≡ Menu

Spring forward in your writing career. Take the first step today and purchase The Writer’s Workout!

I will tell you where the power is in your writing career: it’s in your writing.

If you spend more time complaining than you do writing, that bad habit will slow your success.

If you imitate others more than you follow your own instincts, that crutch will hurt your career.

If you have to constantly be around others to feel validated, you won’t uncover your best work.

There are a lot of delay tactics writers use to procrastinate and diminish their creative powers.

This book contains 366 ways to get your focus back where it belongs.

So, do you want to kvetch all day or are you ready to leap forward in your writing career?

Have you purchased and read, The Writer’s Workout, yet? If not, maybe it’s time.

In case you are not convinced yet, here are ten reasons why you don’t want to deprive yourself of The Writer’s Workout for even one day more.

1. Spring Training for your Career

Spring is here! And the first section of The Writer’s Workout is titled… Spring!

The book is divided into four sections by season. Here’s a teaser from the introduction to the spring section:

Getting started and finding a workable writing rhythm are big steps. Just like baseball players go to spring training every year, writers need to recommit year after year to getting into the game. This means getting off the couch and getting warmed up, loose, and strong again. The tips and exercises in this section are designed to help focus your energy and get your writing career off to a solid start so you can eventually write, sell, get published, specialize, and promote yourself. A lot of eager writers never get past the reading-about phase, but you will be different. You will not only be prepared, you will be encouraged. You will channel your wishes into actions. You will get on track and stay the course. You will realize your creative potential. You will be a winner, whatever winning means to you.

2. Discouragement Antidote

Suffice it to say, writers have multiple challenges in this day and age. This book is probably the most encouraging of the three traditional books I have written. The Writer’s Workout covers a lot of ground, which allowed me to address as many challenges that writers face at all levels of career growth as I could squeeze into 366 chapters.

Here’s what one reader shared in a personal message (reprinted with permission):

Today I was blue regarding several things including a recent rejection which I deserved. In the Writer’s Workout, #127, Monitor Your Attention, was on target. All day I tried to write but could not focus. After reading your passage, I gave up trying and tuned into something away from writing. Your message was timely and the shot in the arm I needed today. Thank you for a great book full of wonderful messages.  ~ Lila J.

3. Magic Eight Ball

Writer Nathalie Hardy says that she uses The Writer’s Workout like one of those toy Magic Eight Balls. You ask it a question, you open to a page, you read it, and…we’ll have to see what Nathalie has to say in her blog post on the subject.

4. 366 Reasons to Buy This Book

Every once in a while, we have a Leap Year.

According to Dictionary.com a Leap Year occurs “in years whose last two digits are evenly divisible by four, except for centenary years not divisible by 400.”

Leap Years are why the title of my book refers to 366 chapters rather than 365 chapters.

I think it was conscientious of us to go out of our way to include Leap Years in the book, don’t you?

But who knew that the year following publication would actually BE a Leap Year? Not me.

I was paying attention, but I was not paying that much attention.

And then this year, we had another Leap Year.

So, yahoo! We have 366 chapters for a year that has 366 days. I feel a nerdy sense of pride about this.

If you have ever experienced nerdy pride over something like this, then you should probably buy my book.

5. Get Your Butt Kicked Here!

My reputation started out as “a gentle taskmaster” but I confess, sometimes, and certainly with my most advanced students, I can be something of a butt-kicker. However, I’m not hanging my head in shame because here’s the truth of the matter: sometimes it’s hard for us to recognize our own strengths.

Leading with your strengths is not only good advice for your writing career, it’s good advice for your life. Here’s what #amwriting Twitter hashtag creator and community leader, Johanna Harness has to say about the book in an Amazon review:

The Writer’s Workout provides a full year of tough-love advice. This is not one of those namby-pamby inspirational books that finds new ways to say, “don’t give up” on every page. This is the real thing. If you buy this book and follow Christina’s advice, you will see a visible difference in your writing career. She doesn’t tell you what you want to hear. She tells you what you need to hear. I can’t recommend this book enough.

6. More Thoughtful Than Most

I did not write this book off the top of my head. I took my time and drew from ten years of teaching experience and twelve years of writing-for-publication experience. The book took about two years of work from conception to publication.

