I write and edit about 90% of the time. I use writing tools all day long. I’ve probably written 10 million words so far. And one feature of every writing and editing tool has interfered with my productivity for decades. Why do we do nearly all of our writing in the bottom 10% of the…
If you’re used to writing in Microsoft Word, stick with it. Familiar tools make writing flow more easily. In my survey of nonfiction authors, 61% used Word as their primary tool. Google Docs has its adherents. It makes sharing files easier (and for the same reason, makes keeping track of stable file versions harder). Where…
What’s hiding in your Microsoft Word manuscript file? It may look fine — but then, when you submit it to the publisher, the results are poor. If you’re used to using Word to create finished-looking documents, you need to adjust your perspective. You’re now using Word to tell the publisher’s page designers and page layout…
There are two ways you can hand off your manuscript to the publisher: in a tidy and well-organized way, or in a screaming, error-filled rush. Not surprisingly, you should try for the former. What it means to hand in a clean manuscript When I handed over my latest book to the publisher, he called it…
You think you know how to use Microsoft Word to write? What you’re doing may be fine for creating a draft to print out, but confusing to the people doing the book page layout and design. If you’re preparing content to be laid out in pages, here are a dozen-plus simple mistakes you really ought…
Not any time soon. Computers are getting much better at identifying writing problems — passive voice, excessive adverbs, misspelled words, the wrong form of “its.” They’re not so good at suggesting answers. And they’re a long way from understanding conceptual and structural issues. From Jacob Brogan’s piece in Slate, “Microsoft’s Grammar and Style Rules Will…
If you’re writing anything interesting, you’re collaborating. And if you’re collaborating, Google Docs and Google Sheets are indispensable tools. Most of you work in organizations where Microsoft Word and Microsoft Excel are standard. They’re comfy and familiar. If you send a file in those formats to somebody, you know they can read it. So why bother…