profile

Become a Writer Today newsletter

My favorite piece of writing advice

Published 17 days ago • 2 min read

Hi Reader,

Stop trying to do everything at once, manage your goals independently, and regain your focus.

Writing Skills

How To Become a Better Writer? 10 Easy Ways That Work Fast

Learning how to become a better writer (or even a good writer) depends on what level you’re at, what you write, and what becoming a better writer means for you. For example, great writers like Stephen King may think success means topping the New York Times best-seller list. Success for a new writer could mean getting published in a magazine for the first time.

Productivity Tips

How to Beat Writer’s Block: 36 Surefire Strategies

Have you ever looked at the blank page and found yourself out of ideas? Or perhaps you’re wondering, Do I have writer’s block? Don’t worry. Almost every writer has asked themselves how they’ll produce something from nothing.

Writing Tools

Best Writing Tools for 2024

Here, we round up the best writing tools you need to take any idea and get it ready to publish, including pens, keyboards, and other tools. These are the types of tools every writer should consider using.

Story of the Day

One of my favorite pieces of writing advice of all time?

“Write with the door closed, rewrite with the door open.”

That’s from Stephen King in his book about the craft On Writing.

Now, King was describing how to handle writing first drafts versus editing them.

Basically, when you’re writing that messy first draft…

Don’t show it to ANYONE.

Work on your first draft until you hit your target word count or finish it.

Forget about ttypos (there’s one!), Oxford commas, and editorial feedback.

Set your first draft aside for a few hours, days, or even weeks, depending on the length and deadline.

Then, when editing, show the draft to other people.

The trick?

Show your draft to someone whose opinion counts.

Your dentist might know how to remove a filling.

But she’s not the best person to advise on what to extract from your first draft.

(Unless she’s writing on the side).

Instead, find an editor.

I usually hire someone on Reedsy.

Show it to another writer.

Pick a family member who understands your writing style and goals.

Or collaborate with another writer.

On that…

A few years ago, I was in a creative writing group.

We critiqued each other’s pieces.

I found their notes more valuable than showing my work to a friend who didn’t write… even if I didn’t agree with all of the feedback.

I take Stephen King’s writing advice literally, too.

I’m lucky enough to work in a home office.

When I’m writing, I close the office door so I’m not distracted.

I put on a pair of noise-canceling headphones, fire up some ambient music on Spotify, set a timer for 90 minutes, and GO.

That way, I can work on the first draft until my buzzer sounds.

Usually, I close the door in the mornings… after the kids go to school.

I’m less worried about distractions later on in the day.

I work in the afternoon with the door open.

If you need some accountability with your writing, I can help.

Hit reply, and I’ll tell you more about my coaching offer.

Author's Corner

10 Authors Like Zane Grey: Frontier Adventures From Giants of Westerns

Discover our list of the best authors like Zane Grey. Revisit the Wild West and face a literary showdown with infamous gunslingers.

Book Corner

16 Top Stephen King Best-Selling Books

With almost 75 titles to his name, Stephen King is a prolific modern horror writer. Yet, some of his works truly stand out because of their masterful use of suspense.

Writing Exercise

127 Best Memoir Writing Prompts You’ll Love

Memoir writing requires dedication and talent to describe critical points of your life. See our memoir writing prompts to inspire you to make your own.

Sponsored by...

I use Grammarly's AI writing assistant and grammar checker daily–it's powerful and fast.

Write on,

—Bryan Collins

Miley House, Main Street, Naas, Naas W91 VR6A
Unsubscribe · Preferences

Become a Writer Today newsletter

A daily newsletter for PRO writers who want to earn an extra $3-5k per month.

My name is Bryan Collins. I'll help you develop the skills and confidence you need to write online, find clients and get paid. 25,000+ writers read this newsletter. Will you?

Read more from Become a Writer Today newsletter

Hi Reader, I was a niche website builder for a few years. Up till early 2023, It was a great model for writers and bloggers. I built websites in the food and drinks, health and fitness, and home niches. I researched high-volume, low-competition keywords weekly using tools like AHREFS, SEMRush, and Clearscope. I set a goal of writing and publishing a set number of articles each month. Then, I either wrote articles targeting these keywords. I also hired writers who could produce them and...

about 22 hours ago • 2 min read

Hi Reader, Short answer: No. Longer answer… If you’ve read this newsletter for a while, you’ll know I dislike using AI to write. Why? Well, let’s say you want to write and send more emails to your list. Smart move! Now… ChatGPT, Bard, Gemini, and other AI tools can generate email content quickly and easily. But... The only people who get excited about that type of content are business owners who think they’re saving money on content. In reality? These AI outputs are usually bland, boring, and...

2 days ago • 1 min read

Hi Reader, The other day, I was wasting time on X. I came across a profile reading, “We help you go viral on command”. That’s an impressive promise. I read some of the account’s tweets. The company shared examples from client accounts, all with thousands of shares. The tweets were mostly easy-to-read pop culture listicles with captivating pictures. Perhaps the X account holder has a red “Go Viral” button in their office. Perhaps they use paid promotions and bots. Or perhaps they’ve cracked...

3 days ago • 2 min read
Share this post