Author

Frank McKinley

Frank McKinley is a Writing Coach, Promotion Strategist, and Entrepreneur. He designs non-sleazy promotion plans for writers, artists, and other creatives. When he's not writing, he loves coffee and conversation. He lives in Georgia with his wife, two kids, and a Labrador named Jake. You can find him online at frankmckinleyauthor.com.

Why it’s So Much Better to Write to Express, Not to Impress

Why it’s So Much Better to Write to Express, Not to Impress

written by Frank McKinley

Have you ever watched a magician make his assistant levitate just by waving his hands?

Here’s what happens.  Two dancers come onto the stage to set the exotic atmosphere.  Once we’re in the mood, the magician’s assistant comes out and lies on a board supported by two chairs.

The magician puts the assistant into a trance. The dancers cover the assistant with the blanket on the board.  They remove the chairs and the magician begins waving his hands.

Magically, the assistant rises.  The magician passes a hoop around the assistant so we can see clearly that there are no ropes or wires lifting the board.

Amazing!

The audience claps and the magician does another trick.

Impressing is a strategy.

Wouldn’t it be great if your readers would be so riveted to your writing that nothing could stop them from reading every word?

What writer doesn’t want that?

Impressing is important, we’re told. If you can’t grab attention, you won’t get a chance to make an impact.

Consider the magician.  They’re making an impression all the time, aren’t they?  And they do it so well, they don’t even have to share their hidden message.

And what might that message be?

It’s okay to believe in magic.

Be careful not to overlook this fact.  The greatest magicians plan to show us that we should believe in magic.  If they just told us, then we’d dismiss it. If they didn’t plan for this, their shows wouldn’t be as good.

When the assistant rises and we can’t see why, we’re convinced (even if only for a moment).  The magician isn’t forcing us to believe.  They’re just presenting a picture and leaving it to us to interpret what we saw.

You impress with a headline or a startling statement to begin your blog post, your essay, or your book. Once you’ve got people’s attention, you’ve got one shot to make your message clear.

That’s where expression comes in.

Expression is a goal.

What impact do you want your writing to make?

The time to ask that question is before you write the first word.

Knowing what you want to accomplish helps you draw a map to get you there.  What road will you lead the reader down?  What sights will the reader see along the way?  What signposts will give hints for what is to come?

The words you choose will depend on the point you want to make.  Consider what the reader might be thinking when they find your piece.  What are they feeling?  What do they believe?  What do you want them to think or feel after they read?

To make your message clear, narrow your focus.

Narrowing means you pick one problem and provide a solution for it.  It means you tell one kind of story for one kind of reader.  To do more is to spread yourself thin and dilute your impact.

When you have one main point, it’s like a tour guide that directs you as you write.  It’s the ruthless editor that helps you cut out everything that doesn’t make your point. It’s the magnifying glass that excludes everything that doesn’t add to your message.

I grew up drinking sweet tea.  The first time or two I made it myself was a test.  I might add too much sugar or too much water.  Or maybe too many tea bags.  When it doesn’t taste right, you might suffer through a glass or two, but you can’t bring yourself to drink a whole gallon.

Your writing is a lot like sweet tea.  If you want your readers to enjoy your writing while they drink it in, suit it to their taste.  Be willing to test—and fail.  Analyze what happened, adjust your focus, and try again.  In time and with practice, you’ll find the right recipe.

You need both to make an impact.

To influence people, you have to draw them to you.

It’s not enough to open the door.  You’ve got to have something appealing inside.  If you bore them after you grab their attention, they’ll walk out on you.

TV producers are experts at this.  They tantalize you with the juiciest clips while you’re watching something else.  If they succeed, then they have to make watching so good you’ll go on a binge.

Think about your favorite shows.  What got you hooked?  What makes them so good you want to tell all your friends about them?

Here are a few:

  • Open loops – They show you a problem but withhold the solution until you watch. Characters you can identify with – When the hero seems like you, you think of them as a friend.  You see yourself in their shoes.  You may even find yourself rooting for them or talking to the screen to tell them what to do.
  • They sell hope – Have you had a bad day and want to laugh? Do you want to be as confident or skilled as your favorite character?  A few minutes escape can be just what the doctor ordered.

What can you add to this list?

Then ask yourself, “How can I use these techniques in my own writing?”

If you need help, take out one of your favorite author’s books.  Read for an hour.  Then grab a cup of coffee (or your favorite beverage) and write down the ways they capture your attention.

Then grab a pen and implement those techniques into your own writing.

Start with one strategy and implement it every day for a week.  Then add another the next week.  Soon you’ll become your ideal reader’s favorite writer!

Hands Down The Best Way For Writers To Use Their Imagination

Hands Down The Best Way For Writers To Use Their Imagination

written by Frank McKinley

Imagination comes naturally to kids.

a writer's imagination

When you’re young, life is a blank slate to fill. So we fill it with heroic stories. We act them out with our friends. And we dream big dreams of what life will be like when we grow up.

Then we get older and pretending turns to jealousy.

“If I was like him, I’d be unstoppable.”

“If I had more money, I’d be happier.”

“If life was fair, I’d have everything I wanted.”

Well, you’re not him.

You can earn more money.

And life will never be fair.

The problem with imagination

When I was a kid, I always imagined I was someone else.

We do that because we don’t think we’re enough on our own. We need help.  We need a superpower.  We need something to make us more attractive than we are without that little something extra.

I was 23 years old before this truth hit me in the chest.

Zig Ziglar taught that if you’re not using what you have now, you wouldn’t use what you had if you were someone else. It’s not the power or the skill that matters.  It’s what you do with it that counts.

I wasn’t a natural at basketball. I had to throw a lot of balls at the net before one went in.  And I had to throw even more to hit the basket more than once a day.

It all began when I saw myself hitting the net—in my imagination. Like the Little Engine That Could, I thought I was able, so I did.

How would my life have been different if I had imagined myself as the superhero? What could I have accomplished if I acted as if I had the traits I wanted?

I can’t say for sure, but I know this: I’d have had more courage, more confidence, and a stronger imagination.

What does this have to do with writing?

We all know creative writers use their imaginations regularly.

But what about nonfiction writers?

And what if imagination didn’t have to stop with the stories we tell?

