I took a science fiction writing workshop last week. It was great fun and I realize I remain a work in progress when it comes to my fiction. Yes, I’m a work in progress on just about everything, but for my fiction, I am in the midst of the change model where my performance varies […]
Where Are the Flaws? Read More »
We’ve all heard this phrase, “It’s not personal. It’s just business.” There are several things wrong with that saying. “Just” is a keyword that says, “Don’t look here, you won’t like it. Just ignore me…” (Here’s a writing tip: write a sentence with just in it and then when you edit, remove the just. What
What’s Personal to You? Read More »
I’m working on a writing project with a geographically distributed team. We all have full-time paying jobs and this is a professional project with no monetary compensation. We worked as an agile team, in iterations, pairing, helping each other write the best expression of our ideas. We turned over our draft and waited for copyediting
Do You Want Feedback? Read More »
The comments to How Do You Reply to a Thank You? made me think. (Thank you!!) I realized that being in a position of honor might trigger emotions you (and I) might not feel ready for. The first time someone told me how I had helped his career with one of my talks, I had
How Do You Feel When Others Honor You? Read More »
I thank people often, because people help me all the time. People carry things for me. They might help me over uneven ground/steps. In the grocery store, I often have to ask for help to reach the top shelves. Sigh. I have a bad case of TDS (too darn short). I say, “Thank you,” or “I
How Do You Reply to a Thank You? Read More »
I’m teaching my writing workshop this month. I made a point of explaining the difference between cycling between parts of the document and rewriting. I often cycle. I realize I forgot to say something key at the beginning. Or, I started the piece with one idea in mind and it morphed into something else. I
When Do You Refactor or Restart? Read More »
I made a big mistake the other night. I was doing maintenance on my mailing lists. I was quite excited about deleting people who were no longer valid subscribers. I deleted too many people and screwed up the Create Adaptable Life mailing list. I fixed it, and that got me thinking about several things: I am
When Do You Stop Working for the Day? Read More »
I just picked up my brand new glasses. I’ve had the old glasses for several years and it was time for new glasses. I missed the early clues that it was time. Let me rewind the circumstances a bit. I’m nearsighted. Since I am of a certain age, I also have presbyopia, a typical condition
Are You Missing Clues or Degrading Gracefully? Read More »
I’m teaching a writing workshop. Writers have all kinds of problems. A common problem is the feeling of Imposter Syndrome. “Who am I to write this? Will anyone believe me? Is it valuable?” Imposter Syndrome arises when you think you’re not capable. Or, that your success arose from luck, not your hard work. There’s a
How Confident Are You? Read More »
It’s January, resolution time. I bet many of you have resolutions. Resolutions are not for me. I try small changes that help me accomplish what I want. I often ask, “Can I do one more?” When I want to increase my steps, I say, “Let’s try one more.” It might be a lap around the
What’s the Smallest Change You Can Make? Read More »