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Howard sighs.

He’s reading his draft blog post, and wonders, why does his writing seem so dull? Is it because he’s writing about boring topics? Or is it his writing style?

Today’s writing technique is one of the easiest to make your sentences hop, skip, and dance, so nobody thinks you’re boring. And you might even put a smile on your reader’s face. Read more »

I wondered why.

Why does editing take so much longer when I’m writing a personal story?

Some people seem to write about themselves effortlessly. But my draft life stories are often disjointed and rambling on endlessly. Editing can feel like a daunting, even an impossible task.

How we can make writing our own stories easier? And how can we make such stories more engaging? Read more »

Being busy used to make me feel good.

The more tasks I ticked off from my to-do list, the more productive I felt. And I loved the adrenaline rush of working late at night. I kept pushing myself to work a little harder, to achieve a little more. When running your own biz, there’s always more to do, right?

I thought I thrived on stress. But late 2014, something changed …Read more »

When I started blogging, I was taught to view a blog as an online publication …

You write a new blog regularly—weekly, fortnightly, or monthly.

And each time you publish a new post, you invite email subscribers and social media followers to read your shiny new blog post.

Sounds good, right?

Yet, it’s a blinkered view on blogging. Read more »

Have you ever wondered whether there’s a secret to writing more and better?

I’ve been studying the habits of famous and less famous writers for years. And I’ve come across a lot of nonsense. As if we only have to emulate the writing rituals of some famous writer, and we’d write a bestseller, too.

Unfortunately, life is a little more complicated than that. We’re all different. But in the quagmire of crazy rituals, I’ve found a couple that have merit. Check out these 3 weird rituals that might help you become a faster, better, and more prolific writer. Read more »

Helen frowns while reading her draft story.

She purses her lips, and wonders, Why does the story feel flat? Why does it seem to drag on? Where has the drama gone? Is it too long?

Okay, she thinks. Time to cut down my story. She removes a few sentences here, scraps a whole paragraph there, shortens another sentence. After crossing out words for over 20 minutes, she’s reduced her word count almost by half. Phew. With a sigh of relief, she treats herself to Jasmine tea with carrot cake.

But, hey, what happened to her story? Read more »

Remember the red pen of your high school teacher?

Whenever you repeated a word in a sentence, there it was: the angry red mark. Ouch.

Over time, like most writers, you probably learned to avoid word repetition, and you diligently replaced duplicated words with synonyms or pronouns.

But did you know word repetition can add rhythm to your writing? That it can strengthen your message, and make it more memorable? And that repetition can shape your voice? Read more »

Feeling overwhelmed by all the writing advice on the web?

Perhaps you’ve read a couple of books to improve your writing skills. And you’ve subscribed to the most popular blogs on writing. But still … It’s hard to know where to start, right?

Let me help you and give you a clear action plan. Are you up for it? Read more »

When to write out numbers as words? And when to use digits?

The advice of style guides and usability experts differs, so here’s a quick overview to guide you in this tricky debate. Learn why you may be better off to ignore the style guides …Read more »

At 3 AM, I was tossing and turning. I tried to push A.’s hurtful message out of my mind, so I could fall asleep again. But it wouldn’t work. My body tensed.

Why couldn’t I let go? Why couldn’t I stop thinking about his message? Why did the message hurt me so much?

Here’s how I let go and fell asleep again …Read more »