Author Archives: loren

A Quotation From Elmore Leonard

Posted on January 30, 2008 by loren

“If it sounds like writing, I rewrite it.” — Elmore Leonard, in Newsweek, 22 April 1985.

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Revision as Re-envisioning

Posted on January 30, 2008 by loren

 In a recent post, Write To Done’s Leo Babuta (of Zen Habits fame) discussed revision as primarily a process of simplifying.  The tips he provides in that post focus on removing the inessential and the verbose (the “cluttered” parts of … Continue reading →

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A Quotation From William Zinsser

Posted on January 29, 2008 by loren

“You learn to write by writing. It’s a truism, but what makes it a truism is that it’s true. The only way to learn to write is to force yourself to produce a certain number of words on a regular … Continue reading →

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3 New Ways To Get Started Drafting

Posted on January 29, 2008 by loren

One reason I love personal productivity/life development/organization blogs is that they provide some great tips for overcoming procrastination.  The blogosphere is full of them, and they’re great fun to read.  (Check out Leo Babuta’s Top 20 Motivation Hacks – An … Continue reading →

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A Quotation From Anne Lamott

Posted on January 28, 2008 by loren

“For me and most of the writers I know, writing is not rapturous.  In fact, the only way I can get anything written at all is to write really, really, shitty first drafts.” — Anne Lamott, Bird By Bird: Some … Continue reading →

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Drafting Process: The Potter vs. The Sculptor

Posted on January 28, 2008 by loren

What is the difference between a novice writer and an experienced writer? It’s not the ideas, talent or creativity: an inexperienced writer can have a great idea just as a pro can. As I have said before, writing is a … Continue reading →

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High Stakes Pronouns

Posted on January 26, 2008 by loren

As I’m sure you know, pronouns serve a key function in written communication. Because they have the power to stand in for nouns, they add remarkable ease and convenience to our everyday discourse. Just to review – in case it … Continue reading →

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A Quotation From John Mason Brown

Posted on January 25, 2008 by loren

“It is in the hard, hard, rock-pile labor of seeking to win, hold, or deserve a reader’s interest that the pleasant agony of writing again comes in.” — John Mason Brown, Dramatis Personae: A Retrospective Show, Compass Book ed.(New York, … Continue reading →

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On Removing “Weakifiers”

Posted on January 25, 2008 by loren

In The 4-Hour Workweek, Tim Ferriss notes that in excess, almost anything takes on the characteristics of its opposite. When do possessions become clutter? When there are too many of them. I propose that we start applying this principle to … Continue reading →

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A Quotation From Jim Raymond

Posted on January 24, 2008 by loren

“Writing is a way of arguing with ourselves, a way of keeping ourselves honest by discovering precisely what we believe and finding out whether we are justified in believing it.” –Jim Raymond, Writing (Is an Unnatural Act), (New York: Harper … Continue reading →

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