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Search Engine Optimization for Writers. Is that important for, let's say, a novelist ... a poet ... or an author of cook books? Well, YES! Search Engine Optimization for your Website I mean, you are a (professional or aspiring) writer, right? Then you probably have a blog, homepage or some sort social media profile. (If… Continue reading Make Sure That Google & Co. Can Find Your Website
Can you spare five minutes? Great! Five minutes a day, that is what this exercise requires. Five minutes to help you with your writing. To help developing new ideas. To jot down a fleeting thought that someday might grow to become a plot. To help overcoming the menacing ... (*whispers*) Writer's Block. Productivity for Writers… Continue reading The 5 Minutes Writing Exercise
I love me some TED-Ed, and obviously I can use some brushing up of my grammar skills, so therefore ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wn_eBrIDUuc
You haven't? Well, neither have I, especially when it comes to English. So, here's another Ted-Ed video, one of a series of Ted-Ed lessons on how to "Perfect your punctuation". https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHnl1O3NGJk
I am actually old enough to remember the times when people used to express their concerns about e-mails supplanting the writing of letters, and the lost art of letter writing. Then, it seems, everybody started to chat and whats-up-and-what-not, so the idea of a carefully crafted e-mail might almost sound like a piece of nostalgia.… Continue reading E-Mail Etiquette – not only for Writers
I like this article about time management over at the Harvard Business Review – and since this can easily become an issue, and not only for freelancers…
...are being presented to us by the people from Refinery29. Not that I would go so far to claim they will, you know, change your life... but they are surely handy to have.
Usually, I am rather confident about my grammar and spelling skills. But it seems, particularly as a bilingual writer, there is always - ALWAYS - something left for me to learn. And since I figure that I am not the only one: Here is a simple example sentence by Noemi Tasarra-Twigg on freelancewritinggigs.com: I had… Continue reading A Handy Guide to Punctuation Marks
...on #purpose Oder auf Deutsch: "Beginne jeden Tag, als wäre es Absicht!"
Have you ever been in the situation to introduce two people to each other via e-mail? Yes? Well, the people over at Quartz suggest that we are... ..."probably doing e-mail introductions wrong" Or - as The Atlantic puts it on Facebook: You might not even be aware of it, "...but you're being a jerk." Are… Continue reading “Ummh… may I introduce…?” (E-Mail Etiquette)
... has published one of my short stories, so I am very happy to announce that "In good Hands" can now be read as part of the current "Practical Handbook of Bee Culture". The Handbook (which is not REALLY about bees!) is a publication of the "Retired Beekeepers of Sussex", a Sherlock-Holmes group based in… Continue reading Another Sherlock-Holmes Anthology …
Wie engagiert man eigentlich einen Ghostwriter? Natürlich, es gibt dafür Agenturen. Aber immer häufiger läuft das Suchen und Finden heutzutage über das Internet ab. Professionelle Ghostwriter verfügen schließlich in der Regel über mindestens eine Internetpräsenz (Webseite, Blog etc.), so dass die Nutzung der gängigen Suchmaschinen zumindest schon einmal eine erste Übersicht liefert. Auch Ratgeber-Foren, Anzeigenseiten… Continue reading Ghostwriter gefunden – was man jetzt beachten sollte
An old issue of one of my fave writing-related newsletters of http://www.worldwidefreelance.com has directed me to a peculiar little article: Author opens one-book shop to sell his own work To me, it's a curious piece of information and - possibly - inspiration. I mean, one never knows where the next inspiring idea might come from,… Continue reading A One-Book Shop… !
I must not neglect my blog I must not neglect my blog I must not neglect my blog I must not neglect... ~~~ If you are anything like me, your blogging is filled with a certain amount of content (i.e. posts) and ... uhm... good intentions. You KNOW that your blog/website/Facebook page is a major… Continue reading Schedule your (Blog) Content in Advance
If one works as a ghostwriter or writing mentor (like yours truly), you often get to hear a question - something along the lines of: "I want to tell a story/write about [insert writing topic here] - but would a publisher be interested in that? And if yes: Which publisher?" Ghostwriting and the Search for… Continue reading “Would a Publisher be interested in the Subject of my Manuscript?” Well, let’s have a look …
Thema Verlagssuche/Buchmarkt: Arbeitet man - wie ich - als Ghostwriter, wird man immer wieder mit dieser Frage (oder irgendeiner entsprechenden Abwandlung) konfrontiert: "Ich habe eine Geschichte zu erzählen bzw. möchte die Geschichte schreiben lassen. Hat so etwas bei einem Verlag Erfolg? Und wenn ja: bei welchen Verlagen?" Ghostwriting und Verlagssuche Obwohl die Fragestellung natürlich total… Continue reading “Würde sich ein Verlag für mein Thema interessieren?” Schaun mer doch mal nach …
A TEDx Talk by Nathan Filer ... which reminds me: I DO have some writing to do 😉 So I guess I leave you with this for now. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMQGa6grfeE
I have been breaking quite a few rules recently ... at least according to those rules that I like to convey to clients: update your blog REGULARLY update your Social Media REGULARLY provide useful/interesting content participate in networking events on- and offline ... to just name a few. I've been recently involved in a major… Continue reading “Do as I say, don’t do as I -“… uhm … well …
Einen tollen Dialog zu schreiben, ist manchmal gar nicht so einfach! Ich bin mir noch nicht mal sicher, ob es dafür eine richtige Methode gibt (im Sinne einer lernbaren Formel). Klar, es gibt schon ein paar Fähigkeiten in Bezug auf das Schreiben (Grammatik, Struktur ...), die man mit Hilfe von Büchern und Kursen lernen kann.… Continue reading Autoren: Hören eure Dialoge sich natürlich an?
Writing a great dialogue is not that easy! I am not even sure if there is a method (as in a formula one could learn) of how to do this. Granted, there are quite a few writing-related skills and qualities (grammar, structure, plotting devices ...) you can learn from books and courses. But I think,… Continue reading Writers: Do your Dialogues sound natural?
susa(nne) wagner 