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Category: Writing Well

When Is Something Worth Teaching?

Posted on January 4, 2014January 25, 2021 in ask berkun, Public Speaking, reader's choice, Writing Wellby Scott Berkun

This month I’m posting every day, picking the top voted reader question and answering it. With 37 votes, submitted by Andrew…

Why Writers Are Cranky

Posted on December 3, 2013December 3, 2013 in Writing Wellby Scott Berkun

I enjoyed this recent post, 14 Ways to Tick off a Writer, because many of these things have happened to…

The Year Without Pants Cover: how it was designed

Posted on November 20, 2013September 29, 2016 in Writing Well, Year Without Pantsby Scott Berkun

I’ve previously written about how covers should be designed (See How To Design A Great Cover). My fifth book,…

Meeting the Street Poet of NYC

Posted on November 6, 2013March 11, 2021 in On Tour, Writing Wellby Scott Berkun

Selling books is hard. It’s a surprise for most writers, even experienced ones, how much harder finding people interested…

Working For Free: An Argument

Posted on October 28, 2013September 16, 2015 in Business, Culture, Writing Wellby Scott Berkun

Tim Krieder, author of the excellent We Learn Nothing, wrote in the NYTimes about the mistake of working for…

The 7 things authors do before book launch day

Posted on September 11, 2013August 31, 2016 in Ghost, Writing Well, Year Without Pantsby Scott Berkun

Authors lead odd lives. Most of what people know of us we control through blog posts and books. Behind…

Should your book be a memoir or fiction?

Posted on July 29, 2013July 24, 2015 in Ghost, mailbag, Writing Wellby Scott Berkun

Here’s a common question about writing memoirs from the mailbag: I just read a novel I loved and was…

Best Book On Self Publishing: APE – Author, Publisher, Entrepreneur

Posted on July 22, 2013July 22, 2013 in Writing Wellby Scott Berkun

I was pleased when I heard that Guy Kawasaki was working (with Shawn Welch) on a book about self-publishing.…

How to read an amazon.com book review

Posted on July 20, 2013July 26, 2013 in Books, Writing Wellby Scott Berkun

We read for different reasons, but we often write reviews as if everyone in the world is just like…

Book review: Your First 1000 copies – a guide to marketing books

Posted on July 2, 2013March 26, 2015 in Book reviews, Writing Wellby Scott Berkun

Last night I read Your First 1000 copies: The step by step guide to marketing your book by Tim Grahl…

Should you self publish your first book?

Posted on June 27, 2013April 17, 2019 in ask berkun, Writing Wellby Scott Berkun

From Monday’s question pile reader Gutenberg Neto, who has one of the best names ever for questions about publishing, asked: After releasing books…

My process for blogging

Posted on June 25, 2013June 3, 2014 in ask berkun, Writing Wellby Scott Berkun

From my Monday question pile, my friend Angela asked: As an active blogger and communicator, I’m curious your setup. Obviously…

How To Write a Second Draft

Posted on June 18, 2013February 26, 2015 in Writing Wellby Scott Berkun

As I’ve been working on The Year Without Pants, I wrote recently about how to revise a first draft,…

Book Review: Good Prose – The Art of Non Fiction

Posted on June 17, 2013July 26, 2013 in Book reviews, Writing Wellby Scott Berkun

I gave a talk at WordCamp Seattle recently about writing. One point I made was the limitations for improving…

How Pulp Fiction was written (and rejected)

Posted on June 14, 2013 in Writing Wellby Scott Berkun

From Cinephillia and Beyond, this comment from Roger Avary, who co-wrote Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction with Tarantino: We just took…

Blog Community Panel: Summary (WordCamp Seattle)

Posted on June 8, 2013June 8, 2013 in Writing Wellby Scott Berkun

Thanks to everyone who attended our panel session at WordCamp Seattle, and to our panelists: Ariel M Stallings, from Offbeatempire.com,…

How to design a great book cover (Behind the scenes)

Posted on March 14, 2013February 16, 2016 in Books, Mindfire, Writing Wellby Scott Berkun

The 1.1 edition of Mindfire: Big Ideas for Curious Minds, a collection of my best essays, was officially released.…

Two ways to write: with your gut or with your head

Posted on February 13, 2013December 23, 2014 in Writing Wellby Scott Berkun

An amazing comment from Charley Daveler on my post How to Write a Book: You can tackle a book…

The Redemption of Jonah Lehrer?

Posted on February 12, 2013February 14, 2013 in Writing Wellby Scott Berkun

Twitter is aflutter today with talk of Jonah Lehrer, the (in)famous young author caught fabricating quotes, about his recent…

How to revise a first draft

Posted on January 30, 2013January 29, 2017 in Writing Wellby Scott Berkun

The only faith a writer needs to have is in the next draft. The quality of any draft does…

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Scott Berkun is the author of eight popular books on creativity, design, leadership and public speaking. You can hire him to speak, ask him a question or follow him on Twitter and Facebook.

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Scott's Awesome Books

How Design Makes The World

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“Nobody’s better at explaining how the world really works than Scott Berkun.” – Jeffrey Zeldman, co-founder of A List Apart

The Dance of the Possible

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5 Stars

"You'll find a lot to steal from this short, inspiring guide to being creative. Made me want to get up and make stuff!" - Austin Kleon, author of How To Steal Like An Artist

The Ghost of My Father

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“Thought-provoking read, and highly recommended…” – Thomas Duff

The Year Without Pants: WordPress.com & the Future of Work

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“If you want to think differently about entrepreneurship, management, or life in general, read this book.” — Tim Ferriss

Mindfire: Big Ideas for Curious Minds

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“The ideas contained in the essays are persuasive and it’s a fun, well focused read. ” — Simon Moore

Confessions of a Public Speaker

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“Berkun tells it like it is… you’ll gain insights to take your skills to the next level.” — Tony Hsieh, CEO Zappos.com

The Myths of Innovation

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“Berkun sets us free to try and change the world.” — Guy Kawasaki

Making Things Happen: Mastering Project Management

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“Highly recommended for CEOs, project managers, and hackers alike.” — Matt Mullenweg, Founder WordPress.org

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About Scott

Scott Berkun is the author of eight popular books on creativity, leadership, philosophy and speaking (more about Scott's background).

You can hire him to speak, ask him a question or follow him on Twitter and Facebook.

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