The Daily Writer

There’s something that has been bothering you. It’s like a pebble in your shoe that irritates you just enough that you think about it all the time. It intimidates you, taunts you, and won’t let you stop thinking about it. On this episode, Kent encourages us to face what is bothering us head-on, so we can move forward and make progress. *** Are you looking for a community of enthusiastic, generous...

This is the seventh and final entry in our mini-series on dealing with rejection. Rejection is not fun, but it still has an important place in our business and creative lives. When you’re rejected or criticized, it forces you to ask tough questions like these: Is this something I should have been doing in the first place? Do I really, truly want to be doing this? Even though I’m in love with this...

This is the sixth entry in our mini-series on dealing with rejection. When your writing has been rejected—or at least when you perceive that it has—you respond emotionally. And that’s totally natural. We all respond emotionally when we’re hurt. And what do we do when we’re hurt? We lash out. We want retribution. We find a way to strike back. On this episode, Kent reminds us that when dealing with...

In this episode, I begin a series on the making of my Father’s memoir of his experiences in Vietnam. I’ll be writing it with him over the next year or so. I talk about why I’m doing it, some of my fears as I start the project, the process I’m using to figure out the theme of the memoir, and some of the resources that will be helpful as we create the memoir. *** Are you looking for a community of e...

Whenever I talk to new writers, the most overwhelming emotion I sense from them is confusion. There are so many options and resources for writing and publishing a book that it's hard to know what to do next. Fortunately, there is a clear pathway forward, and my friend Brigitte Cutshall is here today to walk us through the formula for publishing a quality book. In fact, the title of her new fa...

This is the fifth entry in our mini-series on dealing with rejection. If you saw the 2009 movie Star Trek , which was, of course, a reboot of the classic TV show, you might remember the scene where Spock gets into a fight with Kirk, then steps down from his command. The reason was that he was “emotionally compromised.” Spock knew that if he couldn’t control his emotions, it would prevent him from...

This is the fourth entry in our series on dealing with rejection. One of the biggest paradoxes of feeling hurt is that everyone experiences it, but when you’re going through it, you feel totally alone. This happens to every great writer, leader, and artist. Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Edison, Walt Disney, and Steve Jobs all faced rejection or failure at some point. But they persisted. On today’s episo...

This is the third entry in our mini-series on dealing with rejection. The publishing world has changed radically in the last fifteen years or so. In the past, you would have to go through some kind of gatekeeper in order to get your message heard by others. This typically meant finding an agent, who would then pitch your book to publishers until one of them offered you a contract. But you no longe...

This is the second entry in our mini-series on dealing with rejection. It’s happened to all of us. You had your heart set on an opportunity and it falls through. Maybe it’s a writing job, a podcast guest appearance, a collaboration, or another type of opportunity. You thought it was going to happen but now it isn’t. As the 1960s group, The Monkees, famously sang, “Tomorrow’s Gonna Be Another Day.”...

Today’s episode is the first in a seven-part series on dealing with rejection. As writers, we deal with rejection in many forms. You can be rejected by a reader, a publisher, a literary agent, a podcaster, a beta reader, a book reviewer, a peer, and so much more. This rejection can be formal or informal, big or small. It can be direct and aggressive, or indirect and passive. Whatever form rejectio...

Have you ever noticed that writers like to talk about the things they’re working on? It’s a strange habit, isn’t it? Maybe it’s because we like to get feedback on our current work in progress, which is totally fine. Most of the time, it seems like we talk about our current writing a lot because we lack confidence and want assurance from other people that we are going in the right direction and tha...

We've all heard the stories about people who take years to write a book. In some cases, that's necessary, especially if the author is writing a very large book or one that requires a lot of research, such as a biography or a technical book. However, in most cases, we can write books much more quickly if we will just get focused and organized. My guest today is here to give us a system fo...

