Latest posts
Reach Your Writing Goals with Your Personal Writing Calendar
/ 2026-03-14"How did it get so late so soon? It's night before it's afternoon . . . My goodness how the time has flewn." (Dr. Seuss). For years, this was my reaction after realizing that I have missed – again! – the pitching deadlines for seasonal and thematic articles. But not anymore.... Read More
Edit Now or Later?
/ 2026-03-14I have been asked a few times of late about whether a writer should hire an editor before pitching to an editor or agent. After all, if those gatekeepers love the idea, won't they provide an editor to clean it up? 1) Editors cost money. If they receive a manuscript with... Read More
Integration vs Gravitation
/ 2026-03-14I read the best essay about writing today from a writer named Angela Yuriko Smith who manages the Substack page and newsletter called Authortunities. She's pretty cool and has some great ideas. We don't agree on everything, but I love how she justifies her thoughts. She's smart and she loves helping writers. Today she spoke... Read More
Protect your Words and Income With Back Up Storage
/ 2026-03-06Writing is a primary source of income that should be stored in more than one location. When you don’t do this and your hardware crashes, you risk missed deadlines, kill fees, and strained client relationships. In addition, you feel frustrated and angry as you try to duplicate what was lost... Read More
Self-Love
/ 2026-03-06In a recent chatroom, someone asked if there was any hope left for struggling writers with so many other writers taking shortcuts with AI. My response was that if fear of AI knocks you off your game, maybe you aren't playing the right game. Many of us live in fear... Read More
Define Opportunity
/ 2026-03-06I declined a speaking opportunity this week. One in a very reasonable distance from me, as a matter of fact. This time of year often fills my calendar with such requests, which thrills me. I love doing events. But they must be worth my investment of time, travel, and book... Read More
Practical Ways to Keep Your Query Pipeline Full
/ 2026-03-06Many freelancers struggle with consistency, especially with pitching and idea generation. We all know we should keep a pitch tracker so we’ll know when we’ve sent something out and when we can expect a response. But if that’s all we’re doing, it’s easy to lose focus. Most of us are... Read More
How to Be Clearly Human These Days
/ 2026-03-06I just spent a week going back and forth with a freelance writer who wanted to see his piece published in this newsletter. TO be honest, the piece had great potential. I needed some changes in it, and he quickly accommodated. The message had purpose. I hadn't had red flags... Read More
Collecting Golden Writing Guidelines
/ 2026-03-06Strong submission guidelines are the cornerstone of being a published author. If you know which publications are receptive and paying, you’re ahead of the writing race. However, good guidelines can be difficult to source, and they’re individual to every author. Here’s how to sift through the pile and find the... Read More
Contest Rights – A Matter of Opinion
/ 2026-03-06Writers look at contests for entry fee, word count, prize money, potential publication, and which influential judge might be on board to read the entries. But what is also important to note is the rights you give up if you win. . . or maybe even if you just enter.... Read More
