Posts Tagged ‘blog’

A guest appearance

I recently had the pleasure of contributing a guest post for #Michipreneur Magazine, a terrific new online publication.

I’ve been following #Michipreneur from day one. They provide great coverage on the many innovative things happening in Michigan, plus inspiration and tips for thriving in whatever you do.

Because I’ve been too busy to post to my own blog lately, sharing my guest post below counts, right?

Reinvention for Entrepreneurs: Or, How I Learned To Stop Worrying and Love the Journey

I’ll continue following #Michipreneur and hope you will, too.

In praise of great editors

I don’t care how good a writer you are, a great editor will make you better.

I edit my own work exhaustively. It’s where most of the magic happens, at least for me. But a really smart editor will find a way to improve on even the best piece. If I’m lucky, that editor will also take the time to tell me what worked and what didn’t. It never fails to strengthen my skills.

This blog may be the only thing I write that I don’t ask someone to take a look at. Most of my work is reviewed by copy editors, who I hold in the highest esteem. When I’m flying solo, I call on a fellow writer to give my work a once-over. There’s always something, however small, to tweak. (Note to self: Get ahead of the National Blog Posting Month (NaBloPoMo) curve, to allow leeway to finalize posts with fresh eyes.)

In praise of great editors

I’ve had the pleasure of working with some incredibly good editors over the years. Still do, nearly every day. The best ones are clear in their expectations and quick to lend support.

This week, as I fight the battle of the flu bug, I’m also grateful for editors who have an often overlooked quality: compassion. (For the record, this is an under-appreciated trait in many, not just editors.) The best editors realize that writers are only human. That we’re going to have the occasional writer’s block. Or that we might get sick once in a while. And that quality work trumps what’s frequently an arbitrary deadline.

Today, when an editor found out I was working on her story despite still being sick, she emailed me: “Don’t even worry about it! Just get better.” Then she gave me two more days to work on the story, on top of the extension she’d already given me. I told her she is an angel of mercy and gave her an IOU for a rush turnaround on demand in future.

Great editors will always make you a better writer. And the very best editors have more than sharp skills. They have heart.

Accepting the challenge

I love a good challenge. Especially one that could make me a better person than I am today.

So I accept the National Blog Posting Month (NaBloPoMo) challenge to write a blog post every day in November. Even though my friend and fellow writer/blogger, the exceptional Jim McFarlin (his blog here), asked if I’d “lost my natural mind” by already making a personal commitment to blog three times a week. He may be right, but that’s another matter.

NaBloPoMo, hosted at BlogHer, poses a challenge I can’t resist. I get the chance to connect with tons of other bloggers, exposing me to writers and subjects I might not otherwise find. It will also help some of those bloggers find me and, I hope, become regular readers.

Most important of all, though, is the idea of always being a better writer than I was the day before. And the only way to do that is to write every single day.

Accepting the challenge

Granted, I already write every day (or close to it) for the clients of my writing business. But this blog is one of the few places where I get to write just for me. I can write about anything I want, with no limits on length or style. I am happy to write to the specs of others, but there’s nothing like writing for yourself.

NaBloPoMo is definitely going to be a challenge. But I’m going to take it on with delight.

Because next to a good challenge, there’s nothing I love more than writing exactly what I want to write.

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