Imagination is the fountain that waters the dreams you’ve planted. Use it to write the story you’re living and the story you sell to others.

Why is this important?

Imagination is full of pictures. Vivid imagination has sounds, tastes, and feelings to go with it—but without pictures, it’s empty.

What do we use when we teach kids to read? Pictures. Lots of them. On every single page.

When you see it, you believe it.

No matter what you write, paint pictures. Facts without stories are dull.  Data without connection is meaningless.  Circumstances without a narrative are forgettable.

If you want to learn how to win people to your way of thinking, listen to a storyteller. Watch a TV program.  Study that commercial that led you to buy that course, that car, or even that brand of toothpaste.  What picture did they paint?  What pictures did they draw in your imagination?

Learn that and you’ll have a power that amazes you and your readers.

Start painting word pictures now

Word pictures are easier to paint than you think.

Here are some we use regularly in conversation:

  • Metaphors
  • Analogies
  • Anecdotes
  • Jokes
  • Comparisons
  • Allegories
  • Hypotheticals

Most of the time we do this when we’re trying to make something complex easy to understand. We want the light to come on for our audience so they can say, “Oh, now that makes sense.” We do that by comparing the unfamiliar with something we know like the back of our hands.

Once they see, they can agree.

Then they can decide to act on what they know.

Want to add power to this technique? Decide before you write a word what you want your reader to feel when she reads them. Do that, and the words will flow out of you like water flows down the side of a mountain.

I’ll leave you with an exercise to try next time you write. If you’re tempted to tell your reader what you want them to know, show them instead. Just describe what you see so your reader can see it, too.  Bonus points if you can evoke emotion with your picture.

Telling is as boring as listing your points on a PowerPoint slide. Would you tell people about your wedding without showing them pictures?

Imagination is a powerful thing. Use yours for good, and you’ll be an unforgettable writer.

3 Ways Your Inner Critic Can Make You a Better Writer

3 Ways Your Inner Critic Can Make You a Better Writer

written by Frank McKinley

You know your Inner Critic.

It’s the voice inside that tells you you aren’t good enough, your writing sucks lemons, and that you’re crazy for even thinking anyone wants to read a word of anything you have to say.

It’s the voice that trips you up when you’re so close to victory you can taste it.

It’s the nagging feeling that your dream is stupid, but you really want to go after it anyway.

I know this voice, because it tormented me for most of my childhood.

Fortunately, as a young adult, I learned that it doesn’t have to be that way.

Every Coin Has Two Sides

When you’re wavering between two equally good decisions, how do you decide what to do?

You flip a coin.

If it’s heads, you grill steak.

If it’s tails, you bake a casserole.

It’s not just about food. It’s about making a choice. When they’re both good, you can stand there forever wavering. Then you’re no better off than a leaf tossed about by the wind.

You’re not helpless. You can decide. Even if you just flip a coin.

Your voice is yours. It’s inside you. Like it or not, it’s there to stay. You can’t make it go away.

But you can teach it how to behave.

I got control over my negative voice when I traded my old assumptions for better ones.

My old assumptions were a lot like anyone who struggles with self-doubt, fear, and insecurity.

● You’re not good enough.
● You don’t matter.
● Nobody cares about you, and they never will.

Did you notice something about those statements?

They’re framed as absolutes.

Here’s what I mean. I didn’t give conditions to those statements. I didn’t say, “If you’re an artist, you probably won’t fit in at an accounting convention.” That’s specific and pretty obvious. And it’s only absolute in that circumstance. When you say, “I’m not good enough” you imply that this is true everywhere, all the time.

It’s not.

Find a better frame. See the world in terms of case by case situations. You don’t have to fit in everywhere. You do fit well in some places. You’re more like a puzzle piece than a square trying to fit in a world of round holes.

Celebrate that.

Now let’s get a handle on your Inner Critic. It really can be on your side – believe it or not!

In this post, we’ll look at three ways it can be your best friend instead of your worst enemy.

Your Critic is a Refiner, Not a Destroyer

Ovens heat things. It’s what they do.

All ovens aren’t alike.

Some ovens are for pottery. You put your art in and in time you bring out a masterpiece. That’s a refining oven better known as a kiln.

Funeral homes have ovens, too. They’re used to turn your loved ones into ashes.

Which kind of fire is your Inner Critic?

It depends on what you use it for.

You can use it to make you better or bitter.

You use it to make you better with a few simple steps.

First, write your draft fast. Give yourself a prompt and don’t stop to think. Don’t check for typos on the way. That’s like getting distracted by a squirrel when your daughter is talking to you. Push on. This is a racetrack, not a scenic highway. Get those words down and don’t worry about speeding tickets. There aren’t any on the freewriting highway.

Your critic can take a nap while you vomit out your draft.

This is fun. It’s like jumping into a pool. You get refreshed by getting in the water. If you stop to worry about how cold the water might be, you’ll stay on the deck forever.

Once all your words are on paper, take a break. Eat lunch. Take a nap if you’re into that. You might be tired after all that effort anyway. Give your brain time to reset.

Then come back and edit.

Jody Picault famously said you can’t edit a blank page. No worries! You’ve got a page that if filled to the borders.

Now let’s consider the point of editing, shall we?

You aren’t here to tear yourself apart. You’re editing your words. You’re looking for impact – specifically, the one you intended when you sat down to write. Did you trigger the reader’s emotions? Pretend like this is someone else’s work. It will seem more like it if your break is long enough. Ask yourself, how can I maximize my impact? How can I use these words to fulfill my purpose.

Then give it all you’ve got.

And please, don’t forget to get excited. Your refining here, not destroying.

There’s a world of difference.

Your Inner Bodyguard

When you’re carefree, pouring out your soul with no inhibitions, you might say something offensive.

Since you’re blazing through your draft, you might miss it. That’s okay. You’re not worrying about it then.

Your Inner Critic can sort it all out.

When you run into something you wrote that gives you pause, ask yourself one question.

Should I say this?

If you’d say it in public where someone could punch you, then go for it.

If you have no doubt you shouldn’t say it, don’t.

If you’re not sure, then you can probably leave it in.

I can’t guarantee no one will be offended. And who knows? Your edginess can give your message the punch it needs to reach your reader when she needs it most.

It’s also a good way to stand out.

