Tweet {photo} I’ve been slowed down a bit, but a mountain of obstacles that have suddenly flooded my productivity levels. What’s all this drama about? For some reason, MacAfee (but no other security alert programs) decided to flag my website as a potential security risk. I’ve emailed them and hopefully the issue will sort itself out. There is no risk here people! In addition, I’ve been working on a newspaper article, a magazine article, web content for someone inspiring, on top of my day job. All good stuff. But it makes it hard to keep this up. Which explains why…
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Tweet {photo by} You’ve worked really hard on writing that book, conceiving a new idea or blogging, but you still haven’t seen results with your efforts. Literary agent Kevin Small who I interviewed in part I of this post, sets us straight this time with the unintentional mistakes you could be making that’s sabotaging your career. 1. You’re undisciplined. Yikes. Has Mr. Small been reading my blogs? Yes, folks. He didn’t quite say that us writers are “lazy.” In fact, he said he wouldn’t use that word, but that we have a tendency to be “undisciplined.” I would like to…
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Tweet flickr photo by thekeithhall Here’s a quick tip if you’re feeling stuck on how to market your product or create product descriptions with Wow! Read print catalogs. I have a secret. Not even my husband knows about this one. I devour Victoria Secret’s catalogues, but he thinks it’s for the clothes (although they have great stuff in there!). But I read it for the copy. Whoever writes their copy is genius! These use few words, but the ones they use are compelling, engaging and fun. All things you want to use to sell your stuff (or other’s stuff) right? Things…
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Tweet {flickr photo by: danmachold} I used to exercise 5-6 days a week. When I was in my early twenties and really into it, I would sometimes work out for twice a day 6-7 days a week. I was not an athlete. I did not aspire to be a fitness model. And surprisingly I was slim, but not at all muscular or athletic looking. Maybe I was a bit of addict and had too much time on my hands. But recently, my exercise has tapered down a notch or two. Muscle aches and pains make overdoing it less attractive and…
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Tweet What’s so hard about putting words on paper? Well it’s a lot harder than you think when you bring psychology to the picture. Take your thoughts for example. All those doubts, criticisms, and insecurities from years long gone have piled up. And sometimes when you’re not careful, they’ll peek out at you, disguising themselves as your own thoughts. And the results? Well, it’s not a pretty picture. What Holds You Back from Your Writing flickr photo courtesy of: Lady/Bird In Callings: Finding and Following an Authentic Life, author Gregg Levoy says, “If we don’t confront them, if we don’t even…
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Tweet If you’re an intimidated writing newbie, don’t sweat it. There are a lot of things you can do to get your start while you’re waiting for your experience to catch up with you. {photo by: kandyjaxx} Here are a few things that helped me early on flex my writing muscles and get comfortable before I started full-time freelancing: 1. I sent in mini practice articles. You might know them as the letter to the editor. I’ve been sending letters to the editor since I was in high school. Why? I find it’s a fast and easy way to get…
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Tweet {photo credit} I used to write the way it felt to run against the wind or swim against the current. I wrote to please. I wrote to entertain (and I hope I still do, knock on wood). And I wrote to prove something. I wrote against what felt natural to me. And it was a struggle. But recently I used my calling to write. And when I did, my fingers worked like rapid fire on the keyboard and my words poured out from my heart. A few times, I wrote an entire story in one day and had a…
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Tweet Hear me out. Nobody likes bad luck. And I’m sure most of us would rather not be published than have something difficult happen in our lives. But not only do I believe writing is one way (and a healthy one I might add) to express yourself in the midst of hardship, I also believe that if you are a writer, this is a good opportunity for you to transform your bad luck into good luck by being able to write about your experience. Think Elizabeth Gilbert in Eat, Pray, Love or Laura Munson and her memoir This Is Not…
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Tweet No matter how much you pray, beg, and visualize, you won’t get better at your craft unless you do something about it. That’s where quick tip 5 comes in: Learn something new every day. I received one of the nicest compliments ever from a client recently. He said that I was open to new projects and I never disappoint. I’m still glowing from his kind words actually. But after I snapped out of it and got back down to earth, I realized that challenging myself and never getting too comfortable with anything I did, helped me to be a…
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Tweet Hope you’ve been enjoying my quick tips for Christmas. Here is another one. Hide Your Desperation Clients can smell fear and desperation miles away. If you feel anxious and doubtful that you will ever be able to make it as a writer, hide it quick. Your worries will only attract other desperate people. It will make you take jobs that are beneath you. It will make you compromise on your values and ethics. And it will get you that much farther from your dreams. Do you remember the guy you couldn’t stand in high school? The girl who you…