Write with Excellence

10 writing tools I can’t live without

Honestly, if all we had to write with were notepads and typewriters, I’d be the most frustrated writer alive. I love technology and all the things it helps me do! So here are the 10 tools I’d have great

10 writing tools I can’t live without

Choose writing goals for the year

Yesterday, on my main website/blog, I posted my writing goals for 2014, along with some details on how I plan to achieve them. While the post was about me and my goals, I also added some information that I

Choose writing goals for the year

You’ve written a book: now what? The 8 steps I advise

Most of the time when new writers tell me they’ve written a book, what they actually mean is that they’ve completed a first draft of a book. And my advice is, “Don’t rush off to find a publisher for

You’ve written a book: now what? The 8 steps I advise

Thinking like a professional writer

Some years ago, I was at a Bouchercon mystery convention where some of the world’s greatest mystery writers appeared on panels that covered a variety of topics. I forget which panel I was on, and I forget most of

Thinking like a professional writer

Top 10 reasons why you should write 10 short stories before you write a novel

I speak to a lot of aspiring fiction writers, and I find that the majority of them want to write a novel (or are already writing one). My advice to them is to write at least ten short stories

Top 10 reasons why you should write 10 short stories before you write a novel

Getting organized to write: create order out of chaos

Is your current work space in chaos? If so, take some quality time to just sit and think about what works best for you. I remember when our kids were small. We wanted them to set the table and

Getting organized to write: create order out of chaos

Getting organized to write: idea catchers

The absolutely most important item for any writer to have organized is his or her ideas. Everything else can get messy or be allowed to sink into oblivion if necessary, but ideas are the straw writers must have in

Getting organized to write: idea catchers

Getting organized to write: create files

The moment you have several ideas down on pieces of paper, you need some files. Not a lot of them. You might start with only five or six. You can easily buy a small metal holder with half a

Getting organized to write: create files

Getting organized to write: finding things

Over the years, I can’t begin to estimate how much time I’ve wasted looking for things I’ve misplaced—slips of papers with ideas on them, contracts, books, emails… You name it, I’ve misplaced it. And I’ve spent hours and hours

Getting organized to write: finding things

Getting organized to write: filing

I probably have close to 1000 file folders. All colours. They’re in various places, including a 4-level horizontal filing cabinet, a smaller narrow filing cabinet, drawers in two desks, several Omni carts, several other movable carts with file folder

Getting organized to write: filing

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