Let your Inner Critic keep you from getting a bloody nose. Don’t let it keep you from speaking the truth or making an impact.

Your Critic Has Your Best Interests at Heart

Your Critic is part of you. It’s always going to be there. It’s not trying to sabotage you. It really wants the best for you.

It might not always know what to do, but let’s be honest – do you?

We’re all just doing the best we can.

Sometimes your Critic is worth listening to. Here’s how to tell.

● Will believing this make me better?
● Will this idea really ruin everything?
● How is this in my best interest?

When you answer these questions, you’re using your head instead of your feelings. You’re responding instead of reacting. And more often than not, you’ll find yourself daring greatly and shrinking less.

We’re all wired for survival. Our intentions are usually good (at least as we define them). So when your Critic starts ranting and raving, pause. Understand. Listen to hear what it’s really saying. Are you hurting? Is something wrong? What can we do to make this wrong thing right?

You’ll do this again and again for as long as you live.

The more you do, the less you’ll have to over time.

What you’re doing when you talk back to your critic and question its assumptions is paving new mental pathways. If you’re going to be in a rut, why not be in one that serves instead of harms you?

Guide your own heart. It’s got your best interests in focus.

When you do, the best of you will come out in every word.

12 Ways Writers Can Kick Fear in the Butt and Do Their Best Work

12 Ways Writers Can Kick Fear in the Butt and Do Their Best Work

written by Frank McKinley

When you write something and share it with the world, you might feel like a naked performer at the world’s biggest talent show.

You’re okay when you don’t think about being naked. But then the realization hits you. So you grab all the fig leaves you can to cover up the sensitive areas.

Or maybe you feel so embarrassed you swear you’ll never show your face or tell your story in public again.

It doesn’t have to be that way.

Today, we’ll look at fear – what it really is, and some practical strategies you can adopt so the most common fears writers face won’t have their way with you.

Ready to kick fear in the butt?

Let’s do this!

What Fear Really Means

When you’re not sure what a word means, you look to the dictionary.

Often we use words in ways they weren’t intended. If enough people do it, the use becomes the meaning. If you want to kick fear in the butt before it kicks yours, you should know what you’re dealing with.

Here’s the best definition I could find: 

an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat.

When you’re really afraid, your brain freezes. Maybe you don’t feel you can do anything but cower and cover up. But how will you know if you don’t stop for a minute and ask this question:

Is this really dangerous?  

If not, quit worrying and start kicking.

If so, how can you reduce the danger? How can you approach this from strength and not weakness? How can you press on no matter how much your knees knock together?

Dale Carnegie offers a great solution to this problem. In his book How to Stop Worrying and Start Living, he urges readers to ask and answer these two questions:

  1. What am I worrying about?
  2. What can I do about it?

You have more control than you think. Face the worst by making the best of it.

The most important thing to remember is fighting fear is active, not passive.

What follows are tangible ways you can be proactive by tackling the most common writing fears before they arise.

12 Ways to Overcome Fear Before It Grips You

Be as kind to yourself as you are to others.

Sometimes we can be our own worst critics. We hold ourselves to a higher, probably unattainable standard. And when we fall short, we treat ourselves like garbage.

Why?

Because there’s no one there to stop us.

Take time to build a small group where you can be honest and hold yourself accountable. The truth is you could do better, but you could do a lot worse, too. A faithful group that lifts each other with facts instead of opinions is an asset worth more than gold.

Understand your writing isn’t for everyone.

Stephen King, James Patterson, and J.K. Rowling have sold millions of books.

And millions of people still haven’t read them.

If these authors haven’t sold everyone, you won’t either.

Focus on the people your writing serves best. Put your all into it. Then you’ll do your best work and your readers will rave about it.

Proofread effectively.

I’m a perfectionist.

Chances are good you are, too.

We love to write our hearts out. But when it comes to editing, you feel like you’re learning math in an English class. You know you have to do it. You want your work to shine. But busting your knuckles against your words wears you out.

If you’ve poured over your words for hours, you won’t see straight enough to edit them. So take a break. Walk away. Go outside. Drink coffee. Take a nap. Talk to a friend.

When your brain is fresh, come back.

The best way to proofread is to read your work aloud. Better, have your smartphone read it to you. Siri can do it on the iPhone. If you want an app with a voice, tube used Voice Dream and Capti. The voices are eerily human, and they won’t fill in missing words like your brain will.

Once you’re happy with how your words sound, share them.

Compete with yourself.

The best person to beat is who you were yesterday.

Learn from others. Make their strategies your own if you can. But at the end of the day, you’re still you. So be the best you can today. Write what you care about. Dig deep and share your best insights.

The people who care will share.

Collect ideas before you run dry.

You don’t wait until Christmas Day to start shopping.

You don’t let the train run over you before you move out of the way.

So why expect your short list of ideas to last forever?

It won’t.

Squirrels gather more nuts than they can eat when it’s warm. They do it because they know winter’s coming and they’ll starve if they don’t gather food while it’s available.

Keep a notebook with you. Write down every idea on your smartphone. Don’t worry about quality. You can sift later. For now, just hunt and gather.

You can’t sift through nothing.

Protect your writing time with your life.

How much you write will depend on how strong your habit is.

Find your best, most productive time and space. When can you work uninterrupted? When do you feel most creative? What does it take to light the spark?

Figure that out.

Put that time on your calendar.

And don’t miss it unless you’re dead.

One more thing… don’t schedule writing at the expense of your family and friends. Success is more fun when you have others to enjoy it with.

Always be learning.

If you have a degree, that’s great.

If you don’t, you have experience to draw from. You have imagination. And you can always learn more.

Read books and go to seminars.

Join communities of people reaching higher.

Explore what’s possible by stretching yourself.

Knowledge is powerful when it’s used, regardless of how it’s obtained.

Embrace the challenge of getting published and read.

It’s not easy to sell your writing.

Traditional publishers are pummeled with countless requests to publish manuscripts.

Anyone can self-publish, but only a few stand out.

You can win at this game if you want to.

Find your unfair competitive advantage. What is it that you do so well it’s hard to copy you? There’s gold to be mined in that talent.

Dig deep. Dig often. Move the dirt away and you’ll shine like the sun.

Count rejections as steps to yes.

It hurts to think your writing doesn’t fit everywhere.

