Words on a page

As you may or may not know from reading this space, I generally advocate using wiki, Google Docs, or Writeboard when collaborating on a writing project. When you need to work on something at same time with one or more collaborators, tools like that aren’t always best options. Wikis and Writeboard don’t let two or more people work on a document at the same time. Google Docs does, but it can take a while to update what everyone is seeing. That slows the process of writing down.

As you can see, collaborating in real time. That can be a tricky proposition. But an online tool called EtherPad can help you make it less tricky.

EtherPad is described as a web-based word processor that allows people to work together in really real-time. And it does a really good job to boot.

read more »

If you want to improve as a writer, you not only need to write. You need to read. Writing and reading are two sides of the same coin. You need to do both to achieve your potential.

By reading, you’re exposing yourself to different voices and viewpoints. And you can pick up some new techniques. Not only that, you get a great opportunity to see what other writers are doing well and what they’re doing badly. Sometimes, you might just be blown away by what you read. So much so that you’ll try harder to improve.

Of course, there’s definitely nothing wrong with reading for pleasure. It can be relaxing to lose yourself in a book, no matter how good or bad.

While I take my own advice and read a lot, I’ve actually cut down on a lot of reading. I deliberately put myself on a low-information diet and, to be honest, I’m not missing out on much (if anything).

That said, I still read quite a bit. Here’s a sampling of the types of things that I read, and why.

read more »

Since I do a few presentations each year, I constantly try to learn more about speaking in public. And, whenever possible, I try to apply those lessons to my writing. It doesn’t always happen, but when it does I find myself growing as a writer.

Lately, I’ve been reading a book called The Backchannel by Cliff Atkinson. It’s an interesting look at (obviously) the backchannel — in this case, an audience using Twitter to create and maintain a conversation about a presentation that goes beyond the room in which the presentation is being made.

One concept from the book that struck me as being very useful to writers is what Atkinson calls The Four Tweets.

read more »

I generally don’t put a lot of stock in grammar or style checkers. In my experience, they’ve tended to be a bit too wedded to strict rules. These kinds of checkers don’t take into account personal writing quirks and attempts at trying to make your writing a bit more original and fresh. Two aspects of writing that I think set you apart, and make your writing more interesting and readable, if done properly.

That said, I know more than a couple of people who do rely on grammar and style checkers. A few of them are, in fact, professional writers. Lately, I’ve been recommending After the Deadline to some people.

read more »

If writers were like magicians, I’d probably be blackballed from whatever organization I’d belonged to for what I’m about to write.

After speaking at a conference last year, I was talking to one of the people who attended my session about creating minimalist documentation. Although he wasn’t a writer, he had to create documentation. During our chat, he mentioned that writing was difficult and that he always had a hard time getting what he wanted to say, in the way he wanted to say it, on paper.

I told him that writing is hard, even for people who do it professionally. But the secret of good writing isn’t simply being good with stringing words together. The secret is editing.

read more »