Writers Ink

02/11/2022

This blog grew by 450 percent! Wow! Sounds good, doesn't it? Let's take a closer look at just how good that is. I haven't posted for ages, and I'd already decided that this site was dead in the water. After all, it has a horribly outdated design and it doesn't get me any business. But I'm between projects and got the idea of starting a new blog covering a wider range of topics....

This blog grew by 450 percent! Wow! Sounds good, doesn’t it? Let’s take a closer look at just how good that is. I haven’t posted for ages, and I’d already decided that this …

16/03/2022

If you have a keyboard, you can write. Of course, that doesn't necessarily mean you can write well. My cat has a penchant for writing, but on the one occasion when she actually managed to send an email, I had to take urgent action. After all, she sent it to a client, and I can't have my clients thinking I routinely send "wertshfknmgf" as a message....

If you have a keyboard, you can write. Of course, that doesn’t necessarily mean you can write well. My cat has a penchant for writing, but on the one occasion when she actually managed to sen…

22/09/2018

16/06/2018

As the saying goes, you can't please all people all of the time. Quite recently, I entered a contest, the winner of which was guaranteed a fairly lucrative writing deal. I failed. I checked the winner's entry, and found that he or she had written 250 words. The brief said "short." How short is "short?" Now, I know. But it doesn't really hurt. [ 650 more words ]

As the saying goes, you can’t please all people all of the time. Quite recently, I entered a contest, the winner of which was guaranteed a fairly lucrative writing deal. I failed. I checked t…

11/03/2018

I'm sure you've seen the ad. With Grammarly, you're going to write perfect emails, blog posts, articles, and letters. Well, save yourself the trouble. You won't write anything even approaching perfection unless you already know what you're doing. Despite the fact that I find Grammarly amazingly dumb at times, I do still use it. I'll tell you why in a minute. [ 645 more words ]

I’m sure you’ve seen the ad. With Grammarly, you’re going to write perfect emails, blog posts, articles, and letters. Well, save yourself the trouble. You won’t write anythi…

05/03/2018

I was never a fan of text-speak, exlamation marks, or emojis. In fact, I didn't like them one bit. After all, I shouldn't need to add smiley faces after I've cracked a joke just to show people that it really IS a joke, should I? And unless I'm saying something like "Ouch!" there's very little room for exclamations let alone the dreaded multiple exclamation marks. [ 450 more words ]

I was never a fan of text-speak, exlamation marks, or emojis. In fact, I didn’t like them one bit. After all, I shouldn’t need to add smiley faces after I’ve cracked a joke just t…

01/03/2017

Does spending time in contact with nature boost your productivity? I've found it can have the opposite effect! The biophilia hypothesis says that contact with nature makes us feel good. Productivity experts say that feeling good makes us more productive. Thus, contact with nature will make us more productive too. It's all very logical. Serious people have even conducted experiments that seem to show better productivity and more creative thinking coming from people with plants in their offices. [ 744 more words ]

http://writerforwebsite.com/2017/03/01/biophilia-does-nature-boost-writers-productivity

Does spending time in contact with nature boost your productivity? I’ve found it can have the opposite effect! The biophilia hypothesis says that contact with nature makes us feel good. Produ…

28/01/2017

It's a lovely fantasy: you work when you want to work and make lots of money. It's stress-free, and you're your own boss. Freelancers are so lucky! Yeah, sure! The truth is that most successful freelancers should probably sue themselves. Before I continue, don't get me wrong: I did this to myself, and I'm working on solving the problem. But I've been doing that for three years, and so far, I haven't been too successful. [ 937 more words ]

http://writerforwebsite.com/2017/01/28/the-truth-about-freelancing-sue-yourself

It’s a lovely fantasy: you work when you want to work and make lots of money. It’s stress-free, and you’re your own boss. Freelancers are so lucky! Yeah, sure! The truth is that m…

28/12/2016

The typo: every writer's least favorite but occasionally giggle-inducing error. Someday, I will write a book about typos. I realize that there are already books about typos out there, but I believe I may have something unique to add to the global collection of "Did I say that?" moments. I know I harp on about this, but the best day to spot a typo you made today is tomorrow, or the next day, or even the day after that. [ 578 more words ]

http://writerforwebsite.com/2016/12/28/did-i-say-that-typos-part-3

The typo: every writer’s least favorite but occasionally giggle-inducing error. Someday, I will write a book about typos. I realize that there are already books about typos out there, but I b…

15/12/2016

I realize that it would be more fashionable if I told you there were ten ways to do it, but there's really only one. I also realize that you may think I'm trying to be funny, but I'm not. Have you guessed it? Sure you have! The only way to beat writers' block is to write. Write whether you feel like it or not. [ 401 more words ]

http://writerforwebsite.com/2016/12/15/there-is-only-one-way-to-beat-writers-block

I realize that it would be more fashionable if I told you there were ten ways to do it, but there’s really only one. I also realize that you may think I’m trying to be funny, but I& #821…