One of the ironic things about technology is that it makes us reminiscent for simpler times. Ever since the advent of the internet, people have been going back in time for traditional mediums to reinterpret for an online age – newspapers are online, books are online, music is so very online it’s considering disappearing from the racks of CD stores permanently. For the most part, these reinterpretations are a great thing, making traditional forms of communication appealing to a younger generation. They’ve also made it easier for the little voices to get heard without having
> Read MoreArchives for August 2009
Blog Archives
Enjoy 1,000+ articles geared to your content-marketing, writing, freelancing or small business endeavors. Scroll down for recent posts, select a category, or browse the archives here.
What the Heck is Going On With James?
Written by
Today’s guest post comes to you from Alex Fayle of Someday Syndrome, whose good work in the world makes sure that freelancer burnout becomes a thing of the past. Please welcome our personal vacation agent and check out what might happen to you when youtake time off – even if you can’t let go of work. Honestly, I never thought it would come to this. It all started so simply, with a small off-the-cuff comment. I had no intention of it going any further. It was all James’ fault. I couldn’t help myself. I mean,
> Read MoreHow to Guide Your Train of Thought
Written by
I’ve written about how to write a good ebook. I’ve discussed that a good ebook needs an outline and how to write one. Now it’s time to learn how to use that outline to make a complete document that’s easy to follow. It needs to have flow. In general, I think of this as a train of thought, since the metaphor is so very apt. WARNING: EXTREME METAPHOR USE AHEAD Look at your outline. Think of each individual topic in your outline as a railway car. You need to figure out a way to link
> Read MoreIn Which James Writes Something That Makes Him Squirm
Written by
I’m going to do something today that I don’t normally do. I’m also going to be really clear that I’m doing it, so that no one thinks I’m being sneaky-assed about it: If you click this link, you’ll get a sales page. You know, the long-copy ones. The ones with yellow highlighter and bold. The ones with italics and testimonials. The ones that give you every single reason under the sun to say yes and sign up now. I won’t apologize. If you’re a writer, if you want to be a writer, if you want
> Read MoreThree Key Questions to Ramp Up Your Story’s Mojo
Written by
Lately, we’ve been running a series on fiction offered to us by our good friend and bestselling novelist Larry Brooks. Click here to read Larry’s first post, Five Things You Need to Know to Write a Novel, click here to read his second post, Six Elements You Must Master to Write a Publishable Novel. Or, read on and enjoy the next in the series. For an extra boost of fiction advice and tips, check out our other posts on fiction writing, too. Nobody likes to admit to the fact that there really are a few
> Read MoreAre You a Pantser or a Plotter?
Written by
Larry Brooks, the bestselling novelist over at Storyfix, brings us more wise words about creating a plot in this next installment of our series on fiction writing. For an extra boost of fiction advice and tips, check out our other posts on fiction writing, too. As someone who used to be an avid and vocal plot outliner — and I have the writing workshop scars to prove it — I”ve shifted and softened my position. I’m thinking the debate isn’t about outlining a plot versus organic seat-of-the-pants plotting at all. Either can work. Either can
> Read MoreHow to Write an Outline for a Post, An Ebook or Your Thesis Paper
Written by
I’ve recently written on how to write a good ebook. I’ve also made it quite clear that we are talking theoretical ebooks in general and not specific ebooks that might make themselves appear at Men with Pens for the mass public at any point in the immediate future. Keeping this stipulation in mind, let us move forward and discuss an ever-critical aspect of ebooks, reports, and other documents long enough to get the organization of the thing confused: the outline. Yes, I know. You probably all learned outlines in school, and I don’t mean to
> Read MoreYour Clutter is Killing Your Customers
Written by
Nobody likes cluttered sites. You may not know what makes a cluttered site, but your customers definitely know when they’re trying to navigate one. There are flashing ads that give them a headache, tons of links with vague titles, social media ad-ins overwhelming the site, and a sidebar longer than the Encyclopedia Britannica. And in all of that, your potential client is supposed to find that one blog post, or a list of services, or how you’ll change his business for the better, or even find the About page? I don’t think so. That person
> Read MoreOne Easy Way to Keep Your Blog Readers Happy – And Gain New Ones Fast
Written by
A lively, thriving comment section is a hallmark feature of a good blog. But way too many blog owners treat comments like prizes. The more they collect, the better. They don’t respond to each person. They often don’t respond to any person at all. It’s enough to make you wonder if you should even bother writing a comment. Does anyone read it? Worse, what happens if you stumble upon an old post? It could be a really great one, the comment section full of thoughts and reader opinions – but, it’s past its prime. It
> Read MoreTop Ten Blogs for Writers: Time to Vote!
Written by
The 4th annual Top Ten Blogs for Writers contest is open and taking nominations! That’s right. It’s time for you to head on over and vote for your favorite blog for writers. (Men with Pens, right?) Thanks to your support, we’ve been in the Top Ten Blogs for Writers for two years running now. (Check out last year’s results!) We sure would love to make it onto that list this year. We consider being in within the top ten a prestigious honor, and not one we take lightly. We work hard to make it on
> Read More