Professional writers & ghostwriters for hire
If you self-publish, you have to do it all. That includes preparing the cover of your book. Your book is like any other product – the packaging sells the cookies and the frozen dinner. Likewise, the cover sells the book.
People will get a feel for the book from the cover. [Read more…]
My fellow Doctor Who fans will instantly recognize “The Power of Three” as an episode in which Earth was invaded by an infinite number of seemingly identical cubes.
That’s repetition for you.
In speechwriting, or in any persuasive writing, the Power of Three takes on a more practical meaning. You can drive home your point more effectively by saying three short sentences, each one similar, but each one different. [Read more…]
This is the seventh installment in a series that began as just a few random thoughts that I had to publish somewhere. When you gotta write, you gotta write.
If you have what it takes to be a writer, you’ll probably want to read the previous editions, so here they are: [Read more…]
This is the sixth installment in a series of self-help tests to help secret writers and not-so-secret writers proclaim their affliction.
If you can’t get enough or are still uncertain, never fear! Here are the previous five installments to help coax that hidden writer out into the open: [Read more…]
If you are looking for something new or the latest trend, you won’t find it here. Toronto marriage counselor Jack Mamo gives time-tested advice you can count on, because it’s proven to be effective. What’s new is how he has brought it all together in one volume, and written it from an authentically Christian perspective. [Read more…]
I edit a lot of business documents, from blog posts to case studies, from book manuscripts to press releases. It’s funny how the same errors repeat themselves from document to document, from client to client. Here are some of those I see the most. [Read more…]
Neurolinguistics professor Alice Howland (Julianne Moore) played it as a way to slow the progression of Alzheimer’s in the movie “Still Alice”.
Many of your writer friends probably play it.
You might, too.
Words With Friends. Better than Solitaire or WoW (World of Warcraft) as a procrastination tool, you rationalize. I mean, at least this game has something to do with writing. Welcome to the moral high ground. [Read more…]
This is the fifth in a series of self-help tests to diagnose you as an incurable writer, hopelessly addicted to words and a vagabond spirit upon this planet.
If you are a writer, my condolences. But you won’t get any pity from me, because I’m a writer, too. If you missed any of the first four tests, here are the links: [Read more…]
This is the fourth in a series of self-tests to help you determine if you are a writer – someone afflicted with the compulsive need to express yourself in words at any time of day or night.
Being a writer is a terminal condition; it cannot be cured, only managed. One of the best ways to manage being a writer is with humor. So we take the humorous approach to diagnosing your condition. Take this writers quiz, then feel free to share your results in the comments below…if you dare! [Read more…]
Digital hoarding is “a thing”. Haley Cue of XoJane.com writes:
Technology has made collecting things so much easier, more attainable, creative, customizable. Filters! Hashtags! Sharing! We can get to know another person’s life by scrolling through a collection of images we’ve been granted access to. I am certain I would be doing these things regardless of time and medium, but I am thankful for the conveniences of my generation. I’d be terrified to find out how I would function without it all. [Read more…]
I am currently ghostwriting a book about stock market investment strategies. Yes, it’s a topic that is all about numbers. But don’t worry – the way I write it, readers will stay awake. One little trick in this book is that each chapter begins with a motivational quote, something to put the reader in the frame of mind to think about what’s coming up next. [Read more…]
A blogger wears many hats. He is an artist, creating images. She is a community manager, keeping readers engaged. He is a programmer, keeping the blog technically functioning. She is a marketer, promoting the blog.
But above all, a blogger is a writer. The Internet is overflowing with blogging tips. Today, we sift through the noise, mix a few metaphors and focus on the essential oils – the writing! [Read more…]
If that introduction sounds overly dramatic, that’s all in character. I have never been accused of lacking passion when I write. If you have been following my writing, that is one thing you already know about me.
This blog post is about 25 things you probably do NOT already know about me. So I won’t talk about Doctor Who or the cats that hang around outside our door (and their eight spanking-new kittens!) or our singing and dancing daughters, or anything else I’ve regularly revealed in this blog or on social media. [Read more…]
Jeff Foxworthy must be turning in his grave. Well, maybe not for a while (Sorry, Jeff). But here we go again, appropriating the style of jokes he pioneered with rednecks, and applying them instead to writers. You can read the first edition here, and the second edition here, and if you survive those and are ready to read the signs below, it simply proves that you are:
A. Dead, but just don’t know it yet.
B. A glutton for punishment.
C. A certified writer.
D. All of the above.
With apologies to rednecks everywhere, you might be a writer if… [Read more…]
I was asked to take a writing test the other day. I pulled out my laptop, but I was stopped. “No technology,” I was told. A few minutes later, the pain in my hand reminded me why I love keyboards, even though I am a two-finger typist. Writing has been replaced by typing for most of us. My hand cramps if I try to write for more than a minute with a pen, because the handwriting muscles have atrophied! [Read more…]
Cultural signposts are important for writers of all kinds, both to connect with audiences and to connect with… well, audiences.
The first audiences I am referring to are the obvious ones – your readers. While you are immersed in writing, they are flipping channels and tuning in stations. Movies, TV shows, songs, celebrities, sports teams – these are the cultural sign posts that your readers relate to. [Read more…]
For many writers, the holidays are especially difficult.
It’s not just that we’re hoping our Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanzaa romance ebook will be published in time to catch the holiday sales. It’s not just that many of us have an artist’s budget and a shopping list that extends downstairs. [Read more…]
This true story has all the makings of a bestseller for cats. By way of background, we have two indoor cats, but this is not a story about them. This is a story about a whole community of “barn cats” that live outside our door. Yes, we feed them; that’s my mother-in-law’s hobby. Every few months, the composition of that community changes. Some cats leave. Some cats are born. Some cats die. Some cats return (not from the dead). [Read more…]
Have you heard of two sentence horror stories? I was introduced to them through one that went something like this:
“My son insisted that I check for monsters under the bed. So I crouched down to have a look, and there was my son whispering in fright, “Daddy, I think there’s someone in my bed.”
There are plenty more all over the Internet, so I thought I would try my hand at writing a few myself. Below are the results. If you would like to add to the list, please place your two-sentence horror story in the comments below. [Read more…]
