My friend Marvin Kane told someone in the publishing industry recently that he is writing a memoir. Her response was bluntly along the lines of, “You’re not famous. Why would anyone want to read about your life?” That’s cold. But isn’t that a fair question? Why go to all the effort – and it is a lot of effort – of writing a book if no one wants to read it? And...
Read MoreCopley Square is the place to be on Saturday for everyone who reads or writes books or wants to. The Boston Book Festival will be in full force with plenty of activities for young readers and an abundance of meet-the-author and get inspired events for the older ones. I will be there with independent publisher Merrimack Media and an offer for anyone who has been...
Read MoreA funny thing happens when we write. We get hung up on saying things in a certain formal way and using words that we wouldn’t normally use in convoluted sentence structures that wind around the point rather than getting straight to it. Perhaps it’s an attempt to display our undeniable intelligence. Perhaps it’s left over determination to adhere to...
Read MoreHave you ever gotten so frustrated with your writing you just want to give up? You feel no spark, no inspiration, no drive? You try to force yourself but the words fall flat on the page. Sometimes the best solution is to just plow through and keep pushing out the copy until it gets better. But sometimes, quite honestly, you just need to give up. Not forever, but for...
Read MoreIs there a book in your future? Do you have an idea for a great best seller that you will get to someday? That “someday” maybe a long a long way off, but that doesn’t mean you can’t start now. And in fact, as someone who has helped several authors move their books out of their head and onto paper, I would urge start now, even if you realistically won’t finish it for...
Read MoreI am a big advocate of just starting to write and then writing until you’re done before turning to editing. The challenge then becomes figuring out what should stay and what should go. Sometimes it’s clear, that funny story about burning the pot roast doesn’t mesh with the home improvement tales of woe, or that chapter on the trip to Italy is just a distraction. But...
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