Deadlines push you towards conclusion. Concluding will push you towards conclusion. Sounds very philosophical, doesn’t it? Many of you reading this are probably like me with writing and editing. We want to obsess over everything. There is a maddening drive to perfect it all as best as we can before hitting send. Before walking away. Before calling […]
Several people have been exceptionally kind and complimentary in many of my “shop-talk” posts. A colleague with several decades of experience as a trial lawyer recently suggested that I could teach a writing class. Incidentally, it was the words of a late Manitoba Judge who explained that in speaking to people you might be able […]
A collection of hand-written and hand-printed improvisations Recently, I stumbled across a great YouTube clip from music great Chick Corea where he talks about improvisation. When it pertains to writing, improv is a theme worth visiting and re-visiting multiple times over. No one may be able to fully develop the perfect definition of what improvisation […]
Editing Revising For me it may very well be one of the most enjoyable things about writing. For much of what I have worked on over the years, I’ve insisted on working the majority of any edits on my own. Mainly due to my own stubborn attitude and drive to make everything the best it […]
I quit smoking cigarettes for good in 2000. Even with a few smokes a week, it was still smoking. It is still shit and horrid for your health. My consistency was well, never consistent. I switched brands regularly in an effort to celebrate freedom of choice. The odd time I would smoke something without a […]
I spent part of the weekend skimming over some older posts on this site. We are talking posts that date back 5 years. It is nice to see how far I have developed with work. At the same time, there were a few posts I was not happy looking back on. Material that I would […]
In my collection of notebooks and scrap paper, lies my collection of rejection notes dating back to my earliest days in the business. There is a good reason that I keep these and you should too. Rejection letters and notes do not always serve as a thumbs-down on your work. When it does, it should […]
Reading is a refresher to writing. Reading is learning structure and style. In a sense, reading can feel like a relaxing kind of work. Of the many books I have read over the last few years, most have been autobiographies about musicians whose artistic output I have enjoyed immensely. In most of these kinds of […]
It was only a few weeks ago where I swore that I would never read this book again. This was born out of a fear of finding too many things that might need to be changed. Revising is one of my favourite things about work. I long viewed Planned UnParenthood as being finished completely. It […]
I just sent another revised version of my first book to the distribution network. The revision is a simple one where I just amended website information. My domain is long gone for now but I am planning to set up a new one in the next year or so which will again connect readers directly […]
Dann Alexander 