is Simple…But It Ain’t Easy! And here are his tips on creating multiple streams of income for writers…
What’s In A Name? The Truth About Sticks and Stones
by Hannah Gilead @ NouveauWriter characterstipsGovernment agencies have been known to refuse parents’ requests to give their children eccentric names. The jury is out when it comes to the real psychological damage such names may inflict on the self-esteem and future success of these kids. But when it comes to naming literary characters, is there such a thing as a bad name? Will the wrong name hurt your story? And where can you turn for inspiring ideas?
Top 5 tips for beating blogger’s block
by Joanna @ Confident Writing article ideasideastipswriters blockWe might be staring at a blank screen nowadays but the feeling of frustration is just the same. So what can you do if you get hit by blogger’s block? Here are my top 5 tips for getting your creative juices flowing again:
Time Management: How Many Hours Can You Fit In One Day?
by James @ Men with Pens time managementtipsAre you overwhelmed at how much work you need to accomplish in one day? Do the projects keep piling up in direct proportion to the number of distractions you have? Do you look at your list of things to do and wish it would just go away? Have you ever spent too much time trying to finish one project at the expense of letting other projects slide?
5 Ways to Increase Your Writing Income
by Susan Johnstone @ Quips and Tips ideasmoneytipsGoing “commercial” is one way to increase your writing income – and there’s nothing wrong with it – but there are other ways to support yourself as a writer! For more insight into a writer’s life, click on Only as Good as Your Word: Writing Lessons From My Favorite Literary Gurus by Shapiro. And, read on for Johnston’s tips for increasing your writing income…
The Blogging Habit
by Joanna @ Confident Writing inspirationmotivationtipsBlogging is a powerful writing habit to develop. With time, repetition and regular practice you’ll find that: Your creative mind generates new material, day after day, week after week. New ideas for posts will pop, unbid, into your mind, asking to be written up and shared. You notice words, images, resources, ideas that you can use as quarry for posts. The feedback, responses and comments from readers help you to develop new material to share…
8 Tips on Starting a Book Club for Writers
by Daphne Gray-Grant @ Quips and Tips tipswriting groupsMy two book clubs are very different from one other – and I love them both! Here’s what I’ve learned – my tips for starting and running a book club for writers. Thanks to Tumblemoose for prompting me to write this article! Fellow scribes, if you want to be successful writers, you need to know about your fellow man. And as Huxley says, one way to learn about mankind is to study books. If you want a book club journal (I love the one my husband gave me!), click on Books I’ve Read, a Reader’s Journal by Write it Down Series. And, read on for my tips on starting a book club for writers…
5 Ways to Salvage Writing Disasters
by Daphne Gray-Grant @ Quips and Tips editingtipsPublication coach Daphne Gray-Grant shares five ways to salvage writing disasters – from poorly written articles to weak anecdotes.
Writing is a long, fluid process – and writing well is even longer and more fluid! Gray-Grant’s tips on salvaging writing disasters are excellent ways to ensure you’re writing fluidly and well. And, have you heard of Rejected: Tales of the Failed, Dumped, and Canceled, edited by Jon Friedman? It’s a funny compendium of authors, cartoonists, and columnists who were rejected from everywhere from Marie Claire to Buddy Hackett interviews for Time magazine. These writers’ stories give hope to hopeless writers!
Breaking Writer’s Block
by James @ Men with Pens inspirationtipswriters blockIf you’re a freelance writer, you’ve certainly sat down to write at some point and couldn’t find the right words. Worse, you could have ended up staring at a blank page. Writer’s block happens and it brings creative juices to a grinding halt. Most likely, if you’re a freelance writer, you panic. This is your job, after all, and no writing means no income. What do you do? How do you break through writer’s block? Here are some ideas for breaking writer’s block…
Tips for Writers Who Want to Blog Full-Time
by Laurie Pawlik-Kienlen @ Quips and Tips freelancingfull-timegetting startedlife balancetipsI’ve been transitioning from full-time freelance writer to full-time blogger (and will accept magazine assignments when assigned, my editor friends!). Here’s what I’ve learned so far – my tips for writers who want to blog full-time.
First, a quip from Sylvia Plath: “And by the way, everything in life is writable about if you have the outgoing guts to do it, and the imagination to improvise,” she said. “The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.”
Got guts? Blog away, fellow scribes. Click on Darren Rowse’s Problogger: Secrets for Blogging Your Way to a Six-Figure Income for a detailed description of how to make big bucks blogging, and read on for my tips…
How to Write Articles That Sell
by James @ Men with Pens moneytipsArticle writing for web content is one of the hottest things in the virtual world these days, and it is a great way for new writers to start turning their talent into dollars. Writing articles that sell, though, isn’t always easy. Here are some tips that may help.
The Introductory Paragraph: Building the Foundation
by James @ Men with Pens blog structuretipsThe first few words of your article are the ones that build the foundation for the rest of your writing. A good introductory paragraph sets the stage and provides context.
Catchy Article Titles Make a Difference
by James @ Men with Pens blog structuretipstitlesA selling article starts with one important part: The title. The title of your article is probably one of the most important factors in whether you attract readers’ interest or they move on. You can be writing about the most boring thing in the world, but a catchy title makes all the difference between a hit and a miss.
Writing Flow: Turning Off the Worry Faucet
by Charlotte Rains Dixon @ Word Strumpet tipswriters flowA few days ago I wrote a post titled, What About Not Writing? which pondered the question of whether it was ever a good idea to take a break from writing. As is often the case, the post garnered some interesting responses, because, well, I have fabulously interesting readers (Brief aside: as a general rule, writers are the most fabulously interesting people in the world, except for the occasional odd duck crank).
Be Serious About Your Skills
by James @ Men with Pens grammarpunctuationtipsThere is more to writing than putting words on paper. Just because you have good imagination and can come up with interesting text doesn’t mean you’re a good writer. Knowing how to write properly is vital to freelance writing success. Nothing you write will read well if you haven’t used language skills to pen your text.
How to Be a Professional Freelance Writer
by James @ Men with Pens client relationshipsfreelancingtipsThere is only one way to be a professional freelance writer: Be a professional. If you are going to break into freelance writing to earn money through your talent and skills, talk the talk and walk the walk. Act like a professional, think like a professional, write like a professional.