Share the Marshmallows In the 1960s, Stanford psychologist Walter Mischel and his students conducted studies on self-discipline in preschoolers. In what has now become known as The Marshmallow Test, toddlers were given the choice of eating one marshmallow immediately, or waiting a few minutes and getting two marshmallows. Those who were able to successfully delay the gratification of […]
Writing
Find Your Writing North Star(s)
When I set out to write my first book, I started researching everything from writing to publishing to marketing books. The effort nearly derailed me altogether. There are more writing and book marketing podcasts than you have time to listen to. You cannot read every book, nor follow every blog and watch every video. If you try to […]
Revision: When Does It End?
Writing Productivity Tip #8: Balance Patience and Urgency The hardest part of the revision process is knowing when you’re done. Patience is your friend, to a point. If a deadline looms, do what you can quickly and let it go. But when you have time, you must decide: how long do you keep revising? Brilliance, humor, pithy observations – much of […]
Writing: Learning to Love Your Quirks
Writing Productivity Tip #7: Work Your Quirks We’ve all got writing quirks and mannerisms. Writing quirks include grammatical errors, spelling mistakes, or little things you do that readers could find annoying. For example: While writing quickly, you make the wrong choice between its and it’s, or your and you’re. Awkward sentences suddenly appear in your drafts like unwelcome houseguests. You […]
Revision Is All About the Reader
Writing Productivity Tip #6: Revise for the Reader’s Productivity The previous posts in this series have been about finding ways write more fluidly and easily. The revision process is your chance to extend this same courtesy to the reader. Put in the effort to make the experience of reading as fluid as possible. It’s a matter of scalability. There’s […]
Writing: Rest Before Revising
Writing Productivity Tip #5: Give the Draft Room to Breathe You’ve dismissed the inner editor and created the first draft of your blog post, report, book chapter, whatever. You’re on a roll – what next? Now walk away. Give it some breathing room. Writing and revising are separate disciplines, and don’t work well when they crowd […]
