Category Archives: Work Habits

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The 2-Step Plan for Increasing Your Creativity

Includes a Free Self-Assessment and Action Guide

Stand up, everybody,” the perky lady said from up front. “We’re going to do a little stand-in-place yoga to get our blood moving.” Great, I thought to myself. Comfortably seated at a conference with two hundred strangers, I was not excited about getting up and moving my pudgy body in unusual ways for all to […]

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The Best Thing to Do When You Don’t Know What to Do

I would have slammed into her if I hadn’t been looking. Luckily, at that particular moment anyway, I was, and so stopped within a few feet of her flashing hazards. The silver 1990s Corolla was bunching up the morning commute, and clearly the car was going nowhere. On another morning, a more hectic morning, no […]

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Why You Must Not Ignore the Benefits of a Mastermind Group

A group of friends got together to ask some questions. They ended up changing the world. In 1727 Benjamin Franklin started a group of about twelve souls whose purpose was individual and community improvement. The “Junto,” as Franklin called it, met on Friday nights and went through a list of questions including: What new story have you […]

I was honored to be on Jeff Goins’ “The Portfolio Life” podcast. We talked about what it takes to get a traditional book contract. We had a lot of fun in this informative conversation. I hope it’s helpful to you.

Date: September 25, 2014
Appearance: Jeff Goins’ “The Portfolio Life” Podcast
Outlet: Link
Format: Podcast
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How New York Times Bestselling Author Chris Guillebeau Wrote His Latest Book

Several years back a colleague recommended Chris Guillebeau’s The Art of Nonconformity, which was a real eye-opener to me. The book challenges readers to think about unconventional ways of doing life and making a living, and honestly I’ve never been the same. I can draw a straight line from his book to the creation of Book Proposal Academy, […]

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5 Brilliant Things Writers Can Do to Overcome a Small Platform

As editorial director for a major trade publisher, I regularly receive questions like the following: How big a platform is big enough? Am I out of luck if I don’t have much of a platform? What should I do if my platform is still smallish? Do I really have to be a superstar to get […]

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A Hawk, a Deck Chair, and What They Taught Me about Calling

Recently our family was getting settled around the dinner table when our seven-year-old son halted all his usual bounciness and pointed. “What’s that?” he asked, staring out the back door. We all looked to discover a young hawk perched on one of our deck chairs. I grabbed my phone and snapped this picture: We were floored. What was […]

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What an Odd Little Man Taught Me about Reverence and Mystery

In Memory of Robin Williams As we entered his classroom, Professor Whipp grinned at us. Just as we finished settling in, placing our backpacks on the floor, our notebooks on our desks, he beckoned us to leave. “Come,” he said, “Follow me.” And out we went onto the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s wide campus one pleasant […]

I was honored to be on Jonathan Milligan’s “Blogging Your Passion” Podcast. We talked about what makes for a great book concept and how bloggers can use their blogs to create great books. This is a relatively short podcast, but we packed a lot in. Hope you enjoy it.

Date: July 17, 2014
Appearance: Jonathan Milligan’s “Blogging Your Passion” Podcast
Outlet: Link
Format: Podcast

It was a lot of fun being interviewed by my friend Dale Callahan on his “Company of One” Podcast. We talked about how publishers make publishing decisions, how to decide whether to publish or self-publish, and how books are like small businesses. I think you’ll enjoy it!

Date: July 15, 2014
Time: Available now
Appearance: Dale Callahan’s “Company of One” Podcast
Outlet: Link
Format: Podcast