A.I. is hotter than hot. If you have a unique point of view, by all means write an article about it. But I don’t care how much you know, this is no time to write a book about it. Five kinds of A.I. books and why you shouldn’t write them There are more than 20,000…
John Taylor “Ike” Williams was my agent and publishing lawyer. He died on December 26, 2024 at the age of 86. Ike was a commanding presence at his literary agency, Kneerim & Williams, and law firm, Sennott & Williams. Six-foot-six and good-looking, he had a unique combination of unshakable Boston Brahmin confidence and good humor….
Newsletter 77. Toxic growth, journal editors resign, business novellas, three people to follow and three books to read. Bigger’s not better, for companies or countries Companies pursue size. If Donald Trump has his way, so will the United States of America. Observe what happens when companies get bigger and there are some relevant lessons. The…
You might be skinny, fat, male, female, old, young, gay, straight, Black, white, Asian, a senior vice president, an entrepreneur, a new college graduate, a person with a Ph.D., somebody who never graduated, a cancer survivor, a person in a wheelchair, or an olympic athlete. When you write, it doesn’t matter. If you can write…
Newsletter 75: Resolving to make better New Year’s resolutions, Melania’s stickiness, new agents and publishers, plus three people to follow and three books to read. High resolution Have you made a New Year’s Resolution? You will fail, you know. But if you want to fail successfully — and eventually succeed — here are some questions…
As I’ve explained here previously, there are two types of writers: planners and pantsers. Planners create detailed outlines and break the work down into planned chapters. Pantsers just keep writing to get their ideas out, and deal with the organization later. While I unequivocally believe that planning is better, I acknowledge that many writers can’t…
For those considering making a living writing, ghostwriting, and editing, I thought you might enjoy a peek at what my 2024 looked like. I won’t share dollar numbers, but the total revenue was north of $100K, with me working about half of my time on client activities. The last time I reviewed my business like…
I hope you are having a relaxing time and sharing experiences with family over this week. This is a great time to relax, recharge, and reconnect. But once you’re stuffed with holiday treats, you might enjoy turning your attention to your writing. This is a rare chance to concentrate exclusively on your own content, at…
Businesses are supposed to put the customer first. I don’t. I don’t even put the customer second. I put them third. I suppose my inspiration is the former slogan of the famed Boston-based restaurant Legal Sea Foods: “At Legal, the customer comes second.” Their point was: the quality of the fish came first. And everyone…