First, what’s a hack? A hack can be a writer who churns out copy, yes, but here I mean a tip or trick that makes your workday more productive. And hey, I welcome any and all tips that help me churn out the words. Here, the ten productivity hacks I use most often and recommend […]
Archive for the 'Ass' Category
10 Productivity Hacks for Freelancers
Filed in: Ass Cool tools Organization Self improvement Writing
Failing Well
I started taking a meditation class at the local yoga studio, and my teacher said it’s her job in life to “fail well.” That really resonated with me, and I think it pertains to writing as well as to the rest of life. As writers, we need to really put ourselves out there and do […]
Filed in: Advice Ass Observations
Hilarious Writer/Editor Sketch
It’s funny because it’s true!
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Filed in: Ass Editors Personal yammerings
Build a Better To-do List
If you’re anything like me, you’ve got a to-do list that’s a foot long, filled with a variety of tasks — everything from the mundane to the critically important. The critical stuff always gets done, and I notice that the mundane does too. It’s all the stuff in the middle that languishes from day to […]
Filed in: Advice Ass Classes Personal yammerings
A mentoring opportunity you won’t want to miss!
Imagine you had a half-hour to ask Linda and Diana whatever you wanted about freelancing:
“I’m getting a lot of positive feedback from editors at women’s magazines, but no assignments. Is there anything else I can do to help my cause?”
“I’m bored writing about health and want to try my hand at travel writing. How can […]
Filed in: Ass Classes News you can use
Writing Acronyms Translated
A writer’s forum I frequent has been discussing the acronyms often used when talking about writing. It can be hard to understand a post or article that’s riddled with terms like WIP, RPP, and WFH, so here’s a handy list I came up with. You can see acronyms that are more related to fiction writing […]
Filed in: Ass News you can use Writing
“Enter this Tom Swifty contest,” Linda said winningly.
Yesterday I was reading a Haruki Murakami book and he mentioned Tom Swift. I didn’t know who that was, so I asked my husband, and he said, “I don’t know who he was, but I know there is a type of phrase named after him.” So I turned to the magical Wikipedia, which said that […]
Filed in: Ass Contests Personal yammerings
You Ask, We Answer: If I have so much work, why don’t I have any money?
Kristen writes: I have 23 articles due between now (August 21) and August 31. My total pay for those articles will be around $2,300. I quit my staff writing job after 10 years in January and, out of fear of never eating again, lined up many local paper and magazine assignments. They’re fun and easy […]
Filed in: Advice Ass You Ask, We Answer
Musings from the other side of the fence
by Diana Burrell and Linda Formichelli
(Diana) Writers love to talk trash about crazy sources. Most experts I interview are smart, funny, well-spoken, and interesting. There’s always the expert source that defies reason, though. Like the renowned negotiation expert who expected me to negotiate with him — hard — for a 15-minute interview. Or the PR […]
Filed in: Ass Personal yammerings Rants Sources
You Ask, We Answer: What should I include in my credentials?
Alison asks: Is having an MFA in Writing worth mentioning on a query letter? I hear conflicting things: on the one hand, that it will show that I’m serious, and on the other, that it’ll show that I’m an overeducated, pantywaist buffoon.
I didn’t know the answer to this, so I contacted some editors I know […]
Filed in: Advice Ass Query letters You Ask, We Answer

