It’s that time of year when people share their resolutions for the next year. (Or proclaim how silly resolutions are!) The problem with resolutions is most lists look like this: Lose weight. Learn another language. Travel to 5 different countries…maybe even 10! Write and sell some kind of book. Make an additional $50,000. Do something […]
Archives for December 2010
Best of The Juggling Writer – 2010
2010 was a busy year for The Juggling Writer. I wrote about 150 entries on the blog, totaling — I’m guessing — around 70,000 words written. (31 of those entries were written this month.) I finished another novel (103,000 words, but many of those words were written in previous drafts.) I was laid off and […]
A Clean New Year
My wife and I went on a cleaning spree last week. We decided to treat the second-to-last week in December like a spring cleaning day. We’re pretty tidy people, but dust eventually gathers and sometimes we take a few days and spend a couple hours on each of those days cleaning a room or two. […]
How to Clear Your Inbox
I admit it: when it comes to having a clear inbox, I’m bad. I have moments that last for weeks where my inbox is spotless, and then seemingly overnight, there’s a pile of messages. Here are a few tips that have worked for me in the ongoing battle for a manageable inbox: Unsubscribe The e-mail […]
2010: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
[While this is meant to be a writing-related post, it can apply to anything.] I’ve heard many friends say that 2010 went by in a blur. Looking back at 2010, in ways it seems like a blur to me, too — and in other ways it seems like a year that settled in for a […]
In the Future, There Will Be Books
I’ve written about it before — there’s no denying that e-books are on the rise. I’ve also written about why I believe there will always be books. Here’s why… Meet John Picacio I have a friend who illustrates book covers. While he’s concerned about the trend of some publishers not going all out for many […]
Give Yourself the Gift of Writing
I thought about doing another The Gift of Books Christmas entry like last year, but I can sum up this year’s reading gifts with the photo I used for this entry and another book given to me by my mom — and a thank you to my sister-in-law and family for a nice gift certificate […]
Focus on What Really Matters
I’m good at multitasking — in large part because I’m easy going and don’t get flustered when I’m interrupted with something. While I’m good at multitasking, when left to my own devices, I tend to focus on one thing at a time until it’s done. It’s a simple productivity tip that works. Easier Said Than […]
Oops!
There was a problem with a server at my ISP, and The Juggling Writer was down for roughly 24 hours. (My main site was back online yesterday, and the site for my podcast came back, but with a missing sidebar.) It was a good reminder that while I back up my writing, I need to […]
Cartoon Neil Gaiman Wants You To Write!
I haven’t shouted it from the rooftops, but I’m shooting for a post a day this December. No real reason, other than it seemed like a cool thing to do at the end of the year. Today, though, I’ve been busy. One of the reasons I don’t normally post every day is I’m not a […]
Monday Motivation: The Final Stretch
There’s just a little under two weeks left in the year. What will you finish before the end of 2010? The clock is ticking…
If Your Characters Could Talk
If your characters could talk, what would they say to you? Would the bad guy yell at you because just when it looked like you were going to let him carry out his evil plan exactly as planned, you pulled it away? In most cases, if you did everything right, you want a bad guy […]
The Walking Meeting (With Myself)
I get many of my ideas while reading, or when thinking about something I’ve read. I get ideas while driving — when I do most of my thinking (and when I talk to myself). I also get ideas when I’m doing work I’d rather not be doing and thinking about how I’d much rather be […]