The Daily Writer

When it comes to curiosity, most people don’t cross the streams. They keep their reservoirs of knowledge separate from one another. History, religion, arts, psychology, politics, technology … they keep them in their nice little boxes. The best creative ideas come from blending these areas--from the cross-pollination of interesting ideas. The only way to create new ideas is to cross your streams of...

We live in a world where miraculous things happen every day. Of course, most of these things don’t seem miraculous to us. They seem ordinary. But it all depends on your perspective. On this episode, Kent reminds us that it’s vital to allow yourself to be astonished by the everyday miracles and help others see them too. *** Are you looking for a community of enthusiastic, generous writers to help y...

Everyone feels writer’s block sometimes. The next time you aren’t sure what to write about, try combining two things you love. Author Dan Miller writes, “Passion is the intersection of multiple curiosities.” You won’t find your passion by following someone else’s path. Follow your curiosities and blend them in interesting and unique ways. You’ll not only stand out among other writers, you will als...

We’ve all heard it before (and probably said it): “I’m just not feeling inspired today.” There might be a hundred reasons why we don’t feel inspired, but there is one way to correct it that works almost every time. Inspiration is a sensitive, shy fellow. He is not rude and he doesn’t like to show up unannounced. That’s why he must be invited. On this episode, you’ll discover the secret that conjur...

Whatever you think about the origins of the universe, one thing seems certain: the universe started as a kind of blank slate that is now filled with stars, planets, comets, gas, dark matter, and all manner of other debris and material. Think about the effort and creativity that must have gone into the creation of the universe. It’s so mind-boggling that it’s almost impossible for us to wrap our mi...

One of the most important concepts that every writer today must embrace is the idea of a “personal brand business.” But what does it mean to have a personal brand? It comes down to the fact that your brand equals you. What you do and say in your business is a reflection of who you are personally. This is a challenging concept because the lines get blurry at times. If you have a personal brand, as...

Book formatting is one of the last things authors think about when creating their book. However, it's absolutely vital since that's where readers spend all their time. My guest today is here to help us get a handle on this critical area of success for your book. Jody Skinner is a proofreader, book designer, and avid reader. As founder of both Skinner Self-Publishing Services and Smidgen...

In their fantastic little book The Imagineering Way , the Disney Imagineers said, “Every new project at Imagineering starts with the assumption that it will be fun and exciting. We never say we don’t really want to do it this way—we do it the best way we know how. We are our end users because we like the product.” Think about your current writing project. When you sit down to work on it, what do y...

What is the core value of your life? What is the “center”? What sits in the center of the room for you? If it is your writing, then other people’s reactions, your book sales, or other factors will influence whether you feel successful in life or not. If other more important things lie at the center, such as your family or faith or health, then you can live a more balanced life.  On this episode, y...

When we are in love with our writing, it’s hard to edit. It’s hard to take constructive criticism. It’s hard to be objective because we are in love with our words. When our words emerge on the screen or from the pen, they are not diamonds. Instead, they are more like coal. Coal is dirty and messy but it is made from carbon, the same element diamonds are made of. With enough time and pressure, carb...

Sometimes we make a false distinction between writing for money and writing for pleasure. Both goals can be valid and important. What ties them together is that you are adding value to the world through your writing. It makes you better and it makes others better, too. On this episode, you’ll be reminded of the ways that your writing adds value to the world. *** Are you looking for a community of...

We all know that perfectionism can be debilitating. It can rob you of the joy of writing and cause you to waste endless amounts of time fidgeting with your material. Just like a rainbow, perfection is an illusion. You can chase a rainbow but you will never find the end of it. In the same way, you can chase perfection but you’ll never reach it. On this episode, Kent shares a powerful solution to co...

On this episode, I'm thrilled to be joined by one of my best friends in the world, Jared Odle. He's a missionary, copywriter, and an all-around fantastic guy. This will be the first of probably lots of conversations we feature here on the podcast on different topics related to writing. Today we discuss the topic: What does it mean to be an A+ writer? How do we determine what excellence i...

As writers, we spend loads of time worrying about the details of writing: getting the words done, editing, publishing, and so many other things. Sometimes it's good to step back, take a look at the big picture, and ask, "What do I really want from this book project?" My guest today is here to help us figure out the answer to that question. Carolyn Roark is a writing coach, editor, a...

Writers are people who create things. We can literally create books, articles, speeches, podcasts, or stories out of thin air. It’s what we do. Why, then, do so many writers look at the world in “glass half empty” sort of way? A writer can be the most creative person in the world when it comes to words, yet be the biggest pessimist you have ever seen. On this episode, you’ll be reminded that you c...

In your writing life, you will find that it’s easy to let go of some things, and much harder to let go of others. One of the items it’s difficult to let go of is books. After all, you’re a writer… why would you get rid of books? It’s hard to hear, but true: you can't make room for new ideas or new blessings in your life if you keep on hanging onto books that no longer serve your vision. On th...

Over the past six days, we have been through a key cycle in the creative life of a writer: preparing, planting, watering, pruning, harvesting, and celebrating. This is the cycle of growth we go through again and again as we pursue higher levels of growth. We live in a workaholic culture that says our value is directly tied to our output. If you want to be valuable, you must constantly produce, rig...

Over the last few days, we have been talking about developing a growth-oriented mindset. After you have prepared by tilling the soil of your mind, planted by keeping track of your ideas, watered your mind by reading, pruned the dead weight from your schedule, and harvested your creativity by getting your writing done, it’s important to celebrate by enjoying your success. For some reason, writers h...

Harvesting as a concept couldn’t be any simpler. You simply go to the field, get the crop, and bring it to the barn for processing. In writing terms, it means you must sit down and produce the words. If there is one universal truth in writing, it is this: the words won’t write themselves. This means you need to set aside time each day to write. It’s that simple, and also that difficult. On this ep...

Ever since I went full-time in my ghostwriting business this past summer, I've had a lot of conversations about how that happened. People have been very interested in the mechanics of my transition from a college professor to a full-time writer. They've asked me questions like: How do you make a full-time living as a ghostwriter? How long did it take you to build up your business? When d...

Today I'm thrilled to dive into a topic that is often ignored among writers, but it's critical to get it right if you want to be successful … and particularly if you want to sell more books. My guest is Terry Whalin, a former literary agent and Acquisitions Editor at Morgan James Publishing. He has written more than 60 books for traditional publishers and several books have sold over 100...

As you continue to grow in your writing skills, your connections, and your influence, you will have more and more opportunities. This is both a good and bad thing. Obviously, opportunities are wonderful! You can write for more outlets or reach more readers with your own writing. With this expanded influence and connection also comes the need the limit your activities to the few things that produce...

As we talked about yesterday, you need to have a system where you can plant or store all the thoughts, information, and ideas you will use as raw material for writing. And while that is an important start, you need to water these tiny seeds so they can grow into something useful. We have a plethora of ways to gain knowledge today, including podcasts, ebooks, audiobooks, videos, courses, and so muc...

If we look at growth as a natural byproduct of good habits we practice on a regular basis, the first habit is preparing the soil of your mind. The second one is planting. We writers deal with thousands of seeds. Those seeds are ideas. They are scraps of stories, articles, books, speeches, or workshops. Ideas come and go by the dozens every day. It’s hard to tell in the moment which ones are worth...

Everyone who has ever planted anything knows that you can’t just throw seeds on the ground. You must prepare the soil. Otherwise, the soil won’t be ready to receive the seeds. The seeds will die and all the effort and future potential will have been wasted. Your creative mind works the same way. It can’t just receive ideas and then cause those ideas to sprout. Your mind must be prepared. On this e...