Resistance – Page 7 – Someday Box

You Are What You Measure

Posted on January 24, 2014 by Joel D Canfield

Reading Callie’s thoughts at Steven Pressfield’s blog a while back raised some marketing questions in my head.

[image: photo http://www.sxc.hu/photo/1261292 by Miguel Saavedra http://www.sxc.hu/profile/saavem” width=”222″ height=”259″ class=”alignright size-full wp-image-3343]Which are you more interested in:

number of books sold or number of new fans?
number of words written or percentage of days you write something rather than nothing?
page views for your blog, or posts you’re proud of?

It’s good business to keep track of statistics.

It’s human nature to pay more attention to what’s easy to count instead of what’s hard to count.

It’s not always obvious that what matters to your business (you know, selling books as your own publisher?) is hard to count.

… more … “You Are What You Measure”

Stop Stopping Yourself with Premature Edits (Guest Post by Rosanne Bane)

Posted on December 18, 2013 by Joel D Canfield

Please welcome Rosanne Bane, author and writing coach and one smart cookie. Since I’m not here to beat this drum she’s gonna do it for me.

Trying to edit while drafting is like trying to polish your shoes while walking. Actually, it’s more like trying to polish your shoes while trailblazing over rough and unmapped territory. It takes longer to get where you’re going, you can’t possibly get a good shine and you’re almost guaranteed to lose your balance and fall.

[image: photo http://www.sxc.hu/photo/1110158 by Michal Zacharzewski http://www.sxc.hu/profile/mzacha” width=”444″ height=”145″ class=”aligncenter size-full wp-image-3080]

“Short Cuts Make Long Delays” – J.R. Tolkien

Your brain stem and limbic system can do more than one thing at a time, which is why you can walk and chew gum and still notice cars in the crosswalk. But your cortex, your creative brain, simply cannot multitask.

… more … “Stop Stopping Yourself with Premature Edits (Guest Post by Rosanne Bane)”

Lost Days, Lost Time; Or, You Can’t Fill a Black Hole

Posted on December 8, 2013 by Joel D Canfield

I have struggled with depression my whole life. During the past 10 years it has improved immensely, especially the past few. I now consider myself a happy person, a content person. The black days which used to be the norm are now rare.

But they’re not gone.

… more … “Lost Days, Lost Time; Or, You Can’t Fill a Black Hole”

Back on the Rails

Posted on November 18, 2013 by Joel D Canfield

[image: image http://www.sxc.hu/photo/796527 by Dominic Morel http://www.sxc.hu/profile/cx_ed” width=”173″ height=”200″ class=”alignright size-full wp-image-2823]The double-fudge-loaded cheesecake derails your healthy eating habits.

Disturbed sleep derails your writing habit.

Surprises in your schedule derail family time.

Unexpected behavior from others derails your best intentions to be the best possible version of yourself.

Time goes into stealth mode and derails your blogging routine.

Some of those seem trivial. Others are major events. Each of us would rate each of them a little differently.

… more … “Back on the Rails”

Why You Need a $2 Wooden Pencil

Posted on November 14, 2013 by Joel D Canfield

Palomino Blackwing 602.

Can you imagine a pencil so glorious it has a first, middle, and last name? For $2 each, I guess they should.

To put that price into perspective, for those of you who think hey that’s half as much as a cup of coffee, the dozen yellow Dixon Ticonderoga pencils you shoved into your kid’s backpack at the start of the school year cost fourteen cents each. That dozen cost less than a single Blackwing 602.

But read the reviews.

… more … “Why You Need a $2 Wooden Pencil”

How Do I Know if I’m a Real Writer or Not?

Posted on November 1, 2013 by Joel D Canfield

[image: ?]In another of my newsletter signup welcome email conversations, Michael asked,

As an old guy, my only real question about publishing in general is: am I considered to be a writer, for real, if I’m not published by a traditional publisher?

By you, or by traditional publishers, or by your readers, or by your family, or by other self-published authors?

You might guess that some folks will look down on you, and some won’t.

I think the answer that matters is what it feels like to you.

I’ve self-published 10 books. Anyone who thinks I’m not an author, a real writer, can take a flying leap. I know what I am.

You probably do, too.

You don’t need anyone’s permission to be who you are and do what you do.

It’s Just a Song (Not an Autobiography)

Posted on October 30, 2013 by Joel D Canfield

Listening to David Gray while we made pancakes together I found myself wondering about some of the things he believes.

[image: photo http://www.sxc.hu/photo/951615 by ilco http://www.sxc.hu/profile/ilco” width=”222″ height=”222″ class=”alignright size-full wp-image-2652]Which makes no sense because I know writers of all kinds have their characters or the voice of their song saying or doing things that aren’t necessarily aligned with their core beliefs. While Web Martin and Jake Calcutta are more like me than they ought to be, I know I’ve written things in my songs that aren’t beliefs I put into practice every day. In fact, the more I allow myself to put words in my character’s mouths or express opinions in my songs which aren’t my own, the more depth and breadth my writing will take on and possibly the more I will understand people who think and feel and say those things.

… more … “It’s Just a Song (Not an Autobiography)”

Get Your Book Out of the Someday Box in 2014 By Taking This Class

Posted on October 29, 2013 by Joel D Canfield

[image: Get Your Book Out of the Someday Box in 2014]You’ve always dreamed of writing a novel and you still haven’t done it.

It’s time.

I know the 2 things that are stopping you. My new class, Get Your Book Out of the Someday Box in 2014, sweeps them away.

Your novel will be finished by the end of 2014. No gimmicks, no shortcuts, no nonsense.

Go read the details.

Please note that the class is limited to 12 and that sign ups absolutely, positively close midnight, December 15, 2013.

Finding Why (#6 of 6 Tools to Write)

Posted on October 27, 2013 by Joel D Canfield

#6 in a series of 6

It’s easy to lose track of why you wanted to be a writer in the first place. If you have vague dreams of fame or fortune, those won’t keep you going, especially when they don’t materialize quickly.

[image: writing is the tool I use to understand what's important in my life” width=”200″ height=”324″ class=”alignright size-full wp-image-2531]While we’d all love to be rich and famous, I don’t think that’s why you write. It’s not why I write.

I write because I love the feel of words. I write because I have feelings which are clarified only when I find words to put them in. I have ideas which might benefit others. I have questions.

I believe writing takes the vague, wandering abstracts out of my head and makes them clear, understandable things I can look at and play with. I believe it helps me decide whether they should remain part of my life or be forgotten in the drawer.

… more … “Finding Why (#6 of 6 Tools to Write)”