In July, we covered a lot of information about procrastination, inspiration, and writer’s block, so I started doing “procrastinate for these posts” link lists of my five favorite writing posts for the week from other bloggers. I missed promoting great writers who are posting valuable information and I’ve gotten a few emails asking me if I’ll be doing them again, so I’m bring back these link lists!
If you have to procrastinate, at least spend your time surfin’ on sites that can help you be a better writer. Here are the five best posts for writers from the past week that …read more

Just a quick reminder to those of you who wanted to take part in the motivation interview series: Get your answers in! I’m missing responses from a number of writers who have said they wanted to take part, and although you’re not obligated, everyone is excited to see what you have to say!
There’s still time. I’ll be accepting the interviews through the end of the month. Even if you haven’t emailed me yet, you can still do so (allison-at-abcontentonline.com), and I’ll send you the questionnaire. Get those interviews in so that I can feature you and your sites during the …read more

If I can’t inspire you, maybe some successful writers can. Today’s Motivation from Masters post features F. Scott Fitzgerald.
You don’t write because you want to say something, you write because you’ve got something to say.
Why do writers start writing? I don’t know how you would answer that question, but to me, this quote sums things up perfectly. I have so much to say, and writing is my way to say it.
Because I write for a living, not everything I write will change the world – but I’d like to think that my personal projects really do “say something.”
Some other …read more

If I can’t inspire you, maybe some successful writers can. Today’s Motivation from Masters post features Kurt Vonnegut.
“Who is more to be pitied, a writer bound and gagged by policemen or one living in perfect freedom who has nothing more to say?”
Vonnegut is one of my favorite authors of all time. I don’t always agree with what he has to say, but I respect very much his opinions and ideas. He always makes me think, if nothing else. Here are some other quotes from him that  I love:
“Beware of the man who works hard to learn something, learns it, and …read more

During the rest of the summer, I’ll be posting interviews with writers from across the country and around the world. Hopefully, we can all inspire one another! You can see all of interviews already posted here, and if you want to participate, email me with “writer’s interview” as the subject line. I’ll keep posting as long as you guys keep sending them in.
Today’s interview is with Dionne Obeso. Dionne writes freelance articles for a wide range of consumer and trade magazines, most recently including Rinksider magazine and Conceive magazine.
Why do you think freelancers get writer’s block?
Honestly, I think the …read more

You don’t have to have a college degree to be a freelance writer. You don’t even have to have a high school education, really, as long as you know your craft well. That doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t constantly work on improving yourself, and one of the best ways to do that is to take a class.
Can You Justify the Cost?
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Right now, it seems like everyone is short on cash. The good news is that you can apply for student loans pretty easily, even if your credit isn’t great, and the cost of classes may be a tax write-off. Your …read more

During the rest of the summer, I’ll be posting interviews with writers from across the country and around the world. Hopefully, we can all inspire one another! You can see all of interviews already posted here, and if you want to participate, email me with “writer’s interview” as the subject line. I’ll keep posting as long as you guys keep sending them in.
Today’s interview is with Roberta Goli. Roberta is a contributing writer for Suite 101 and has a writing blog called The Write Words. She also writes short stories in her spare time.
Why do you think freelancers get …read more

If I can’t inspire you, maybe some successful writers can. Today’s Motivation from Masters post features Maya Angelou.
“Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it.”
If for no other reason, Maya Angelou should inspire you because she’s such a spokesperson for the black community and for women of every race. Her work challenges what you already know about everything – even yourself. Some other quotes by her that I love:
“If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude. Don’t complain.”
“I want all my senses engaged. Let me absorb the …read more

During the rest of the summer, I’ll be posting interviews with writers from across the country and around the world. Hopefully, we can all inspire one another! You can see all of interviews already posted here, and if you want to participate, email me with “writer’s interview” as the subject line. I’ll keep posting as long as you guys keep sending them in.
Today’s interview is with Jen Whitten. Jen writes about paranormal insights, dream interpretation, and Dexter news at Your Dark Passenger and Dark Passenger, about vampires at The Vampire, and about Psychic Gifts for Examiner.
Why do you think …read more

I met a very interesting man the other day. He’s in his 60s or 70s (not sure), and still writes every single day “just to stay sharp.” We had a nice conversation about writing, and one of the things he talked about what “really seeing.”
He said that as a professor in the past, he once brought in a milk carton an asked his students to describe it. Yes, it’s a carton. Yes, it’s cardboard. Yes, it’s white. What else? How many cows are on the label? Are they sitting or standing? What kind of nutritional information is on the label? …read more