You might think that’s old school, but when you really pour your guts into a project, it makes for a better book in the end.

I have been exploring the topics in The Writer’s Workout for years whether through this blog (example), through my feature articles for Writer’s Digest (example), through my books (example), ebooks (example), seasonal writing prompt books (example), monthly training group (example), and online classes (example).

This book was not born yesterday. And neither was the person who wrote it. In fact, according to an Amazon review by Lela Legit:

Katz cracks open many of the often unrealized hesitations and pitfalls that prevent writers from prospering. She offers concrete guidance for focusing and realizing career goals. She emphasizes certain key concepts throughout the book, much like a personal fitness trainer reiterates, session after session, the mantras of physical fitness to clients. The Writer’s Workout constantly leads the reader to return to purity of intention and expertise cultivated by good old elbow grease.

7. NOT About The Publishing Industry (Phew!)

Is anybody else getting weary of the never-ending play-by-play on the publishing industry, besides me?

That’s why The Writer’s Workout is about the state of the successful writer, not the state of the publishing industry.

It will show you how to grow your career regardless of what’s happening out there.

In the big picture, I suggest you work with the industry and independently for a balanced and lasting approach to writing career success.

I think we can safely toss the “indie” concept and the “traditional” concepts in favor for the hybrids that we have already become.

The Writer’s Workout shows you how.

8. A Writing Workout With…Soul?

The Writer’s Workout takes a holistic approach to writing, selling, self-promotion, specializing, and professional development and all the other things that go into raising a writing career alongside the rest of your life. This is not another 101 ways you can sacrifice your personal happiness for success. This is 366 ways you can learn that who you are and what you care about is a great place to start growing writing career success.

So, yes, I admit it, I wrote about soul in a writing how-to book.

I have a soul and so do you. We may as well take them into account. I don’t think I got carried away, but you let me know if you think I did.

I believe we will enjoy the creative process more if we are allowed to have a soul while we’re in it.

Maybe that’s just me.

9. There Are No Great Writers

There is only great writing.

We have a tendency to place writers on pedestals and then knock them off when it’s convenient for us.

To make matters worse: I have met writers who have devoted their lives to the pursuit of being declared “great writers.”

You can’t cure low self-esteem with acclaim. Writing will not deliver you from your humanity today or tomorrow. You will be just as imperfect the day after you write something well, as you are today. And this goes for everyone, including me.

I gave up trying to be “great” a long time ago, and a funny thing happened—I started writing well enough to make strides.

People are calling my latest book “great,” “masterful,” “a wealth of practical advice,” and “an invaluable resource.”

That’s not about me. That’s about how hard I worked on the book. It’s about the quality of the work I invested. I am certainly not taking it personally.

So can we can all stop vying for greatness now, and get back to work?

10. Intended To Raise All Boats


Don’t let everyone else read TWW first while you sit back and watch their careers leap forward. There is something to be said for being one of the first to discover something genuinely helpful and then leading others to it.

I wrote this book to raise all boats. However, you have to read it to benefit from it.

I hope you will. I hope you will share it with your writing pals.

I find that it’s a rare pleasure these days to discover something worth a rave recommendation.

I think if you try The Writer’s Workout, you’re going to like it.

Game?

Here’s a list of places where you can purchase the book in paperback or digital formats:

Amazon

Kindle

Barnes & Noble

Powell’s

Indiebound

BooksAMillion

Thanks for reading! And thanks for sharing this post with fellow writers! Please subscribe to The Prosperous Writer Blog and sign up for The Prosperous Writer Newsletter, for exclusive discounts you won’t find elsewhere. I hope you will check out the latest courses in my brand new online writing school.

{ 0 comments }

The Art Of Selling Articles Like A Seasoned Pro BadgeSeven of my video courses have recently moved from Udemy to ChristinaKatz.com.

So if you are scampering around the Internet trying to find the REAL home of The Art Of Selling Articles Like A Seasoned Pro, congrats. It lives here at the Christina Katz Writing & Publishing School.

Learn more about my new global school by visiting http://classes.christinakatz.com/.

