Gratuitous swearing usually adds nothing to a piece of writing or a talk. It’s unpleasant to listen to, and probably has unfortunate consequences for the offender.
Read MoreSwearing, by Terry Freedman
News & views
Course: Writing for Blogs: A Taster 2021
My upcoming course on blogging is not a technical course, meaning that if you want to know how to set up a blog on Wordpress or something, this course is not for you.
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£10 note, by Terry Freedman
The value of low-paying gigs
in News & views
The next time you’re offered the opportunity to write for a periodical that doesn’t pay as much as you’d like, don’t just dismiss it out of hand.
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Earnings spreadsheet, by Terry Freedman
The key criterion of a writer’s success (Updated)
How do you know if you are, objectively speaking, a success as a writer?
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Question mark, by Terry Freedman
WIBBOW?
in News & views
In her book Discoverability, Kristine Kathryn Rusch cites the acronym penned by Scott William Carter: WIBBOW.
Read More8 Key Characteristics of Successful Writers
What do you need to be a successful writer? Here are my thoughts on the seven main attributes you need to have in order to make it as a writer – or at least, to give yourself a fighting chance! I believe these hold true for any genre, and any form (ie book or article).Using a points system to incentivise you
Sometimes even the most ardent writers among us just don’t feel like writing. What to do? An article on the Problogger website has made what I think is a great suggestion.
Read MoreSome changes to the Writers' Know-how website
in News & views
I’ve introduced a couple of changes to the Writers’ Know-How website in order to make it even more user-friendly.
Read MoreThe importance of a nice writing set
in News & views
I wrote the detailed outlines of three articles in the space of six minutes. I’m sure the quality of the materials had something to do with it.
Read MoreFreelancing vs authoring Part 1 (updated)
If, like me, you enjoy writing and you would like to earn money from it, should you go down the freelance writing route or write books, or both?
From my experience, here are the pros and cons of freelancing.
exasperated, by Terry Freedman
Note to would-be contributors: the grapeshot strategy is a waste of time
Have you ever seen an article on here about pre-menstrual tension?
Read MoreAdvice for would-be book reviewers
Terry’s top tips for writing professional book reviews.
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Books, by Terry Freedman
An unintended consequence of wishing to be nice when reviewing books by female authors
in News & views, Research
I’ve been reading Phillipa K. Chong’s “Inside the Critics’ Circle”, in which she attempts to discover the process by which books get reviewed. It’s a very interesting read. I haven’t finished it yet, so am not in a position to review it as such, but I was struck by the extract cited here.
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Frustration, by Terry Freedman
Where are my articles?!
in News & views
The article archive keeps disappearing, and while the problem is easily fixable (temporarily), it’s extremely frustrating. Here’s my workaround.
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Dominoes, by Terry Freedman
Domino effect
in News & views
This blog post is dedicated to all those writers who are looking after elderly relatives, young children, holding down a job, dealing with gas bills, doing shopping etc etc etc.
Read MoreReading streak? Oh, puh-lease!
in News & views
How do you encourage people to read?
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Reflection in window, by Terry Freedman
Mirrors and windows
What have mirrors and windows have to do with children’s literature?
Read MoreTampering with natural ignorance: Oscar Wilde on education
Wilde’s pronouncements on education are very humorous, but contain an element of truth.
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London Book Fair 2021
in Events, News & views
The London Book Fair is online this year, and lasts for two weeks, starting tomorrow (22 June 2021). Having registered, activated my account, and trawled through the sessions, the following in particular appeal to me, in no particular order…
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slumped, by Terry Freedman
Writing when distracted
If I didn’t write while I’m distracted by things going on I’d never write at all. Is the answer to go on a writing residential, once they’re running again?
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