What’s Your “Voice of Fire”?
I’m lucky to live in Ottawa, Ontario, home of Canada’s National Art Gallery. In 1989 the newly opened Art Gallery purchased a work by abstract painter Barnett Newman titled, “Voice of Fire”. Originally created as a commission for Expo 67, a celebration of Canada’s centennial, the painting is 18 feet long and consists of three…
How to Write Faster: 5 Books to Speed Up Your Writing Productivity
In my recent article, How to Become a Freelance Writer, I argued that the faster a freelancer writer can produce work, the more money they will ultimately make. It’s not any different for fiction authors. The more books you write and publish, the more books you will sell, and the quicker you will build your author…
Why Scrivener Isn’t the Answer You’ve Been Looking For
As a writing coach, it’s a rare week that goes by without someone asking me whether or not they should purchase Scrivener. Here’s my response: Scrivener is a fantastic program for writers and novelists. In fact, a mobile app version was just released that makes it an even more useful writing tool for authors on the go. So,…
Why Your Writing Never Works Out the Way You Plan
The dichotomy between plan and execution can be a difficult and frustrating concept to come to terms with. In fact, I’m certain it’s why many people give up on artistic endeavors like writing a novel. Part of the process of turning pro, as an author or writer, involves coming to terms with the fact that…
Don’t Make Your Book More Important than It Is
There’s a major roadblock that stops many aspiring authors from finding success. I see it time and time again with my coaching clients. They take their book too seriously. These aspiring authors believe that, once completed and published, their novel will define who they are; nay, it will define their very value as a human being. They…
Why It’s NOT Too Late for You to Become an Author
A coaching client of mine recently confessed she fears she might be too old to launch her writing career. She’s in her early 30’s. I assured her that she was not too old. And neither are you. A career as an author isn’t like professional sports, or modeling, or becoming a pop star. You’re chances of…
10 Freelance Writing Insights from 25 Experts
You want (and need) to get paid for your writing. We all do. While book sales will hopefully bring in significant revenue down the road in your author career, it can often be helpful for writers to pick-up freelance writing gigs to bring in some cashflow while drafting longer books and novels. That’s why this week over…
The Toolbox Method for First-Time Authors
A couple of years ago my wife gave me an awesome toolbox as a birthday present. It has a sturdy handle and it’s filled with all kinds of tools: electric drills, adjustable wrenches, hammers, nails, and screws galore. It’s always exciting to dig down inside and pull out the exact tool I need when confronted with a home fix-it project. Most of the…
Fizzle.co is Building a Budding Army of Creative (and Honest) Entrepreneurs
Books don’t sell themselves. Like so many authors before me, I only learned this lesson after publishing my first novel. And when book sales dried up, I realized I knew absolutely nothing about business, sales, or marketing. Thus began a multi-year self-education in business fundamentals. The internet offers no shortage of opportunities to learn about…
Megan Linski on Editing (My Book) – The Writing Coach 027
Welcome to The Writing Coach. On this podcast, I speak with the instructors, editors, coaches, and mentors that help writers and authors create their art, build their audience, and sell their work. Megan Linski is the owner of Gryfyn Publishing and the author of almost 20 books(!!!). She’s also a freelance editor. MY editor to be…