Here you will find all of my online writing and platform courses, specifically:

The Art Of Short Article Writing For Nonfiction Writers

Learn The Skills You Need To Get Paid To Write From Home And Enjoy The Process Of Creating High Quality Articles LINK

The Art Of Selling Articles Like A Seasoned Pro

Build A Business Offering Your Words To Editors Who Are Eager To Buy Your Work & Pay You For It LINK

Become An Article Idea Factory & Prosper Professionally

10 Ways To Write More Prolifically So You Can Create Nonfiction Content That Delights Editors And Readers LINK

Writing Stories About The Holidays

Use Inspiration From Holiday Movies To Compose Fiction And Nonfiction Stories From Concept To Completion LINK

Power Up Your Platform Like A Pro & Become Better Known Now

Never Be Confused About Platform Again! Learn The 5 Keys To Global Business Branding That Help Any Professional Prosper LINK

Writer Platform Success: Assess Your Strengths & Skills Now

24 Key Questions You Can Easily Answer Using My Platform Bingo Method So You Can Build A More Prosperous Career LINK

Build A Better Bio To Market Yourself Easily Day & Night

Learn To Draft, Edit & Polish Bios In 30 Minutes That Convert Online Connections Into Paying Clients & Career-long Fans LINK

You will see me making a few more announcements like this in the coming weeks. I am sorry that they are so repetitive. I am trying to signal to search engines that these courses have moved so they will stop sending potential students to the wrong place.

You can assist me by posting the following on social media:

Psst! Video courses with Christina Katz have moved to ChristinaKatz.com!

And then share this post. Thank you for your help!

{ 0 comments }
download-1

Q: Online courses vary greatly in scope and tone. How would you summarize your approach to teaching online courses?

I have always been something of a gentle taskmaster in my teaching approach and that has not changed. Writers come to me for assistance learning or executing tasks they might not complete on their own, and I am seasoned at helping them follow through on a wide-range of processes.

I believe that every single person on earth is a fountain of creative good. All of my work is focused on evoking each writer’s unique point of view, interests, and creative self-expression. I believe who you are and what you are interested in is what you are supposed to be writing about. I sell this type of writing to editors myself on an ongoing basis.

What makes my teaching different from other approaches is that I don’t abandon the individual in the process of writing. I don’t focus on pleasing others. Instead I focus on the writer pleasing herself. You might say that I teach the joy of writing for publication rather than the old-school approach of martyr yourself to get published.

Q: I don’t see a way to rate a course or add a testimonial upon completion of a course. Do you still care about these things?

Of course I do! Well, at least I would like the testimonials. I don’t have a rating system for my courses and I’m not sure this is a feature I need since the quality of all my work is extremely professional. On Udemy, when I did use the rating system, my average rating was 4.83 out of 5 with seven courses and 244 students from 16 countries.

However, if you ever encounter so much as a typo in my classes, please let me know! You can use the “Contact” feature to send me your testimonial once you complete a course. If you are ever dissatisfied with a course for any reason, please contact me and let me know.

Q: How does your new classroom interface compare with the Udemy interface?

My new classroom is amazingly simple to use. You become a member of my school when you register for a class (of course I will never share or sell your contact info). Once you start a class, the process is extremely focused and straightforward. One of the things I love about my new school is the lack of distractions, which just helps you better focus on learning. Here’s what you can do in my classroom:

  • Track your progress in a class: check off lessons as you go and your progress bars are in the footer of every page
  • Contact the instructor: your navigation dashboard is always showing as you take classes, just click on the “contact” tab to reach me if you have a question
  • Download PDF worksheets: I have streamlined this process in my online classroom so that your worksheets appear right above your video on the very same page (no more hunting around for worksheets)
  • Everything you need is always right in front of you: no more confusing tabs or searching for what you need, the only buttons you will ever need to press are the “Mark Lesson Complete” and the “Next” buttons as you work your way through each class
  • No barrages of emails: you will only receive emails from me if you choose to sign up for my ezine, The Prosperous Writer

Q: When I signed up for a Udemy course, they said I could take the course indefinitely. But when I sign up for your courses here, there is a time limit. What’s up with that?

Udemy is a corporation and I am an individual and I don’t want to promise anything I can’t guarantee I can deliver in the future. I pay multiple monthly fees to host classes and I don’t feel comfortable promising to pay those bills forever. I would also have to charge quite a bit more for my courses to make that equation work economically.

