Recently we had to send out the dreaded “OP” letter again. It goes something like this: Dear Author and Agent: We are writing to inform you that due to low marketplace demand for your book, we have decided to discontinue keeping it in stock. Sincerely, The Publisher “OP,” in other words, stands for “out of […]
First of all, thanks so much for your willingness to fill out my “Writers and Music” survey. (If you haven’t yet and you’re willing to help writers everywhere with two minutes of your time, click here.) This survey and blog post were born of my own curiosity. I regularly listen to music while I’m writing, […]
Recently a writer friend told me about her desire to write a book that wakes people up. “Everybody’s asleep,” she said, “they need to be woken up!” “OK,” I said, “but look at it from your readers’ perspective. What’s the need they would tell you they have that you want to help them with?” We […]
Think of a drummer in a rock band. Somehow she manages to keep that bass drum going while rat-a-tat-tatting on all the snares and cymbals above. That’s what we want to do with our blogs and books. We want to keep our blogs dynamic and lively, releasing new posts regularly, while at the same time […]
Few videos are more mesmerizing to me than those that feature people who go from not being able to do something to suddenly doing it. In the following video, for example, an older colorblind man puts on special glasses and is able to see color for the first time. This is a beautiful example of […]
The one thing all good writers have in common is the ability to tell stories. Stories draw us in. And when we read good stories from a particular author, we want to go back when that author tells more stories. It’s as if a transaction is always occurring just below the surface between author and […]
My friend and coworker started off our premarried class by proclaiming to a room full of optimistic but naïve engaged and dating couples, “MARRIAGE IS HARD, AND YOU’RE ALL GOING TO DIE!!!” While the chances of death for each of us continues to clock in at a solid 100 percent, all married couples know the […]
What would you say is your first job as a writer? Do you write to serve people? To make money? To express yourself? This is an important question because the wrong answer will lead you to fall short of your best work. That’s what I address in the following slide presentation. In it you’ll discover: What […]
Last summer a friend and I went to an outdoor concert at Frederick Meijer Gardens here in Grand Rapids, Michigan. They have an amphitheater there, a large stage up front with a leaf-shaped canopy and terraced grass-covered seating for a thousand or more. A lovely venue. The local band was pretty good, but I don’t […]
One morning not too long ago I walked into our kitchen at about 6:30 and was startled by what I saw. There stood my nine-year-old son in his pajamas, hunched over a piece of paper with a pencil in his hand. His nose was less than five inches from what he was drawing, and his […]
