Summer was slipping into autumn and another year was slowly winding down. It would be back to school for many students in just a few short days. Nights were getting cooler and James noticed the leaves on the trees changing colors. “Fall seems to come earlier every year, doesn’t it?” Harry just nodded. When he had lived back east, he always noticed the touch of yellow in the foliage before anyone else. But since he’d moved to the desert, James was the first between them to see it coming. Still, despite his wistful thoughts, he
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Writing Your Way to Western Saddle Success
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It’s interesting that graphic designers can easily manage to convey to clients that the designers create innovative beauty costing big bucks. And yet, writers generally have to justify, defend and explain their rates continually. So what makes the difference? What makes creative design command more money than that creative copy? Is it vision? Skills? Imagination? Tangible goods that clients can perceive? Beauty? All that and more. It’s perception, plain and simple – and writers are unfortunately stuck dealing with what their clients perceive. “But I write great work!” I can hear the cries now. “Surely
> Read MoreTop Ten Blogs for Writers: It’s Time to Vote!
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Love our blog? Make sure to spread the word and tell others too by voting for us in the 3rd annual Top Ten Blogs for Writers contest. We made the cut last year under our old blog name (thank you to all our voters!), and we’d love to be in that Top Ten again this year. It’s a pretty prestigious honor for us to be considered such a great blog, and your vote would help show us that our hard work and effort to make this blog one of the best out there really does
> Read MoreAre You Advertising One Knee or Two?
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Nothing beats the feeling of seeing that big, brown UPS truck roll up in front of my house. The UPS guy brings me great things. He used to bring me chrome when I first got my bike. Then he brought equipment to trick out my bows. Now, the UPS god blesses me with gifts for my latest obsession: Iaido. The package he delivered didn’t contain anything fancy, just a wooden practice sword that was shorter than my real blade so as not to poke holes in the ceiling and a pair of kneepads. The kneepads
> Read MoreHow to Feel Consistently Confident About Your Writing
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A good friend of ours, Dave Navarro of Rock Your Day (no, not the guitar player), consistently kicks our ass around as much as we kick his. Hey, we’re equal opportunity guys like that. Ass-kicking is fun. Dave is more than just a target for our boots, though. He’s the kind of rare guy that can get James to think deep thoughts and get Harry to sleep better at night. Dave is also someone who writes so well that we both sigh in envy. So, Dave, thank you for being part of our little blog
> Read MoreDrive-by-Shooting Sunday: Yes to Me
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“Water, water everywhere…” Harry chanted from time to time, longing for a drink but knowing the salt in the ocean wouldn’t help the dehydration he felt. And who knew how long they’d be adrift? The ocean stretched for miles in every direction. After last week’s hit on the deserted island, there was nothing to look at but water and the sun beating down on their backs. The only thing the boys could do was stay under the shade of the tarp they’d rigged to the mast and pray the current brought them somewhere near civilization.
> Read MoreFinding Your Ideal Reader
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There comes a time in every writer’s life when the words poured onto pages from the heart are ready for the public. Alright, maybe not the whole public, but a private kind of public. Stephen King refers to this in On Writing, and he mentions it as finally opening up the office door to let the world in. Who Makes the Cut? Choosing your ideal reader is a delicate process. Some people say never let friends or family read the first draft of your work. They might believe everything you do is great or not
> Read MoreThe 22 Immutable Laws of Branding: A Review
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It’s rare that we do a book review here at Men with Pens, but today you’re in for a treat. After my recent shopping spree, I discovered an invaluable book for business. I’ve read it cover to cover, I recommend it, and the best part is, it’s worth the money. Before you read further, it’s time for a disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you use our links to buy this book, we earn a commission fee of a dollar or two from each sale. But I’m not writing this review to earn money.
> Read MoreForget the Details and Work On the Big Picture
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I’ve usually focused on the banner of a blog theme as the foundation of the whole design. The banner is the welcome mat to a site. It’s the first thing people see, it sets the tone and mood, and it works with your content to make people remember your site. A Stroke of Utter Genius Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered weak and weary… I made a happy mistake. While working on Steph Vandermeulen’s new theme (No, you can’t see it yet), I put a section of code in the wrong place. The
> Read MoreDrive-by-Shooting Sundays: Your Writing Cure
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After leaping out the windows and running to safety during last week’s hit, the boys had sat in the getaway car for a long time. Harry was disappointed. No SCUBA diving. James was disappointed too – no resort luxury vacation. So they’d waited until the timing was right, paid off one of the locals and had him sneak back into the hotel to grab the SCUBA gear. They’d plunked down a small fortune for a three-hour dive by the reefs. Their faces looked relaxed and happy as they headed out – and that’s when the
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