I have always been result-driven as an instructor. My courses deliver results for engaged, motivated students, but only if you take the course, do the work, and apply what you learn to your professional practices. So to my mind, purchasing writing courses and letting them sit on the shelf until you forget you even signed up for them, doesn’t fit with my results-focused approach. I’ve always enjoyed teaching motivated writers most and this is still the case.

For all of these reasons, every student gets four months to take a course as many times as they wish within that time frame, which is more than ample to learn and incorporate the lessons presented. Students may also download, keep and reuse all of their worksheets. As always, my courses are for personal use only and not to be shared with others or leveraged within groups in any way.

Q: Why did you move some of your courses off Udemy?

A: Thanks for asking. On March 3, 2016, Udemy abruptly changed many of the policies in their instructor agreement. In order to take the best possible care of my courses and my students, I have moved many of my former Udemy courses here.

All of the folks signed up for these courses on Udemy before March 31, 2016 still have access to them and to me through the Udemy interface, although I suggest contacting me directly with any questions via email. Students who signed up for courses on Udemy are welcome to sign up for courses with me here and vice-versa. Although, I will be keeping all of my longer, more comprehensive writing courses here exclusively.

These Q&A’s are permanently located in my school under Frequently Asked Questions. Feel free to let me know if you have any other questions and I will be happy to answer them!

{ 0 comments }

Writing Stories About The Holidays Is Awesome!

download

For years my dream has been to create a context on my site where I could work closely with students, much like I used to do when I was teaching email courses, only better!

And now that dream has come true. Yay!

For those of you who don’t know me, I have 15 years of experience teaching writers, have written three traditionally published books, hold a writing MFA and an English degree, and have helped thousands of writers get published, publish more often, and write books.

And you can learn the keys to better storytelling from me in my newly relaunched course, Writing Stories About The Holidays.

I just took the entire course myself and it’s great!

What struck me is that it’s not just a fun course about writing stories about the holidays, it’s the perfect comprehensive storytelling class for writers of any genre.

In fact, if you like to tell stories to your friends, write stories for your blog, or compose a dramatic holiday letter, you’ll enjoy this course, too.

The course is dedicated to the art and craft of writing better stories because most folks don’t understand the difference between reading a great story and writing one.

But you will know exactly what it takes by the time you finish this class and you’ll be itching to write your own stories.

Or go straight to Writing Stories About The Holidays by clicking the badge:

Writing Stories

So much inspiration, so much time! Please subscribe to the Create, Share, Prosper blog and sign up for The Prosperous Creative ezine for exclusive discounts you won’t find elsewhere. Click on the Enter School tab above to put your creativity to prosperous use right now. Join my monthly pep talk video series because all the other prosperous writers are doing it. Like words? Check out my Etsy shop. And you haven’t seen anything, if you haven’t seen all the helpful offerings in my online shop. Thanks for reading and thanks for sharing this post with fellow creatives!

Save

{ 0 comments }

downloadI am pleased to announce the birth of a new learning place for writers on the Internet. Today Google officially started indexing The Christina Katz Writing & Publishing School.

Here’s what you can register for at my school that you can’t register for anywhere else:

Article Writing Courses

The Art Of Short Article Writing For Nonfiction Writers

The Art Of Selling Articles Like A Seasoned Pro

Become An Article Idea Factory & Prosper Professionally

Platform Building Courses

Power Up Your Platform Like A Pro & Become Better Known Now

Writer Platform Success: Assess Your Strengths & Skills Now

Build A Better Bio To Market Yourself Easily Day & Night

You can learn more and register for any of these classes at http://classes.christinakatz.com/.

For the remainder of April, I am going to keep the prices where they were. Writing courses are still $99 each and platform courses are $33 each.

The student interface in my school is simpler and more straightforward than it was before. More importantly, there are far fewer distractions in my school. Not only are there fewer distractions inside the school, you won’t be pestered by promotional announcements from others after you register. I never sell or share emails I get from subscribers and students with anyone else and I never will.

At the end of the day, I am focused on working with folks who want to learn how to take their professional skills to the next level, and I am only an email away for eager learners who sign up for my courses.

