Writing
Writing warm up: set or restate your work session goals
Warm-up routines and rituals are a great way to overcome inertia and ease into productive work. Natalie Houston suggests setting or revisiting goals by writing them down in an idea notebook as a way to kick-start the creative process: I’ve found this to be a helpful way to get focused and in the right mental […]
Words to lose: utilize
utilize |ˈyoōtlˌīz| verb [ trans. ] make practical and effective use of : vitamin C helps your body utilize the iron present in your diet. To improve your writing, strike the verb “utilize” from your vocabulary. If it were a person, it would be a self-important snob, a loud-mouth schnook. Instead, try “use.” It’s unobtrusive. […]
On Original Details and the Truth of Experience
In a 2008 New York Times Measure by Measure column, Rosanne Cash writes about the power of original details in writing, and about writing as work and as discovery: Facts are not necessarily the best indicators of the deepest human experience. The table where you found the suicide note, the cup of coffee that turned […]
Steven Pressfield and Paul Graham on writing
From Steven Pressfield on how to get started: Start before you’re ready Have you ever asked a friend who’s an artist or entrepreneur how they’re doing on a project you know they’re psyched about? Sometimes you get the answer, “I’m getting ready to start on it.” “I’m working up the outline.” “I’ve almost got the […]