You’ll have to take some stabs in the dark to find the light. You’ll fall and scrape yourself when you’re learning to ride your bike. The person you want to dance with won’t want to dance with you.

It’s okay.

Finding where you fit takes work. And like a pair of shoes, you may not fit into the same groove forever. Keep shoes on hand so your feet don’t get cold.

Break a big project into finishable tasks.

You can’t eat an elephant in one bite or even one meal.

We’re celebrating the Christmas holidays as I write this. You’re tempted to eat too much, spend money you don’t have, and watch way too much TV.

We built our home two years ago. It took over a year to complete. The construction consisted of a series of projects: framing, wiring, plumbing, flooring, insulation, sheet rocking, roofing, and a half million other tasks.

We finished it all by focusing on one task at a time.

We also knew why we had to do it all.

Break your book down into daily tasks. Check them off. Set up some milestones to celebrate along the way. It’s a marathon, and the rewards can be huge.

Schedule time to write.

Life is demanding.

You make time for what’s important no matter how stressed you are.

If you care about writing as much as you do eating or breathing, put it on your calendar.

Do it regularly and you’ll find you can’t live without it.

Plan to make money before you spend it.

If you have seed money to start your business, great.

If you don’t, you’ll have to call on your creativity.

Find some influential people and do something for them. Don’t expect anything in return. If you impress them, some of them will surprise you.

No business can last without cash flow. Let the right people know what you offer. Do it consistently.

Soon you’ll be the one that feeds their hunger.

Now go kick fear’s butt.

Fear will always be there.

The best way to deal with fear is to head it off before it shuts you down. You’ve got 12 fighting techniques now, and a better than average chance of winning.

Now go claim your rightful place in people’s hearts.

Write Using These Simple And Powerful Strategies

Write Using These Simple And Powerful Strategies

written by Frank McKinley

Do you constantly talk yourself out of writing?

Last week I got the most disturbing message any writing group leader can get.

“Hey, Frank. I just wanted to let you know I’m leaving your group because I’ve decided to give up writing. Your group is not the problem. I love it. I just can’t do it anymore.”

My heart sank to my feet.

What happened to this person that made them want to give up writing altogether?

I didn’t have a chance to engage him since he’d clearly made up his mind. But still, it nagged at me. Why just give up?

Why did he believe he didn’t have what it takes?

The Killer of Creative Dreams

Self-doubt kills more dreams than anything under the sun.

You might say, “No, criticism is to blame. People carelessly toss negative, hateful comments at writers trying to find their way. The pain is so great, they quit writing to avoid it.”

What criticism really does is trigger the doubts you already feel.

Let’s be honest. Who hasn’t ever wondered if they were good enough? Who hasn’t thought their work sucks? Who hasn’t thought that maybe they made the wrong choice when they decided to take up writing?

Isn’t writing supposed to be fun?

It should be.

When you get an idea and you toss it around in your mind for awhile, you get excited. It’s like a snowball rolling downhill, gaining momentum. You grab a pen and paper so the idea doesn’t get away, lost in the 70,000 other thoughts you’ll have today.

Then you take a break to eat, work, or do laundry.

When you come back, a little bit of the luster is gone. How can you get it back?

Or worse, you tell one of your critical friends about your idea. Of course, they aren’t as excited as you are, but that’s okay. You tell them anyway. You have the fervor of an evangelist, and you won’t be silenced.

Then the criticism comes.

Why do I feel this good? I haven’t even tested this idea. Maybe she’s right. Maybe it won’t change the world. Maybe it’s not the next Harry Potter. Maybe I should just give up and start doing jigsaw puzzles for fun.

And on and on it goes.

Then your book dies on the vine. Your blog post doesn’t get written. You start doing safer, more acceptable things.

And your writing tastes about as good as lukewarm milk.

Self-Doubt: The Gift That Keeps on Giving

I can’t guarantee you’ll never second guess yourself.

You will.

What I can do is help you fight back when doubt assaults you.

Here are six strategies that will keep your pen moving no matter what your heart tells you.

If people complain, you’re making a difference

People don’t complain about things they don’t pay attention to.

When you get a negative comment, you convinced someone to read your work. Further, they were so captured by what you wrote that they had to write back.

That’s powerful.

More often than not, you’ll get nothing from 99% of your readers.

Be glad.

The next strategy will show you what to do with that critical comment.

When criticism comes, evaluate it and move on

The main thing you want to know is this:

Is there anything useful in this comment that will help me grow as a writer?

If so, see how you can apply it to the next piece you write.

If not, laugh it off and move on.

One remark doesn’t have to define you. Does one blog post sum up all that’s possible? One book? You’ve got more inside. Lots more.

Keep growing. Keep showing up. And don’t you ever, ever give up.

Your work won’t fit everywhere, but it will fit somewhere

Nobody sells to everyone.

I remember getting a pair of shoes from my father-in-law. They were nice shoes, fit to wear at any fancy occasion.

I squeezed my feet into them. I thought, “They’re only one size too small. Maybe I can make this work.”

I wore them to church, and that was the longest two hours of my life.

Don’t make your writing fit somewhere it doesn’t. You have an audience out there who are dying to read your words. Your writing will fit like a pair of shoes custom made for their feet.

Spend your time courting these people, and you can have whatever you want from your writing.

Schedule some rest

I’m going through Julia Cameron’s classic book The Artist’s Way with a small group.

In week 4, she urges us to do an exercise called Reading Deprivation.

What?

Writers have to read, right? If we don’t, they say our work will suck. And we can’t have that, can we?

Actually, we can.

Here’s why. When we bury ourselves in reading, whether it be books, the news, social media updates, or email, we surrender our creativity to other people’s agendas.

We need time alone with our thoughts. So sit at your desk and stare at the wall. Go for a walk and leave your phone behind. Do something random, like listen to country music when you’d rather listen to Jazz. Find some kids to play with and watch their sense of wonder unfold before you.

Planned disconnection will feed your creativity like nothing else.

Try it.

I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised at what happens.

Did you solve a problem?

One of the first things you learn in math class is that there is often more than one way to solve a problem.

For example:

  • 2 + 2 = 4
  • 1 + 3 = 4
  • 4 + 0 = 4

Don’t even get me started on fractions.