Sign up for my courses when you are ready to invest energy into learning and applying what you learn so you can make measurable progress in your career. You can still take courses at your own pace. Once you register for a course, you have four months to complete it.

Download the PDF worksheets all at once or as you master each lesson because those are yours to keep and will serve you today, tomorrow, and for the rest of your career. During your four months in the course, watch the videos as many times as you like. But remember, nothing helps you learn as well as practicing the tips, tasks and techniques that I suggest.

You may sign up for as many courses at once as you like, but I suggest you only bite off as much as you can chew in the short run. Why not sign up for one class, take it, complete the exercises, and then take another class to keep building new skills on top of those you’ve already mastered? Each cluster of courses is designed to help you expand on the knowledge and skills you already have.

I am excited to be able to design and build high-quality courses for you and keep them close to home. Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns in the comments.

I have worked diligently for many years to get to the point where I am able to create courses of this high-caliber and I am delighted to share them with you.

Please help me celebrate by raising your next beverage in the direction of Oregon. It’s a beautiful day!

{ 0 comments }

Last Call: Why I Am Moving 6 Of My Courses Off Of Udemy

download

You may have heard that I am moving six of my video courses off of Udemy at midnight Thursday, March 31st. I have tried to spread the word as much as possible.

Udemy invited thousands of instructors to come and use their online platform to create video courses and then radically changed their pricing terms on March 3, 2016.

They gave us all a month to change our course prices to their new price range or close the doors on our classes that don’t fit into their new pricing plan.

I am choosing to close the doors to those six classes to new Udemy registrants after tomorrow. You will still be able to register for these courses in the future, but not on Udemy.

What this means to existing Udemy students, is these six courses will still exist on Udemy but the doors to register will no longer be open as of April 1st for new students to join the class.

I am aware that some of my students like the Udemy interface and especially like being able to purchase a course and access it indefinitely.

Others may appreciate the convenience of having all of my courses in one handy location.

If you are one of them, then Thursday, March 31st is your last day to register for these six courses on Udemy.

I have even lowered the price tags as low as I go to sweeten the deal for you.

In the meantime, I’ve built a new online school attached to my website and all of my six courses will be available there as of April 1st.

The interface at my school is simpler and more streamlined than Udemy’s and there is a lot less noise and distractions in my learning space. In fact, I love it and could not be more thrilled with the way it’s working out.

But again, if you prefer the Udemy-style classroom, please be aware that this is the final call for six of my courses there.

Please feel free to post any questions you may have in the comments below.

You must use these coupons to take advantage of my discounted prices. Either click on the link or type in the coupon codes on the registration page for each course.

Thanks for your patience in this matter. I can’t say it has been fun, exactly, but I have certainly learned a lot quickly.

More about the new school soon.

Thanks for reading! And thanks for sharing this post with fellow writers! Please subscribe to The Prosperous Writer Blog and sign up for The Prosperous Writer Newsletter for exclusive discounts you won’t find elsewhere. Click on the Enter School tab above to start learning.

Save

{ 2 comments }
download (1)

I have a lot of people to reach with this great news, so please help me share it.

I am very pleased to announce that I have created a global school attached to my site where I will be housing ALL of my courses going forward.

Won’t it be awesome to have all of my courses available all in one place?

Even better, I have total control over this school, which means I can design courses so they work best for my students and not be impeded by anyone else’s rules.

If you know me, then you know that this last detail just makes my heart sing!

Visit The Christina Katz Writing & Publishing School to learn more.

I hope you will join me in expanding your writing and publishing skills by taking a course with me on Udemy or right here.

When you are a current student, I am always just an email away.

Hope to work with you!

Save

Save

{ 2 comments }

Selling Is NOT A Dirty Word! Writers Need To Get This

download

Look at this gorgeous photo of a marketplace. As a writer, you participate in a virtual marketplace. You are a vendor and a service provider in a global marketplace, and you need to come to terms with your roles as journalist, business person, and service provider in order to be successful. But relax, doesn’t this look like fun? That’s because it is.

Today is the LAST day to get all of my article courses at one-third the usual price. After today, even the discounted prices on article courses go up to $199. So get three article courses for the price of one today and boost your productivity and income this spring!

