Archive for September, 2007
Dealing with competition
If you don’t already do so, check out Deb Ng’s Freelance Writing Jobs blog. It’s a great resource for finding interesting writing and blogging gigs. But the blog is a lot more than that. Deb also shares email that she gets from readers, and some of those messages offer an interesting look into the writing [...]
Web-based tools for your writing workflow
In a recent podcast, I discussed creating a Web-based writing workflow using Google’s various applications. Of course, the offerings from Google aren’t the only game and the Web. Below are a few other Web-based tools that you can use to create your own online writing workflow.
Productivity for writers
Keeping track of your tasks can be difficult. There are a number of ways in which to do it, and one of the most popular is Getting Things Done (GTD). A while back, I tried to get into the GTD flow but found it to be a bit too complex and involved for my needs. [...]
New edition of the podcast now available
The second edition of the Words on a Page podcast is now available. In this edition, I talk about creating a Web-based writing workflow using Google’s tools.
Check this space in the next few days for a list of other tools that you can use to create your own workflow.
Sometimes simple is better
I don’t know about you, but I find most word processors to be overkill for many writing tasks. There are times when I just need to get words into a file, as quickly and efficiently as possible. And neither Microsoft Word or OpenOffice.org Writer (a tool I really, really like) are up to that. The [...]
Task management, redux
A short while back, wrote about how I generally keep track of my tasks. But I’ve learned that you need to be flexible, due to either limitations of the available technology or due to circumstances beyond your control.
Take, for instance, my current gig. I’m working on contract at a large financial firm which locks [...]
The higher dollar and the writer
Today, we witnessed something that hasn’t happened in almost 30 years: the Canadian dollar reached parity with the greenback. If, like me, you’re a writer based in Canada then this could have some impact on you.
When I started freelancing oh so many years ago, I wrote almost exclusively for American publications. This was partly because [...]
Setting up a writing routine
Writing takes more than just a bit of discipline. You’ve really got to focus on what you’re doing. When you’re focused, it’s amazing what flows from brain to fingertips to keyboard. But when you lose that focus … well, I think that we all know what happens then. Unfortunately, someone who writes for a living [...]
Thought for the day
There can be no dishonesty in the Creative life
Words on a page - the podcast
Even though I have a voice for silent movies, I’ve decided to take another plunge into the world of podcasting. This time, a bi-weekly podcast based on this blog titled (surprise, surprise) Words on a Page.
The first edition introduces the podcast, and lets you know about the topics that I hope to cover in the [...]