Writing tips Come let us hear your voice In 1984, Lou invited Fred to come again and to read in Trinity’s sanctuary in Charlotte NC. Through his novels, his sermons, his prolific published works, Fred’s words had reached…
Writing tips A parent’s decision about how to approach their child’s spiritual life is a high-stakes proposition with lifelong implications Parents often are very clear as they tell me the reasons they stop short of joining in a spiritual discussion with their child: “I don’t want to share my views…
Marketing tips, Publishing tips, Writing tips If you don’t have your audience nailed down, what can you do? Consider your ideal client for your business. If you’re writing a book associated with your business, then it makes sense to write a book that is perfectly positioned to appeal…
Writing tips Challenges to my Christian identity Many challenges to my Christian identity have come from my fellow Christians who advocated versions of Christianity that horrified me and made me want to run for my life in…
Marketing tips, Writing tips Personal Fit Another way to look at this idea of “personal fit” is through the lens of ikigai, an ancient Japanese ideology. A combination of the Japanese words “iki,” which means “life,”…
Writing tips If Things Aren’t Going Well Sometimes, you know that you’re not doing well. The writing may not be stuck, but it has ceased to tap anything deeper than your thesaurus. The prayer may not have…
Writing tips What About Me? The book I most often recommend to writers is William Zinsser’s On Writing Well. It is wise, practical, and enjoyable to read. Friends have even heard me talk about Zinsserizing…
Marketing tips, Publishing tips, Writing tips Six considerations If you’re devoting a meaningful portion of your life to launching a new idea, why not give yourself the best chance to succeed and do some homework first? That requires…
Writing tips Challenges of truth-telling First, a list of distinguishing characteristics that seem to me to help distinguish truth from its many facsimiles: Truth is elusive. Truth avoids institutional control. Truth tugs at conventional syntax.…
Writing tips The mystery of mysteries at the bottom of the well The Jewish Rabbi Abraham Heschel said toward the end of his life, “What keeps me alive - spiritually, emotionally, intellectually - is my ability to be surprised.” Fred was surprised;…
Marketing tips, Writing tips The single most important thing you need to write a great book The single most important thing you need to write a great book is: A HOOK! If your book has a great hook, it is much more likely to sell well,…
Marketing tips, Publishing tips, Writing tips Who is your audience? When people hand me a proposal or manuscript for a nonfiction book or article and ask me for an editorial opinion, we’ll talk about several issues, but I have one…
Marketing tips, Publishing tips, Writing tips 10 Ideas about the Future of Content Marketing a very important article by Mark Schaefer https://businessesgrow.com/2022/05/23/10-ideas-about-the-future-of-content-marketing/
Marketing tips, Publishing tips, Writing tips Is this an opportunity? Is there a seam opening up right now for you and your ideas? To find out, there are three questions you need to answer: Is the opportunity you’ve discovered undefended,…
Marketing tips, Writing tips Truth-telling is difficult Truth-telling is difficult because the varieties of untruth are so many and so well disguised. Lies are hard to identify when they come in the form of apparently innocuous imprecision,…
Marketing tips, Publishing tips, Writing tips Five life lessons from 40 years in the marketing world More helpful thoughts from Mark Schaefer https://businessesgrow.com/2022/05/02/life-lessons/
Marketing tips, Publishing tips, Writing tips Bursting through the seam A Bloomberg analysis found that of the 100 richest people in the world, eight had no college education or inherited family wealth - no obvious Cumulative Advantage. There was one…
Marketing tips, Writing tips Slant vs. Bias I’ve been struck by how often slant is confused with bias - as though having a point of view, a set of assumptions, or a firmly held opinion is in…
Writing tips How to Lengthen Your Nonfiction Book When You Feel Like You’ve Said Everything Is there a step in my process for which I need to offer more explanation to the reader?Could a story, testimony, or example add more impact, interest, or understanding to…
Writing tips Starts and Fits If dumping your first few paragraphs doesn’t result in a good opening, look over what you’ve written with the sole purpose of finding the strongest sentence in the whole piece.…
