Writing is a solitary effort, a task pursued in private. Yet the result is public. Bridging that gap, between originator and audience, sits the critique group. A properly functioning assemblage will help members distinguish between their junk and their jewels, serving to keep the drivel under wraps while propelling the exceptional to greater heights. While […]
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Allergy Season
By Peter DeHaan, Ph.D. With allergy season upon us, I recall a strange realization from a couple years back – after I sneezed. I noticed my sternutation sounded just like my dad. Not that there was anything wrong with how Dad sneezed, just that it was distinctive. At first, I chalked this up to heredity, […]
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Will You Be Ready?
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD By definition, the recession is over. The worst is behind us and good times are ahead – at least in theory. This recovery, however, is proving to be slow. It is dawdling along, in an unhurried manner, unaware that we yearn for it sooner rather than later – and that […]
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Twelve Facts About Magazines
The following is from the 2010/11 MPA Magazine Handbook: Magazine audiences are growing – and young adults read heavily: The number of magazine readers has grown more than 4% over the past five years. Ninety-three percent of adults overall and 96% of adults under age 35 read magazines.
Another helpful resource for writers is magazines, specifically magazines about writing. What you can expect from a writer’s magazine includes tips on writing, writing contests, writing exercises, writing samples and critiques, and interviews with authors, agents, and publishers. While not every article will be of interest to everyone, every issue will have at least one […]
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD There is a troubling trend in advertising; it is making ad buys based strictly on ROI (return on investment) calculations. This tendency began in earnest with online advertising, which provides readily available performance data, such as impressions, clicks, and leads. Soon, advertisers were justifying ad buys solely using cost-per-click or […]
Last year, I attended two writing conferences. I went with no clear goal in mind, merely trying to absorb what I could and learn as much as possible. Although I was a squirming novice attendee, I did gain much. This year I will return to those two conferences, this time with a careful plan to […]
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD Some healthcare contact centers go from day to day, month to month, and year to year without ever giving a thought to the often incapacitating evolution around them. Things get squeezed in here, hooked up there, and stacked on top of, until routine work becomes an illogical series of unneeded […]
Writing conferences are a great place for writers, whether accomplished in their craft or just starting out. At a writing conference, there are many outcomes that can be reasonably expected. In no particular order, they are: Encouragement: Conferences can lift up the discouraged or struggling writer. This is coupled with providing a healthy dose of […]
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Resources for Writers
Although writing is largely a solitary endeavor, it is not wise to go it alone. It is critical to not work in a vacuum and to tap into many of the resources available to writers. In the past I shared the importance of reading as a tool to help form and better inform your craft […]