Handy hints

Backing up your website or blog

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The word “paranoid” is defined in the Oxford English Dictionary as

“exhibiting unnecessary or extreme fear; characterized by unreasonable or excessive suspicion of others.”

Well, you know the old joke: Just because you're paranoid i doesn’t mean they’re not out to get you!

In a similar sort of way, I don’t think there is anything “unreasonable” in being paranoid about losing the content on your website.

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What acting taught me about public speaking

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speaker with a lot of microphonesMany moons ago I took up amateur dramatics for a while. That may seem a bit odd for someone who likes to keep himself to himself, but someone invited me to see a play he was in, and I thought it looked like fun.

I have to say that the thought of going on stage was a terrifying experience. Note that I said the thought of it, not the experience itself. I’ll try to explain.

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Further thoughts on using Word for Desktop Publishing: Text Boxes

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Back in April 2014 I penned a few lines on using Word as a desktop publishing tool. On the whole it works, but, as I noted then, it does have serious limitations.

I mentioned in that article that it was impossible to use automated cross-referencing between text boxes. Since then I have discovered something even worse.

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Ideas for making your blog work for you

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Young girl in morning dress, blogging, after Philipp Friedrich von HetschIt can be quite hard coming up with ideas for making your blog work for you. By that I mean help you generate traffic to your blog, help you to establish yourself as the go-to person in your niche, or how to generate income from your blog (whether directly or indirectly). However, I recently came across a blog post that suggests 90 ways to “make your blog rock”. It’s pretty good.
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Is it possible to write better if you write faster?

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I’ve been prompted to ask this question because I recently picked up, in a second-hand bookshop, a book called “No plot? No problem!”. The author is Chris Baty, who started the "Write a novel in a month” competition, otherwise known as “Nanowrimo”.

I haven’t read very much of it yet, but from what I have read I’m impressed.

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The best laid plans and all that

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I have to say that I am becoming increasingly cynical about writers who give advice on how to write all the time, regardless of circumstances. I am happy with advice like, "Always carry a notebook so you can jot down ideas while waiting at the supermarket checkout", or "Get up an hour before the rest of the family so you can write in peace", but sometimes life just, well, takes over.
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4 reasons to work with pen and paper

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ARTICLE OUTLINEErm, look. I don’t quite know how to put this but, well, er, sometimes – gosh this is so embarrassing! Well, the thing is, I know I’m supposed to be some sort of techno-geek but often I find that working on paper is better than working on a computer. For the initial outline anyway. There, I’ve said it. I feel much better now!

There are several reasons why working on – and with – paper is beneficial.

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Managing four diaries

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According to my diary, I am due at the vets today for worming. I am told that this involves nothing more terrible than having a gigantic pill put down one’s throat. Nevertheless, I’m glad that the entry refers to our cats rather than myself.

One of the drawbacks of entering appointments into a smartphone is that it’s not easy to write copious explanatory notes – but the advantages definitely outweigh the disadvantages.

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