4 Ways to Make Progress on Your Book Every Day
Wally Bock's Writing Edge
by Wally Bock
6d ago
Print/Download Page PDF Teresa Amabile and Steven Kramer studied the inner work life of 238 people by analyzing more than 12,000 daily work diary entries. That research resulted in what they call “The Progress Principle.” Here it is from their book with that name. “Of all the positive events that influence inner work life, the single most powerful is progress in meaningful work.” The progress principle is important to you if you’re writing a book. Making steady progress is how you maintain momentum during the months you labor to produce a book you’re proud of. The small winds of a little pr ..read more
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4 Kinds of Business Books and How to Make Them Great
Wally Bock's Writing Edge
by Wally Bock
1w ago
When clients come to me for the first time, they usually have a pretty good idea of what they want to write about. Normally, they haven’t done much to plan their book. That starts with deciding what kind of book they choose to write. There are, conservatively speaking, about four gazillion business books published every year. Even though there are books beyond counting, they all fall into one of four basic categories. When you choose the category of the book you plan to write, you can do what’s necessary to succeed and avoid common pitfalls. The How-To Book A how-to book teaches the reader how ..read more
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How short should your book be?
Wally Bock's Writing Edge
by Wally Bock
1M ago
Print/Download Page PDF That’s not a typo. I know that when most people talk or think about a “standard business book,” they ask how long it should be. And, in that case, the answer is usually at least a couple of hundred pages. But your book doesn’t have to be that long. There are many great short business books. The exemplar is Ken Blanchard’s One Minute Manager. That book was only 112 pages. The One Minute Manager and its successor, The New One Minute Manager, have sold well for 40 years. I have no idea how many copies they sold altogether, but it’s a ton. The primary reason for the book’s ..read more
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Write drunk. Edit Sober.
Wally Bock's Writing Edge
by Wally Bock
1M ago
Print/Download Page PDF “Write drunk. Edit sober.” Whether Ernest Hemingway ever said those words or not, there’s wisdom in that quote. It just doesn’t have anything to do with pharmacology. Try this on for size. Write passionately. Edit dispassionately. Write passionately Your best writing will be the writing that moves both you and the reader. It will be writing with passion, flow, and energy. Here’s how to make that more likely. Capture passion on the fly. When an idea, a situation, or a phrase inspires you, capture it. Write it down. Record it. Don’t let it get away. Put it in your journa ..read more
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How to Build an Author Platform from Scratch
Wally Bock's Writing Edge
by Wally Bock
1M ago
Print/Download Page PDF Lynn McGinnis helps self-published authors build and grow their platforms, gain visibility, and reach their unique author marketing goals through coaching, consulting, and done-for-you marketing services. I asked her to write this post because I get lots of questions about what an author platform is, why it’s important, and how to build one. I’m not an expert on building an author platform. Lynn is. Here’s her advice on how to do it. Hitting that “publish” button isn’t the end of your author journey. It’s just the beginning. It can be difficult to think past the seemin ..read more
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The Lifelong Impact of a Book
Wally Bock's Writing Edge
by Wally Bock
1M ago
Print/Download Page PDF Books change lives. This is the story of one book and how it changed my life. I was a 19-year-old Marine when I responded to an ad offering three books for $1 from the Walter J Black Classics Club. One of the club’s selections was The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. The autobiography was a delightful read. It also included one chapter which I found fascinating. The chapter was entitled “The Bold and Arduous Project of Arriving at Moral Perfection.” It affected my daily life more than any other book I’ve read. I encountered many ideas for the first time in Franklin ..read more
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3 Ways Keeping a Journal Will Help You Write Better
Wally Bock's Writing Edge
by Wally Bock
1M ago
Print/Download Page PDF Call it a journal, a writer’s notebook, or an idea file. It doesn’t matter what you call it. Keep it on a computer, loose sheets of paper, or in a bound notebook. That doesn’t matter either. What does matter is that journaling is a practice. It’s not simply writing some things down from time to time. I use the term “journal” because it implies “every day.” That makes it a part of your disciplined pursuit of better writing. Here are three ways keeping a journal can help you write better. Harnessing Your Ideas Good ideas fuel your writing. They might be ideas about topic ..read more
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How to Get the Most from Your Writing Talent
Wally Bock's Writing Edge
by Wally Bock
2M ago
Print/Download Page PDF In 1989, Daniel Chambliss wrote about the making of Olympic swimmers. He coined the phrase “The mundanity of excellence” to describe how the best swimmers get that way. Sure, they have natural talent. Yes, they have a great work ethic. But there’s more. The very best of those swimmers, people like Mark Spitz and Michael Phelps, get the most from incredible gifts. But there are lots of other people who have those gifts and don’t become great swimmers. And there are thousands of people without those gifts who become top swimmers. They achieve superlative performance. Tha ..read more
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Let your brain play!
Wally Bock's Writing Edge
by Wally Bock
2M ago
Print/Download Page PDF Dog walking time. It’s good for me. It’s good for my dog, Toto. And it’s good for my brain. When you’re writing, you may be tempted to bear down and focus hard on the project. That’s necessary, but so is giving your brain time to play. That’s when your brain does some of its best creative work. Preparation Good ideas don’t show up fully formed. Sometimes, they don’t make any sense in the beginning. The best way to turn a good idea into a great one is to let your brain play with it. But first, there are a couple of things you must do. Capture your good ideas when you ge ..read more
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2 Simple Writing Momentum Hacks
Wally Bock's Writing Edge
by Wally Bock
2M ago
Print/Download Page PDF My clients are what I call “semi-pro writers.” Writing isn’t their day job. Instead, they need to squeeze it into a calendar that’s already stuffed full of obligations. They need to make every writing moment count. You probably know all about eliminating distractions and setting a regular time and place to write. Those help. Here are two simple writing momentum hacks to help all that extra effort pay off. Come out punching! When it’s time to write, write. Don’t wander around your writing space, hoping inspiration will fly in through the air conditioning vent and land o ..read more
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