How Blogs are Different Than Nonfiction Books

How Blogs are Different Than Nonfiction Books

Blogs are different than nonfiction books. One of my biggest pet peeves is when someone throws together a series of blog posts  and calls it a manuscript. I know that not everyone will agree with me on this, but that’s not a book. It’s a collection of blog posts. And, IMHO, simply throwing them together…

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There’s A Last Time for Everything

Last Time for Everything

I went to visit my father in the hospital. He is in late-stage Parkinson’s and, within a few weeks, he declined from being able to walk up the steps to my beach house, to not being able to walk or stand at all. When I got there, my step-mother was sitting by his bedside, making…

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Don’t Lose Steam: The 2 Big Keys to Finishing Your Book

Keys to Finishing Your Book

Eighty-one percent of Americans say that they plan to write a book “someday.” Yet, less than 1% actually do so. I’ve seen it happen hundreds of times. A wannabe author starts a book project, has a lot of good energy around it, then it drags on, and they never finish. They lose momentum, and their…

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Overcome Writers Block

writers block

Writer’s block. We all know about it. It can seem like the writer’s worst enemy. That feeling when you’re staring at a blank screen and racking your mind to find the right opening sentence, or figure out what to say at all… It’s frustrating—maddening at times. And it happens to every writer. Often. It doesn’t…

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The Best Writing Makes You Forget You’re Reading

The Best Writing Makes You Forget You’re Reading

I know that I’m reading a great book when it makes me forget that I’m reading. I become so engaged, I don’t even notice the book in my hand or the turn of a page. I’m in it, and I can’t put it down. On the other hand, to read some books feels like such…

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Books Are the Key that Unlocks Empathy

This week, as I witness the fallout from another, yet especially blatant abuse of police power, which led to yet another death of an innocent Black man, I am embarrassed by a lot of the commentary from my fellow white people. Commentary such as “all lives matter” in response to “Black lives matter” and condemnations…

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