Newsletter 109. Building your career portfolio one fascinating project at a time. Plus, no more Lego custom orders, the problems with the federal design studio, three people to follow, three books to read, and one last chance to tell us about how much you love or hate AI. Making growth your portfolio objective You should…
Maybe you took a break this summer. Maybe you’re going back to work soon. Ask yourself: Am I happy doing what I’m doing? Am I happy working where I’m working? That book I was working on — is there something about it that I ought to change? If I could change something, what would I…
Newsletter 106: Writing incurs pain, but it’s up to you which pain to suffer and when. Plus, a new survey on AI and the Writing Profession, Bookshop.org surges, three people to follow, and three books to read. Writing? Choose your pain. Writing, like anything else that requires effort and growth, involves pain. The good news…
This is my father’s slide rule. For those unfamiliar with this vintage computing instrument, a slide rule was how scientists, engineers, and technicians did mathematical calculations for much of the twentieth century. You’d carefully align the sliding middle portion with outer frame and read the result off the scales, using the cursor (which was a…
If you have an idea, you can spend hours trying to find the right name for it. GoDaddy and NameCheap have efficient tools for searching domains. And Trademarkia will tell you who’s attempted to trademark the name, and for which services. That’s a lot easier than the real work of figuring out who would pay…
Relax. Take it easy. Be creative. Do your own research. I’ve noticed phrases like these creeping into writing that I edit. I call them I4’s: inane, irritating ironic instructions. They turn how-to advice from specific to infuriating. Stop writing this way, please. What is an I4? An I4 is useless, vague advice included in a…
After a while, experienced ghostwriters and editors get a sense of which clients are going to be a problem. But it goes both ways: if you hire folks like us, you should also be aware of problems to watch out for in your editorial partners. Red flags for ghostwriters, editors, or book coaches evaluating clients…
It can take many months or years to assemble a book. Sometimes there are gaps in your work as an author, as life intervenes. It’s fine to work on a book from time to time as your availability allows. But once you start writing in earnest, it’s best to keep going. The fundamental principle is:…
Career advice for the pre-AI era looked like this: Work as creatively and productively as you can. Solve not just the problem put in front of you but the broader problems it reveals. Learn to use the most modern tools that can help you do your work. Carefully check your work; assume there are errors,…