The Renegade Writer Blog

I have thousands of bylines that attest to the fact that I make my living as a writer. But it’s my keyboard that tells the story of the tens of thousands of hours I’ve spent at this desk working at my craft.

This is a guest post by Pat Curry, who teaches our e-course on writing for trade magazines. Next session starts January 11!
I took my daughter’s car in today to Jiffy Lube to get the oil changed, largely because we had a $3 coupon. It was a $32.99 service. I walked out having paid $76, singing [...]

J. Robert Lennon spills writers’ dirty little secret in the L.A. Times: The fact that we really don’t work all that much. [lf]

I’m reading Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell. According to the copy on the jacket flap, “There is a story that is usually told about extremely successful people, a story that focuses on intelligence and ambition. In Outliers Malcolm Gladwell argues that the true story of success is very different, and that if [...]

We have great news from one of our Renegade Writer course instructors, Monica Bhide, who teaches our Introduction to Food Writing course. Last week she got the cover art for her upcoming food memoir, Modern Spice: Inspired Indian Flavors for the Contemporary Kitchen, and boy, it’s a beaut. Seriously, when Monica sent me this image, [...]

Brazen Careerist Penelope Trunk took aim at The 4-Hour Workweek darling Tim Ferriss last week on her blog with a post called “5 Time Management Tricks I Learned From Years of Hating Tim Ferriss.” And she’s not coy in her post. She came into the ring throwing punches and didn’t stop for 700 (or so) [...]

I was enjoying my morning cup of java when my eye caught a headline on CNN.com: “Adult films doing well in bad economy.” It was funny because a few weeks ago I was having a conversation with a fellow writer about subject areas where a freelancer could do well in a flaccid economy, and sex [...]

Many of you are probably too young to remember the bestselling book, How to Make Love to a Man. When I was in high school, a friend and I pooled our money to buy a copy. My mother discovered the book tucked between my mattress and box spring and promptly tossed the book out, so [...]

I learned this morning that Lori Hall Steele, the gifted writer who’d been battling ALS or Lyme Disease, passed away yesterday at age 44. I know many of you gave generously to help save Lori’s home earlier this fall. As soon as I learn the address of where to send condolences to her family, I’ll [...]

Freelancer and author Michelle Goodwin has a must-read guest post on the New York Times‘ “Shifting Careers” blog this week. Michelle’s the author of The Anti 9-to-5 Guide: Practical Advice for Women Who Think Outside the Cube and the recently released My So-Called Freelance Life: How to Survive and Thrive as a Creative Professional for [...]