I started my first WordPress blog in 2012. Prior to that, I had been using a static HTML website for several years, so I certainly knew my way around a website. In fact, I think anyone who hasn’t built or managed a static HTML site is missing out. Not that I would recommend anyone actually … Continue reading Why you absolutely must self-host your WordPress blog
When reading submission guidelines, one of my biggest turn-offs as a writer is the dreaded "NO SIMULTANEOUS SUBMISSIONS." This is especially true for those publications with notoriously long response times. Who are these editors to demand an exclusive look at your piece? Would you apply for a job if the employer said you couldn't apply … Continue reading What are simultaneous submissions? Your complete guide to submitting your work.
Every website owner wants to get as much traffic as possible. One of the best ways to get traffic is by ranking well in organic search results. Easier said than done. There are hundreds of ranking factors, so no single thing you do is going to get you to number one on Google. However, anything … Continue reading How and why to remove dates from your permalinks
If you are a writer, you have been rejected. It’s a simple fact of life. No writer in the world has ever been accepted every time. Even the best writers in the world are rejected more often than they are accepted. But no matter how many times you’ve been rejected, it still stings every time. … Continue reading Why Does My Writing Keep Getting Rejected?
There are over 500 million blogs online today. While there is no quantifiable data regarding how many of them suck, I’m going to go ahead and estimate it’s over 95% of them. Does your blog suck? I really hope not. I hope you are kicking ass on your blog. Hell, I hope your blog is … Continue reading 5 Signs Your Blog Sucks … And How to Fix It
Every writer makes mistakes. From typos to writing stuff that sucks, we’re all pretty human (although we tend to be less human than non-writers). Of course, new writers are especially prone to making mistakes. Most of these mistakes are easily correctable, but they can have a long-term impact on your writing career. Here are the … Continue reading Biggest Mistakes New Writers Make…And How to Fix Them
If you’re a blogger or an aspiring blogger, you’ve undoubtedly seen countless blog posts telling you how you can achieve amazing things as a blogger. Hell, I even wrote one myself, although it was a complete joke that shouldn’t have fooled anyone. While my post was pretty obviously full of lies, most people who blog … Continue reading 5 lies bloggers tell you about blogging
I see you’re sitting down, working hard trying to get something out. Are you writing the next great American novel or taking the dump of a lifetime? No matter which pursuit you are following, both the process and product are pretty much the same. Here’s a deeper exploration of the similarities between writing and taking … Continue reading 9 Hilarious Reasons Why Writing Is Like a Bowel Movement
Fiction writers spend countless hours crafting a single story. I don't need to go into the details about the painstaking process involved in perfecting a story down to each and every word. So what's the payoff for all this effort? When your story is finally "ready for publication," there's always the question of what exactly … Continue reading Should I Give My Fiction Away for Free to Get Exposure?
Writers have to be resilient. With as often as we get rejected and as much as we face obstacles like writer's block, we have to pick ourselves up off the floor and get back behind the keyboard all the time. However, we also sometimes have to throw in the proverbial towel. As someone who once … Continue reading 4 Signs It’s Time to Give Up on Your Short Story
