Category Archives: Writing

Garrison Keillor on John Updike’s Death

It’s little secret I’m a fan of Garrison Keillor’s essays. Here’s one excellent reason why:
“This is what the obituaries leave out. The giants fall and we leave them behind but who is left to bless us? Nobody. As long as John was in the world, you could imagine him calling up one morning and saying, [...]

The Leaner Copywriter Underground, and One Writer’s (Satirical) Approach to Recession

Only a minute or two for a little stream-of-consciousness here dear readers, but I wanted to welcome you to the new, pared-down theme surrounding the Copywriter Underground’s content.
Call it an overdue change of hairstyle – a new, minimalist look & feel reflecting my somewhat slimmed-down approach to work.
And yes, I’m suggesting it’s a trend.
After all, [...]

My Short, Sweet Thanksgiving Message to the Undergrounders

It’s easy to fire up a whole list of things we should be thankful for – our lives are easier by almost any measure than those who came before us – but this is a writing blog, so I’ll stay on topic.
The simple truth is I’m thankful I get to write for a living, and [...]

Underground Essay Finds New Life in Book, And One Good Reason Why You Should Buy It Anyway

Proving again the world’s gone completely mad, the editors of the New Writer’s Handbook – a collection of essays by writers for writers – asked to include a Copywriter Underground blog piece in their latest collection (Volume 2).
The piece spoke to the power of the parenthetical statement. English teachers largely hate it. Bad writers use [...]

Email Interruptions Cost You 64 Seconds in Downtime

Need a reason to turn off that “you’ve got mail” tab, ghost box or other notification?
Every time it pops up, it takes an average of 64 seconds to regain your train of thought.
Via the Sydney Morning Herald:
It had been assumed that email doesn’t cause interruptions because the recipient chooses when to check for and respond [...]

Writers Rejoice: It’s E.B. White’s Birthday

The Writer’s Almanac tells us today is E.B. White’s birthday – an event worth a little celebration among the prose manufacturing set.
After all, White edited (and improved) Strunk’s Elements of Style, a book I still pull from the shelf and leaf through when writing seems like hard work.
I fly fish often, and I’m willing to [...]

Yet Another Argument in Favor of Writers Blogging

Courtesy the inspiring Writer’s Almanac, served daily by Garrison Keillor and American Public Media:
Larry Brown said, “There’s no such thing as a born writer. It’s a skill you’ve got to learn, just like learning how to be a bricklayer or a carpenter.”
You become a better writer by reading great writers, and putting a lot of [...]

For $10/Hour, You Should Write “Perfect” Copy, and Lots Of It

While they’re only paying $10/hour, this MediaBistro ad tells us Mahalo’s looking for writers who:
Candidates must be excellent writers capable of writing perfect copy at a fast pace. Familiarity with online research, journalism, and wiki markup language are all definite pluses.
It’s always heartwarming to see an American tech company attempting to pay offshore prices for [...]

The Twitter Tumble (or, Is This Thing On?)

[Update: Amusingly, Twitter's been very unhappy since I posted this, and suggesting it's in the midst of a meltdown wouldn't be out of line...]
You can’t help but hear the drumbeats about Twitter. Depending on who’s talking, it’s either a colossal waste of time, or humanity’s last, greatest hope.
I’ve used Twitter for months now as a [...]

Mind Cluttering the Modern Writer. (And an Announcement.)

The human brain can track up to four complex thoughts simultaneously, and yet — just before lunchtime today — I counted the open windows on my new 17″ laptop.
Six OpenOffice windows (five text, one spreadsheet), four Live Writer windows (my blog editor), three draft e-mails, a still warm-to-the-touch Google Talk window, and yes — two [...]