When you wrote that post or book, did you solve a problem or meet a need?

If you did, you win.

So does your reader, at least some of them.

It would be great if you could find the one answer that will suit everyone. The problem is, that answer doesn’t exist.

So quit worrying about it.

Do what you do best, and use it to serve your readers. The ones who benefit will love you and tell their friends.

The rest will gripe and go away.

And chances are, you’ll never hear from most of them.

It’s impossible to write anything perfectly

I can’t tell you how many bestsellers have typos.

I’m not saying you shouldn’t edit. Obviously, you should. I am saying you should decide just how much editing you’ll do.

Edit enough for your work to make an impact. If it’s effective, it’s as close to perfect as it ever needs to be.

Let’s face it. You can always say more and say it better. But you only have so much paper and so much time. You have to put food on the table and keep a roof over your head. Limit your time and aim high while you write.

Then ship it.

That’s the key that will unlock the floodgates of productivity for any writer.

Now go get ‘em, tiger!

Which of these techniques can you use this week to overcome your doubts?

Pick the one that scares you the most and do it.

Then come back here and tell me how it went.

Have questions? We’re here for you. Self-doubt doesn’t have to win. There are people out there waiting to hear what you have to say. Don’t deny them the benefit of your hard-won insights.

You’ve got this!

Why Writing in Isolation is Good For You

Why Writing in Isolation is Good For You

written by Frank McKinley

You’ve probably heard that writing is a community affair.

Well, it is, and it isn’t.

Sure, if you want people to read your work, you’ve got to know what they want. So you visit the blogs on your topic and start snooping around. You might even look at the comments and see what questions people are asking. Who knows? You could be first with the answer nobody has given.

Then you run your idea by a few of your closest friends to see what they think. It’s kind of like getting pre-approved for a loan at the bank. It seems like a waste of time to go fill out papers for a whole afternoon if they’re just going to say no, isn’t it?

So you seek permission to write what’s on your mind.

At least you do if metrics matter more than free expression.

What if you go and hide to write?

The obvious way to hide is to sit at your desk and cut off all contact with the outside world.

No social media.

No email.

No notifications of any kind.

Can you do it?

Sure, you can. Just turn it all off. Besides, it will still be there when you get back.

But what if you have an appointment?

Work around it.

Set office hours. Let people know when you’ll be available so you can devote your full attention to them. And let them know when you can’t by making yourself unavailable.

Trust me, they’ll thank you for it.

There’s something else you’ll turn off while you’re writing. It’s so important it’s easy to overlook. But if you do, it will ruin your work.

What is this poison?

Opinions.

Ask other people what they think before you put words on paper. Ask them in conversations beforehand. But once you enter the writing chamber, no one else matters.

Writing time is your time

When you’re in your writing space, it’s sacred. It’s not to be interrupted by second thoughts, the phone, or anything that can wait.

Especially other people’s opinions.

When you’re in your writing space, it’s sacred. It’s not to be interrupted by second thoughts, the phone, or anything that can wait. Especially other people’s opinions. Click To Tweet

You’ve already floated the idea by a few people. They had their chance to agree or object then. Don’t leave the door to criticism open when you’re creating. Just open the spigot and let it flow.

Besides, you’ll edit later.

But not until you’ve had time for your draft to simmer.

Some use the term “free writing” for vomit drafts of all types. Why? Because you’re ignoring all the rules. Spelling. Grammar. Typos. Whatever.

You’re giving your voice free rein to say whatever it will.

Don’t worry about being offensive, wrong, or sloppy. Your prime concern is to get your deepest, most unreserved thoughts out so you can mine them for the gold inside.

That may mean you move a little dirt later. But so what? You’ve got to put the dirt there to move it. It’s just part of the process.

Keep the door closed while you edit

When it comes to startups, business expert Seth Godin says you should thrash early.

What this means for you as a writer is you get all the input you need on the front end. You research, then you write. You take a break, then you edit. Find the changes you need to make on the first swipe if you can. After that, go with it.

Too many changes dilute your writing’s power.

Don’t smooth off all the edges. You don’t want dull words competing with edgier ones. Your edges will help you stand out and will show your genius in all its imperfect glory.

Worried you’ll be criticized? Good. That means you’ve made an impact. No criticism means no one cares. And who wants that?

Keep the door closed to other eyes until you publish. The only exception to this is if you hire an outside editor specifically to make your piece the best it can be. Otherwise, use your best judgment. Set a time limit that fits the work you’re doing. Then share it with the world.

Open the door when you launch

You do this by allowing comments on your work.

If comments bother you, just turn them off. Seth Godin does this. And he’s still as popular as ever. You won’t go to writer’s hell if you cut off comments.

But if you’re growing, you might want to have a chance to talk with your readers.

Answer their questions. Respond to their observations. Ask them about what they’re working on, and offer advice if you can (and you sense that they might want it).

Generosity is a great community builder.

You might pick up new readers, customers, or even a client or two.

Here’s something not many talk about. When you talk about a finished work, rather than one that is still in progress, you’ll gain more confidence. Why? It takes guts to finish something. Every time you do, you get a little stronger. You learn more. And your writing time becomes more and more effective at bringing out the genius inside you.

It takes guts to finish something. Every time you do, you get a little stronger. You learn more. And your writing time becomes more and more effective at bringing out the genius inside you. Click To Tweet

Create your own writing sanctuary

You know your space needs to be quiet and free from distractions.

Now let’s take it to the next level.

Do you thrive with background noise? Or do you prefer total silence? Will you listen to music or binaural beats?

Will you have anything to drink? Water is good. I like coffee also. Stay hydrated and you won’t be distracted by hunger or undue weariness.

You also need a timer.

When you’re sitting at your desk for what might be hours, you’ll wear your eyes out if you don’t get up and move around every 25 minutes or so. Take a 5 minute break then get back to work. After 4 sessions like this, take a longer break (at least 15 minutes).

Make sure you don’t cheat and sneak some work in while you’re resting. The only work you can’t get out of is being alone with your thoughts. The forced breaks might just fill in gaps that would remain if you pressed on full steam ahead.

You might know this as the Pomodoro Technique. I’ve used it faithfully for years. I thought at first the frequent breaks would mess with my flow. But they actually made me more productive. When you rest before you get tired, you’re more eager to get back at it.

