August | 2013 | BAReed Writing, Business Writing

Learning How and When to Revise

One of the benefits of experience as a writer is the ability to improve upon our revision skills.

“It’s never too late – in fiction or in life – to revise.”

~ Nancy Thayer

Small corrections or large ones might be tedious, but can create greater material.

The Value of Creative Thinking

Logical, analytical thinking seems to be greatly prized these days, and rightly so, but this should not diminish the importance of creative minds.

“Creative minds have always been known to survive any kind of bad training.”

~ Anna Freud

Intuitive leaps can be made over all sorts of pitfalls, overcoming many shortcomings.

Identifying Your Progress

Business Writing, Writing August 26, 2013 Leave a comment

We tend to think of progress as a steady upward line, and so we don’t always recognize our own progress.

“The human mind always makes progress, but it is a progress in spirals.”

~ Madame de Stael

Adjust your focus on your expectations for progress to measure it correctly.

Seeing is Believing, and Then Some

Business Writing, Writing August 23, 2013 Leave a comment

When we are tired or distracted we can appear to be looking right at something, and yet not see it at all.

“See into life – don’t just look at it.”

~ Anne Baxter

Our writing will improve if we follow this admonition. So will other aspects of our lives.

Understanding Your Muse

Business Writing, Writing August 21, 2013 Leave a comment

Writers can be born or created with great effort, it is determination that ultimately decides.

“There was a moment when I realised that great writing requires both clarity and imaginative embellishment in equal measure.”

~Greg Barron

Awareness, practice, and understanding plus dedicated time also play a part.

Limiting Fear of Failure

Business Writing, Writing August 19, 2013 Leave a comment

Of course we don’t want to put time and effort into something only to see it fall apart, but what do we save if we don’t make the attempt?

“When we can begin to take our failures nonseriously, it means we are ceasing to be afraid of them. It is of immense importance to learn to laugh at ourselves.”

~ Katherine Mansfield

We fail, we laugh, we learn and make a new and better attempt.

The Angle that We See

Business Writing, Writing August 16, 2013 Leave a comment

Writers get perspective. Perspective is most important.

“I spoke to all our heroes, and this they said to me
Don’t define us by our power, just the angle that you see
For each of us is a human so normal, behind our collective super face
And you don’t see who we are,
For the course that is par,
Of our feeling’s there’s never a trace”

The Writing Corp – Super Human

Alter or widen your perspective and change the whole story…

Get Out of Your Own Way

Business Writing, Writing August 14, 2013 Leave a comment

In responding to a fellow blogger, I wrote this below:

“So much of success depends upon our ability to disarm our unhelpful notions about life.”

~Me (Beth Anne Reed), responding to another blogger

Then I realized that this is a good point to consider in so many of the efforts that we undertake. ‘I want to do XYZ, but not the parts that I don’t like’ or some other thought or action often undermines our own goal.

The Cycle of Self-Creation

Business Writing, Writing August 12, 2013 Leave a comment

We need to have experiences in order to write. We need to process those experiences to be able to express them appropriately.

“To exist is to change, to change is to mature, to mature is to go on creating oneself endlessly.”

~ Henri Bergson

Life gives us endless opportunities to renew this cycle.

Cultivating Courage

Business Writing, Writing August 9, 2013 Leave a comment

Staying within the lines of the familiar, our comfort zone is so seductive.

“Courage is the power to let go of the familiar.”

~ Richard Lindquist

Make the draw of your dreams more powerful by cultivating your courage – surround yourself with things and people who encourage you to test the boundaries of your capabilities.