If writing is a house, each of us lives on two levels. The ground floor is where we invite people in. We share things we think people want to hear. Underneath the ground floor, there is also a basement. The basement is where we keep boxes full of the things we really want to say. But we rarely bring them out because we’re not sure how people will respond. On this episode, you’ll be emboldened to s...

The way some of us writers shrink back from a challenge, you’d think we live forever. We hesitate to write that book because we fear what others will think. We don’t set up that website because it feels too hard. We don’t meet with that person who is five years ahead of us because we’re intimidated. We don’t make that social media post because we question whether we’re a good enough writer. It mig...

When you begin studying the lives of the great writers, one of the most surprising things you’ll learn is how well aware most of them were regarding their limitations and the role that luck played in their success. For example, Ernest Hemingway once said, “I have tried simply to write the best I can; sometimes I have good luck and write better than I can.” On this episode, you’ll learn that luck p...

One of the curses of being a writer is that we are too rational. We pride ourselves on reporting the facts of a situation accurately. We love the idea of having an objective point of view, then giving our commentary or perspective. We don’t like the idea of getting carried away with our emotions. We don’t want to be irrational or have a skewed point of view. Is being “rational” really the best way...

I want to take a moment to let you know about an important milestone we just passed here on the podcast in the last couple of weeks. We hit 100,000 downloads and we are right at 700 total episodes of the podcast! So, what’s ahead for the Daily Writer? Let me share a few things we have on the horizon. *** Are you looking for a community of enthusiastic, generous writers to help you build better hab...

Every day, you are surrounded by news—news on the internet, news on television, news in the newspaper, news that other people deliver. Have you ever thought about how the “news” is actually created? What makes a “news” story, anyway? Have you ever noticed that the day’s news conveniently fits into a half-hour broadcast? Of course, we know that more things happen than fit into a news program, but w...

This one is for all the kids who were always picked last in middle school gym class. You remember what it was like: You’d stand there awkwardly with the group, each kid getting their name called by one of the team captains. Each time, you hoped you wouldn’t be the last one. But once again, it got down to four, then three, then two, and you were the only one left. On today’s episode, you’ll be remi...

We writers live in a world of “yesses.” We love to say yes to that podcast interview, that new idea, that speaking opportunity, or that client work. There’s a good reason we do this. We don’t want to waste opportunities to build relationships and reach new readers. But the problem is that every yes we speak is also a no to something else. We only have so much time on this earth and we have to defe...

There is a good chance that you know someone who has a tattoo, or you have one yourself. What is the purpose of a tattoo? It’s a way to mark your identity. But there is another kind of marking that can define you… scars. On today’s episode, you’ll discover that your scars do not detract from your power as a writer—they are an essential part of your story. ***   Are you looking for a community of e...

Why do we make writing so difficult? When you get down to it, writing is a very simple thing. We take a pen and write on paper or in a notebook. We sit in front of a computer screen and type on a keyboard. Or we dictate into a device that transcribes our language into words. On today’s episode, you’ll be reminded why the most important thing to do as a writer is simple: just write. ***     Are you...

One of the most famous episodes of  Seinfeld  is “The Contest.” In this episode, Jerry, Elaine, George, and Kramer compete to see who can demonstrate self-control the longest. The one who wins will be known as “master of their domain.” The concept of self-mastery is an important one for writers. If we don’t master ourselves, nothing else matters. On today's episode, Kent highlights  why  it’s...

One of the most inspiring stories from the music world during the last few decades comes from the rock band the Foo Fighters. Dave Grohl was the drummer for the mega-successful band Nirvana. He was already an established musician in his own right. But when the lead singer of Nirvana, Kurt Cobain, committed suicide in 1994, nobody expected Dave Grohl to form his own band and take on the role of a s...

A powerful movie, if you haven’t seen it, is Dead Poets Society from 1989. The late Robin Williams plays, an English teacher who challenges his students with this line, from Walt Whitman’s poem “O Me! O Life!”: “… the powerful play goes on, and you may contribute a verse.”   This leads to the question: what will your verse be?   On today’s episode, you’ll be encouraged to take the stage and share...