Here’s a bonus from Julia Cameron. Celebrate your wins by going on an Artist Date with yourself. It can be whatever you want. A walk in the woods. A bowl of ice cream. A trip to the coffee shop. Or maybe you just buy (or make) a trinket to mark the occasion.

When you cheer yourself on like this, you’ll find the will to press on when it counts.

How does isolation help you write better? Share your stories and strategies in the comments. I’d love to hear what works for you! Have questions? Feel free to ask. We’re here to help you make your writing dreams reality.

How to Unleash the Writing Genius Inside You

How to Unleash the Writing Genius Inside You

written by Frank McKinley

The biggest enemy any writer faces is one’s self and often appears as writer’s block.

If left untreated, it can be devastating to your output and your writing career. Nobody wants that, so let’s solve this problem!

 

This post is by Positive Writer contributor Frank McKinley.

Maybe you’ve heard of writers who get up every morning and put paws to the keyboard for an hour or two before breakfast. These are the people who churn out three or four novels a year like it was nothing (it’s not, of course). If you’re not doing the same, your gut reaction is likely to be jealous – crazy jealous.

How do they do that anyway? Do they add a magic potion to their morning coffee? Do the writing gods live in the spare bedroom of these high producers? Are they directly related to King Midas so every book they publish turns to gold?

It’s an entertaining notion to think successful people are born with innate talent that you don’t have. That lets you off the hook and justifies your complaining.

But it doesn’t get your book written.

If you suffer from any kind of writer’s block, you know all too well it’s a real thing. Sometimes it feels like a writer’s wall that is so high all the ideas on the other side are trapped there, forever out of your reach.

Unleash the genius one block at a time

Writer’s block doesn’t have to be forever.

Seth Godin makes the bold assertion that he never has writer’s block. To him, writing is another form of talking, and he is never at a loss for words.

If you’re an introvert, that might not comfort you much.

The truth is, words are readily available. You just have to reach out and grab them. The Muse loves the chase, and you can’t catch her by complaining about not being able to catch her.

In this post, you’ll learn how to hunt her down and make her do your bidding.

First, let’s identify the common blocks we writers face every time we sit at our desks.

Perfectionism. “If it’s not perfect, it’s not worth doing,” you might say to yourself.

Really? What is “perfect” anyway? Compared to what?

Everybody’s definition of perfect is different.

Aim to be effective instead.

Procrastination. “I’ll get started writing the moment this episode of Game of Thrones is over.” Or right after you unload the dryer. Or as soon as you wake up tomorrow.

The longer you wait, the easier it is not to start at all.

When you finish reading this post, you’ll face every blank page with confidence.

Fear. Someone might criticize you. Someone else might leave a nasty comment. Or worse, nobody will read your work at all.

Fear makes you freeze. Breathing is hard, and thinking becomes impossible. Except for worst case scenarios. Amazingly, you can come up with an endless supply of those.

What if you could blast past all your fears and tap into the writing genius inside you? What would that do for your production? Your confidence? How would the quality of your writing improve?

Forget about fear for 30 minutes a day

When we don’t want to do something, we do something else.

The dishes are piled up in the sink. But it’s been a long day and you’re tired. So you watch an episode or two of Black Mirror on Netflix. After that, you’ll feel more like dealing with the dirty dishes.

But you fall asleep on the couch instead.

What if you just went into the kitchen right after dinner and loaded the dishwasher before you plop onto the couch? Sure, it’s not fun dealing with the dishes. But it won’t be later either. Just get it over with.

When you’re done, you can rest in peace.

Dorothea Brande taught writers to get up and spend the first 30 minutes of the day writing “as fast as you can.” She gave that advice in 1934 and it as sound today as it was then.

Why did she recommend writers do this?

Because for those 30 minutes, you’re focusing on writing and nothing else. You’re ignoring everything in the universe besides putting words on paper. Call it freewriting, a stream of consciousness, a brain dump, or whatever you want.

How to make freewriting work for you today

It might sound crazy to have rules for “free” writing. But there are a few important ones.

And don’t worry, they won’t hamper your creativity at all.

First, set a timer. It can be for 5 minutes or 5 hours. You choose. If you’re just starting out, 5-10 minutes is plenty of time.

You might want to use the first 5 minutes to warm up your writing muscles. You can write about anything you want:

  • What you dreamed about last night.
  • The weather yesterday, today, or tomorrow.
  • How sleepy you still feel.
  • How stupid this seems.
  • How much you enjoyed watching Black Mirror last night.

The point is you’ll be putting words on paper. Set the timer again for 10 or 20 minutes and you can get more focused. Start with a prompt and write whatever comes to mind about it.

Second, don’t edit as you go. Please. You’ll be using both sides of your brain at once. That’s like drawing a picture, and erasing it at the same time.

The main reason you don’t want to edit while you write is that you risk wiping the flavor out of it. Try this instead. Write for 30 minutes or an hour. Take a break. Go walk. Load the dishwasher. Watch an episode of Breaking Bad. After you’ve put some space between you and your writing, then come back with a less critical eye.

Maybe you can even pretend your best friend wrote it.

Third, make sure you’re totally isolated when you write. Turn off the internet. Don’t answer the phone. Turn off the TV. Let your loved ones know not to bother you because it’s “writing time.”

If you need noise, listen to your favorite music. Just make sure it puts you into a peak state so you write something awesome.

When the timer stops, you have to stop, too.

If you can’t, I say keep going until you exhaust your idea mill.

If there’s one rule you can break, this is it.

Fourth, set a time limit for editing, too. Why edit forever? The more you slice away, the blander your writing becomes. Decide what you want to achieve and edit for that. Leave the spice in.

Proofreading doesn’t count as editing. Of course, you should do that, too. Fix the typos and read your work aloud. Does it sound human and conversational?

Perfect.

And I mean perfect by anyone’s standard.

Especially the reader’s.

In the end, the reader’s opinion is the most important one.

Now go pour out your soul on paper

We don’t want another “me, too” writer. We want you at your gloriously imperfect best. Entertain us with your wit. Dazzle us with your insights. Be bold in your creativity and share the story only you can tell.

If you’re not freewriting already, today is the day to begin.

