I was recently in a competitive situation for an editing job. A first-time author with a book contract was seeking an editor, and someone she trusted had recommended me. She was also considering others. Strange as it may seem, this doesn’t usually happen with me. Usually, people who pick me want me. And I flubbed…
I’m working with about ten clients right now on various projects. And I’m dealing with a personal family issue that makes it challenging to work quickly or steadily, at least for a few days. Most of my clients are authors. A few are corporate folks, but they’re folks I’ve spoken with, folks I’ve worked with,…
Yeah. These doctors are good people, at least the ones I know. There are a lot of doctors in America. They’re in every available specialty. And I’ve interacted with a bunch of them lately, both for my family and personally. I’m sure there are doctors who don’t know what they’re doing or don’t give a…
I take a great deal of satisfaction in my streak. I write a substantive blog post every weekday, and have since I started this blog in March of 2015, almost five years ago. This is, of course, an insane thing to do. There is no rational reason for it. You might think the irrational reason…
I’m soooo close to 200 responses in my author survey. If you didn’t already take it and you are (or plan to be) a nonfiction author, please help. This is the last chance to do that. It’s 8 minutes. Eight. It’s here. Everyone who takes it gets a summary of survey results (see where you…
Tomorrow you will get to read my first ever horror story — and it’s a paid gig. Here’s how that happened and why it probably was inevitable. My ghostwriting agency, Gotham Ghostwriters, regularly sends out emails with specific ghostwriting needs. I’m very selective about which ones I pitch, because my value is in writing tech-focused…
I. Hate. To. Quit. But I’ve tried to get good at it. I’ve quit a lot of things in 60 years on this planet. I quit graduate school. I quit a marriage. I quit as CEO of a nonprofit and as founder and leader of a huge user group. I quit four jobs and one…
Summer is slower for many businesses. If you’re considering writing a book, this is a good time to start planning it. And I’m about to give you a good reason to start now. Summer is slower for me, too. That means I have excess capacity. And that means I can help you. And to get…
I made a career out of telling important people things they might not want to hear. In my time as a technology analyst I spoke with CEOs, presidents, founders, and management teams at ABC, Best Buy, Cablevision, Charles Schwab, Cisco, Clear Channel, Comcast, Conde Nast, Cox, Discovery, EMI, HBO, Haier, Hearst, Home Depot, Intuit, Lifetime,…