Have you noticed that one of the most painful questions people ask is: “Why did this happen to me?” Perhaps I can answer that question. The human mind is interested…
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Literary agent Donald Maass says “setup” always drags and should be left out. “Generally speaking,” he says, “it is best to start with action, cut backstory, avoid aftermath, limit description,…
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Have you noticed that one of the most painful questions people ask is: “Why did this happen to me?” Perhaps I can answer that question. The human mind is interested…
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Jack was developing a new business system—originally estimated to take him 1,000 hours. Every weekday, he arrived at the office early and left late. He worked on most Saturdays. He…
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Why couldn’t I fix this? I was smart. I was young. I was healthy. I was married with three beautiful girls. It looked like I had it all, but I…
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Many authors and most readers don’t understand the important distinctions between “which,” “who,” and “that.” Now you can be better writer, avoid confusing readers, and boast of being smarter than…
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Have you ever been in the dark? I mean really in the dark where you can’t see your own hand in front of your face. When we are in our…
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Expressing judgment of an emotion deprives readers from the experience of seeing, hearing, and feeling what was going on—so they can judge for themselves. We make them observers rather than…
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It was 9:12 a.m. on April 16 when a small Texas town suffered the worst industrial accident in the history of our nation. A father was drinking coffee from a…
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In Wonderland’s mad tea party, the March Hare told Alice she should talk and write with care. “I do,” Alice said. “At least I mean what I say. That’s the…
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