If you are, share your experience in the comments. Pass this post to your friends who struggle with writer’s block. Let’s start a movement of creative geniuses changing the world with their words!

Why Now is the Best Time to Write Your Story!

Why Now is the Best Time to Write Your Story!

written by Frank McKinley

Do you have a book burning inside you and the fire is so bright you can’t ignore it?

Is there a story in your heart that you must write – and if you don’t, you’ll die with a thousand regrets?

Is there a lesson you can teach in a way that no one else can, and if you don’t the world will miss out?

Good. Now is the time.

This post is by Positive Writer contributor Frank McKinley.

But I’ve got some really good reasons why I haven’t started…

Of course you do.

And I know them all, because at one time or another, I’ve used them to keep my writing in the closet.

When I was young, I wrote a lot. I didn’t share it because people treated me like I didn’t matter. I was hurt already. I didn’t want to risk being targeted as a fool for daring to be creative.

Pain makes us hide.

It puts up walls where there shouldn’t be walls.

I have a friend who has gone through unimaginable pain, way more than I ever have. We’re in some of the same writing groups. I’ve encouraged her to share her story, even if it’s just a piece or two.

Last week, she took the plunge. She wrote about how scared she was of writing publicly. She shared it in the group.

It was freaking brilliant.

I thought to myself, “Where have you been hiding this talent?”

Then I told her how great it was.

The words you put on the page matter. But the words you give to other writers encouraging them to press on and do the good work of writing and sharing can be life changing.

Today, if you’ve been waiting to write and share your story because it’s not perfect yet, or all your ducks aren’t in a row yet, or you’re too scared to start – consider this your invitation to begin.

The time is now.

Now is the best time to write your story! Click To Tweet

Here are three compelling reasons why today is the absolute best day to start.

You don’t have to have all your ducks in a row before you write.

The experts that tell you that you need an audience first are trying to help you.

But what they might be doing is giving you a severe case of writer’s block.

Here’s how that looks when you talk to yourself:

  • I don’t have 10,000 followers on social media, so no one will take me seriously.
  • My story has been told by others 50,000 times already. Why bother?
  • I’m not Stephen King. What makes me think I can sell a single book?

Shut up.

Social media can be valuable. But it’s a borrowed platform. So is Medium. The owners can change all the rules whenever they want. And as inconceivable as it may seem, they can even fail.

Where will you be then?

You could – and should – have your own blog. But that will cost you a little money. If you’re short of cash, your host won’t cut you a break.

None of these are platforms. They’re stages. They’re where people come to see you, read your work, and applaud your efforts.

Your platform is your message, your story. You take that with you everywhere. And it’s yours until you die.

So wherever you go, there you are. And so is your story. The best thing you can do is find a stage where your message fits. Metal bands don’t play at the Grand Old Opry. Symphonies don’t play in smoky downtown bars. You don’t wear jeans that are three sizes too small.

There’s a place for you to shine.

It’s up to you to choose yourself and find it.

The time is now.

Write your story and build your following while you’re working.

Don’t let perfectionism and procrastination keep you quiet and make you hide.

You won’t be better tomorrow if you don’t write today.

There are no perfect writers.

If you’ve been sold that myth, I’m sorry.

What seems perfect is really just successful. And success looks different for every bestselling author.

So how do you define “success”?

Success means your message is reaching those who want to hear it.

You can’t go back and do the past differently.

You can dream of the better future that is possible.

It won’t happen if you don’t write something today.

Don’t worry about it being perfect or mind-blowingly awesome. Just be honest. Spill your verbal guts. Say something that scares you, and maybe even seems a little raw.

How do you know it’s safe?

If you don’t feel a definite “No” rising up inside you when you’re editing, leave it in.

Queasy feelings are okay.

Wondering how people might react is permissible.

Just don’t do something you know you shouldn’t, and things should work out okay.

Don’t let perfection keep you from sharing something that’s close enough to perfect.

Today is the first day of the rest of your life. Your forever begins now.

Your readers are waiting.

If you keep your story bottled up, it will ruin you.

I know, that’s a pretty bold statement.

But think about it.

Have you ever gotten really excited about something, but your Inner Critic talked you out of it?

How did that make you feel?

Sad?

Resentful?

Angry?

I’ll bet it burned away inside of you because you bottled it up. You may have even told your friends, but since you never took action, you’re ashamed to talk about it anymore. Maybe they feel sorry for you that you had such a big dream. Since it was so big, they don’t blame you for giving up. Who wouldn’t?

Hogwash.

Give it a chance.

How can you know what it will look like if you don’t chase it? How will you know the impact your story could have if you never write it or share it?

Consider this your kick in the pants.

And if you need a community to encourage you, I can hook you up with one no matter where you live.

Don’t break your own heart by denying it what it wants.

You could be three feet from gold.

Start Now

Chances are if you’re reading this blog, you’re doing some writing.

That’s great.

Wherever you are in your writing, you can always do more. More words. More sharing. Or more of a balance between the two. All you need to do to call yourself a writer is write.

When you share regularly, others will call you a writer.

What’s your story? What do you feel compelled to share with the world? What do you have that can make us all better? Who are the people who matter who will receive your words with joy?

Find them, and do the work.

If they don’t respond right away, here’s an analogy.

When you need shoes, you go to the store and see what’s available. There are dress shoes, athletic shoes, and shoes you wear to goof off. You pick the appropriate style and try some on. Some will fit, others won’t. Walk around and see how you feel before you give the shopkeeper your money.

When you find the perfect pair, you know.

It may take time to find where your story fits. That’s okay. You’ve got to try it out in different places. When you find a fit, stay there and keep writing until it doesn’t work anymore.

When your shoes wear out, you buy another pair. You don’t stop walking when you get holes in your soles. When your writing doesn’t fit anymore, find a place where it does.

And trust me, there is a place.

It may be a long road, and you’ll have to take every step.

Start now.

We need your story.

Your Next Move?

Don’t quit. Read This Next!

7 Doggone Hacks That Will Transform You Into an Unstoppable Writer

7 Doggone Hacks That Will Transform You Into an Unstoppable Writer

written by Frank McKinley

We love shortcuts to success.

I can’t promise these will all be easy. But if you use them, I can promise you’ll make progress.

This post is by Positive Writer contributor Frank McKinley.

Momentum Requires Movement

Tomorrow is too late.

