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WRITE NOW OR FOREVER HOLD YOUR PEACE

December 28, 2022 by

‘Write now’ is what I hear every morning at 5, or sometimes 6:30. Keeping a schedule is good; having something to say is good. Why is joining them together so hard? Some answers make sense, some don’t. Mine are . . .

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WORKING HARD IS HARD WORK. WHO KNEW?

December 10, 2022 by

Working hard used to be a rite of passage. “Start sooner than later and enjoy the rewards longer,” was the message. So hit the grind and go until there’s nothing left to grind, like this cartoon from the New Yorker? Then what?

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HOBBY BLOGGER EXPLAINS: WHY BOTHER WRITING?

November 6, 2022 by

Hobby blogger here, busy counting vanity metrics. Google analytics reports traffic from Seattle, not so much from Portland. West Coast readers show up more than any other region in the country. Call me a West Coast hobby blogger? I’ll take it, but . . .

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WHY WRITE A PERSONAL BLOG? WHO ELSE WOULD DO IT INSTEAD

February 15, 2022 by

Why write a personal blog? Or anything? If you do write, keep going. Taking time off to stop and think about it might be the end. If you’re looking for a reason to quit, it’s right there. However, if you’re looking for things to keep going, keep reading.

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DIE WRITING, OR DIE TRYING?

January 9, 2022 by

Who wants to die writing? A yes answer means one thing: Death is a metaphor. Unless it’s s sudden death and they keel over on their keyboard, no writer dies writing. But something does die in a writer who does everything they can to succeed before giving up. Who’s ever done that? One comes to […]

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WHY WRITE IT DOWN, WE’LL REMEMBER

January 8, 2022 by

‘Why write?’ I ask myself while trolling Costco with a legible list, a battle plan against over-shopping. After sweating it out over a hot keyboard all morning I pick up ‘the list’, the most important writing of the current era. “Do not write so as to be understood. Write in order to understand.” The real […]

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BROKEN MAN ON 1, 2, 3

December 28, 2021 by

Hemingway said every man is a broken man, that’s how the light gets in. His inexact quote is a little different with, “We are all broken. That’s how the light gets in,” but the same idea. I’m just not as inclusive as the big guy. ‘We’ are not all broken, not yet, at least not […]

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PROFESSIONAL BLOGGER or HOBBY BLOGGER

October 7, 2020 by

A professional blogger reads the room, knows their audience, and edits like a crazy person. Being a professional means never getting caught mistaking to, too, or two. The same with they’re, there, and their. Accept and except, its and it’s fill out the card. Being a pro means taking greater interests in what moves the […]

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BASIC WRITER QUESTION: WHY BOTHER

July 13, 2020 by

The best writer question is the one they ask themselves before starting their daily word haul. It’s a question writers never want readers to ask, so they ask themselves: Why bother? Here’s why:

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WRITE A BOOK, IT’LL BE FUN, UNTIL IT’S NOT

November 5, 2019 by

Fans, followers, and one-timers on boomerpdx have seen my book writing posts. It’s not exactly how-to-write stuff, but it helps show process. One nice piece of advice I’ve heard: You’d better love your book topic, because you’ll eventually hate it. Since my book is a guided tour of what to expect after a cancer diagnosis, […]

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