One of the things I talk about in my new class, The Art Of Selling Your Articles Like A Seasoned Pro, is this idea that many writers have that selling is dirty or wrong.

Writers are supposed to be more evolved than this today. We are supposed to be comfortable with the idea of offering our words in exchange for money.

We have to be comfortable with this idea if we are to be successful.

And yet, too many writers say the word sell and then act like they have to go take a shower afterwards.

Folks, it’s time to get over this.

And fortunately, I have a course that shows you how.

Once you understand that selling simply means offering, and offering is precisely what writers do every day, then you can start to relax about the word selling, and get to work on the parts of the job that really matter.

I want to help you focus on the parts of the job that create productivity and income. But you can’t do that if the word sell still makes you shudder.

You are cordially invited to take my new article selling course and get over your hang-ups about selling once and for all.

Because I know you are ready to write and make money. If you didn’t want to, you wouldn’t be here.

Today is the last day to get all of my article courses for one-third the regular price. So, come on. What are you waiting for?

Let’s march forward into the rest of this year as the confident, prolific writers we are meant to be.

Who is with me? Come on with me and show me your checks. Because if you take all three of these courses for the price of one regularly priced course, you are going to come up with timely, appropriate ideas, execute them beautifully, get them into the inboxes of the appropriate editors, and make sales.

Don’t wait. You can register for these courses at the lower prices today and take them at your convenience. They are designed for busy people and you can learn on the go using the Udemy app. But you know me, I’m going to make you do your work, too.

I am always creating classrooms full of motivated, focused writers.

Here are the reduced prices for all three article classes:

The Art Of Short Article Writing For Nonfiction Writers

Register now for only $99

Become An Article Idea Factory

Register now for only $99

The Art Of Selling Articles Like A Seasoned Pro

Register now for only $99

I hope you will join us!

{ 0 comments }

My New Video Course Is LIVE! The Art Of Selling Articles

Screen Shot 2016-02-29 at 4.44.29 PMMy new course, The Art Of Selling Articles Like A Seasoned Pro, is now LIVE! For a limited time you can get all three of my article courses for the price of one!

Well, I finally did it.

I took the leap and video recorded myself for the first time in one of my video courses.

Since it’s Leap Day, this seems like an appropriate day to pat myself on the back.

So imagine me taking a bow here.

And I even enjoyed doing it. It’s not like a lecture, it’s more like sitting across from me at the kitchen table chatting about writing.

That’s what I’m good at. That’s how I move folks from stuck into taking action.

That and by providing killer worksheets that help you understand key concepts through practice.

Once this course is approved on Udemy, I will have seven courses there.

According to my Instructor Dashboard, I have 235 students from 16 countries with the top three countries being USA, Canada, and Australia.

I kinda feel like I have arrived. And it only took me, oh, a year and a half to get here.

In attempting to try new things, I have inspired myself so much that I am going to go ahead and lower the prices of all my article courses one last time.

You might remember that I recently threatened to raise all the lowest discounts from $150 to $199

I am still planning to do this, but on a slightly different schedule. So you may wish to take advantage of my sudden fit of giddy generosity and grab these classes at the price of $99. I am not sure I am going to lower them this much again.

Happy Leap Day to us! Here are the reduced prices for all three article classes:

http://classes.christinakatz.com/

If you have always wanted to write a steady stream of articles and get them published regularly, then these are the three courses to master. And once you do, I look forward to seeing your name in print.

And oh, yes, before I forget…

Today is also the last day to get all four of my seasonal writing prompt ebooks at half price.

And now if you will excuse me, I just heard from an editor who wants to purchase several of my articles.

I hope this will be happening for you soon!

Happy Leap Day!

 

 

{ 0 comments }

This interview really made me pause and think about the influence that Natalie Goldberg and Writing Down The Bones has had on me.

Her impact was huge. This was pre-Internet, but just to feel like there was a writing teacher out there like her made such a difference.

We don’t always need to have a personal relationship with our writing teachers. In some ways, I feel like my relationship with Natalie Goldberg is more pure because it has only been through her writing.

I hope you will take the time to watch this video, whether you know the author’s works or not. And if you haven’t read Writing Down The Bones, please do! It just might change your life.

{ 2 comments }