Momentum is like a fire. It needs you to feed it to live. And when it wanes, you’ve got to poke it to reinvigorate it.

Sometimes we confuse dreams with momentum.

“I want to write a novel next year.” 

“I want to become a bestselling author.” 

“I want to be the next James Patterson.” 

You could also add that you want to be the next person to fly to Mars.

Wanting isn’t doing. Dreams are great, but unless we pick up our pens, sit in our chairs, and write down some words, dreams are just smoke.

But Dreams Are Fun

So is visiting Disney World.

Or the beach.

Or your mountain cabin.

Dreams make sleeping memorable.

Action is what makes dreams come true. You’ve got to write it and share it to know if people will like it.

Will you fail? 

Maybe.

But only if you don’t learn something.

Tomorrow is another day. You can write something else. And as the days pass, you’ll forget about what didn’t work.

You’re a writer. Don’t just hypothesize. Test your assertions. Try them with real people. Something good will come from this eventually. You just have to keep putting words in front of people.

Here are the 7 hacks to transform you into an unstoppable writer!

1 Write down ideas whenever they come.

Keep a notebook or a page somewhere where you can record all those ideas that come to you.

If you can find them, you can do something with them. Maybe you use one and throw away another. Maybe you marry two of them and take a new slant on an old approach.

Just catch them before they get lost.

Writing them down ensures they stay.

You say you don’t have any ideas?

That’s a lie. Take out a piece of paper. Grab a pen. Set a timer for 10 minutes. Write the first word that pops into your head on the top of the page and spend the 10 minutes writing down whatever comes to mind.

Send your internal critic on a break while you fill the page with nonsense, profundity, and everything in between.

When you’re done, you’ll have something.

If you don’t like what you have, just do it again until you do.

2 If you don’t use an idea in a week, toss it.

Time kills momentum.

This approach may sound radical. But it’s not.

When you buy produce, you have to eat it soon or it will be rotten. When it’s rotten, you don’t save it for later, hoping it will taste better. In fact, the longer you keep it around the more it stinks.

Ideas are a lot like that. Act on them while they’re hot. Otherwise, you’re just stirring ashes.

You’re most creative when you write about something sooner than later. Later, you’ll have grown and maybe that thought won’t make sense anymore. Maybe you’ll have learned a lesson that made that idea irrelevant. A week is long enough.

If it’s a big idea, take some action on it now. Even if it’s just making plans. A long term project can take a year. There will be lots of parts. Small actions are movement that keep the idea alive.

Do something now to move that idea forward. If you can’t, you probably won’t.

3 Write daily and momentum will come, stay, and grow.

Your work won’t always be perfect.

In fact, it never will because it can’t be.

Don’t worry about it.

When a baby learns to walk, she doesn’t care about perfect. She cares about effective. She doesn’t care how she looks while she’s learning. She just cares about walking.

Write every day. Do the best you can. Do something better tomorrow than you did it today. But don’t spend all day today worrying about tomorrow.

Just pick up your pen and make some magic.

The trick is just doing the work.

4 Print out a calendar and record your progress.

It’s great to have an accountability partner if you can get one.

But honestly, you are your best motivator.

Hang a calendar on your wall. Get one in December if you can. If not, print one out on your computer. If you don’t have a computer, draw a calendar.

Every day, check the box to signal to yourself that you wrote something.

When you’re feeling like nothing you do matters, the calendar will remind you that you’re making progress. You’re writing. You’re testing the boundaries. You’re doing the work.

You’ll only reach your destination when you take the steps every day to get there.

5 As soon as you reach one goal, set another.

Just take time to celebrate your wins.

You’ve probably figured it out by now. I’m urging you to keep moving.

Life is meaningless without a map.

We all want maps because we all have dreams we want to come true.

Maps show the territory in front of you. Goals are the cities you want to visit on a map. You pave the road with the steps you take to get there.

NaNoWriMo is a great example of how this works. You have 30 days to write 50,000 words. You know you’re writing a story that you hope becomes a published novel. At worst, if you keep moving you’ll have a draft you can refine.

The key is:

  • You know WHAT you need to write.
  • You know HOW MUCH writing is required.
  • You have a DEADLINE.

When that’s novel’s done, you write another one if you want to call yourself a novelist.

Writing every day is a goal. Writing a novel is a goal. If you want to move forward every day, you’ve got to set a goal every day.

Then you’ve got to do the work, which is far easier when you’ve drawn a map.

6 It’s great to have lots of ideas. It’s better to turn them into reality.

All your ideas won’t work.

That’s why you need lots of them.

You can also tweak your ideas and effectively turn them into new ones. Your pen is your friend here. Every morning play around with your thoughts. Take them in whatever direction your mind leads them to. There might be gold in the shadows.

You don’t have to publish and share all your thoughts. But you do need to explore the ones that stick around and keep popping up in your idea notebook. There’s probably a golden thread running through them that is calling you to your purpose as a writer.

It’s your responsibility to discover what that is, and take it to the people who need it.

Unrealized ideas are cinders that turn to ashes and never warm anyone.

Don’t let your good ideas suffer that fate.

7 Keep experimenting. It’s better to learn than to guess.

Seth Godin wrote the foreword to a marketing textbook I found online.

He wrote, “This textbook probably won’t be any good for you.”

Why would he say something like that?

Because if all you do is read it, you’ll be wasting your time.

Read it. Learn it. Then go do something with it.

Market.

Test.

Learn.

Build.

Reading this post won’t help you either. So go. Use what you’ve just read. Write something. Now. Today. Tomorrow. Forever.

Go Make Magic

The magic of writing is in the doing.

When you do it daily, and give it your all, you’ll get better. Your message will matter. And people will read your stories.

Your message is your story. It’s the hope you sell to your readers. It’s the secret that, when revealed, frees them to be their best selves, achieve the status they want, and make their dreams real.

What will you write today?

How To Find The Muse When It’s Nowhere In Sight!

How To Find The Muse When It’s Nowhere In Sight!

written by Frank McKinley

Ever wish you could wake up every morning and scribble out 250 words of something awesome before breakfast?

Maybe that seems like the impossible dream. It’s especially hard if you’ve been told you have to wait for the Muse to show up and cover you with inspirational pixie dust.

Read More

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