Whether you have never been published and you’d like to publish your first clips or you have been published and you’d like to get your writing-for-publication groove back, here is a roundup of my best online writing advice.

I have helped hundreds of writers write their first articles, get published, and get published more often. Give these a read when your writing needs a boost.

One thing you can learn from me is how to see the possibilities that are right in front of you, start close to home, and build skills from there. Happy reading!

Compel Us: 19 Ways To Write Better

Tips For Practicing Writer Mamas Who Want To Get Published

Top Ten Questions About Breaking In As A Freelance Writer Answered

How To Ignore Interruptions And Get Your Work Done

Turn Off Your Monkey Mind And Get Back To Work

Use Article Writing To Discover What You Value

Writer Productivity: Seven Narrative Writing Tips For Nanowrimo Success

Memoir Writing Tips: How To Get Your Story On The Page

How To Never Ever Run Out Of Great Ideas

Even Writers Get Sophomore Slump, What To Do About It

Helping Mom Writers Transform Frustrations Into Published Writing Is What I Do

Ready to start writing? There are many ways I can help.

I am the author of Writer Mama, How To Raise A Writing Career Alongside Your Kids, which is widely considered one of the most helpful and timeless books for mom writer success. Learn More

I am also the author of the e-book Writing For Regional Parenting Publications For Fun & Profit. Because this e-book covers the beginning writing and selling steps for new mom writers, it is quickly becoming as popular as Writer Mama. Learn More

I offer the e-mail course, Writing & Publishing The Short Stuff, which begins August 21st. Take the course if you would like to stop making excuses and start creating and submitting publishable work.

I also offer two intermediate writing classes, 60 Ways To Flex Your Content & Prosper In Your Niche and Pitching Practice, Write Six Queries In Six Weeks.

I hope that my body of work for writers will help you write better so you can earn more money writing and getting your work consistently published!

Thinking about creating or improving your platform this fall?

I have helped hundreds of writers create solid and evolving writing platforms that increase professional credibility and profits.

One thing you will learn from me that you won’t learn from others is how to not waste your time, as you lay the groundwork for a creative and dynamic writer platform.

Here is some of my best work on the topic of writer platform:

Grow For It: Activate & Reactivate Your Perennial Platform Power, in the June issue of Pacific Northwest Writing Association’s Author Magazine.

Author Platform Redux: 10 Smartest Things I Ever Said About Author Platform from this blog

Nine Things To Clarify About Your Platform (this has two parts, part two is here)

50 Simple Ways To Build Your Platform in Five Minutes A Day is an article I wrote for Writer’s Digest Magazine

Elements of a Successful Fiction Platform is another article I wrote for Writer’s Digest Magazine.

Ready to get to work on your platform? There are many ways I can help!

I am the author of Get Known Before The Book Deal, Use Your Personal Strengths To Grow Your Author Platform from Writer’s Digest Book. Learn more.

I am also the author of the e-book, Discover Your Platform Potential, which is a hands-on workbook to accompany Get Known that will help you get started discovering and building your platform. Learn more.

And I offer the e-mail course, Discover Your Specialty & Launch Your Platform for folks who are ready to roll up their sleeves and get to work putting their best face forward in today’s marketplace.

Hope that my considerable body of work on writer platform will help inspire your writing career to greater heights!

Thank you in advance for spreading the word about my work. I appreciate your support.

~ Oak Tree by MunstiSue

This article appeared last month in The Prosperous Writer. Don’t miss the next article like this one, subscribe here.

Writers write. This is what we do. And in order to write, we need material.

And where is your best material hiding? It might just be right under your nose.

Before you head out into the world looking for that ever-elusive fountain of inspiration that is supposed to be out there, make sure you check your own back yard first.

A very wise little girl once said, “There’s no place like home.” And although far-away places can certainly thrill and inspire us, they make the greatest impressions on those who have practiced turning the everyday into the universal…right from home.

If you are creating an interesting life, you will never run out of inspiration.

Here are some ideas of where to look for topics that interest and inspire you close to home:

• The biggest problems in your life that you are trying to solve or resolve

• Your lemons into lemonade stories

• In the bookshelves where you collect your favorite books

• From topics you already like to read about

• Snippets of thoughts from everyday life that you jot on a pad or white board

• From keywords that you use to describe your audience

• From mixing and matching keywords you use to describe your audience

• By updating what you know about yourself to make a new story

• Inside the jar of coins you are saving up

• From the bills you have already paid

• Flowing from ideas you think you have finished writing about but have not yet finished writing about

• By what is created when you collect your old work and see it in a new way

• By zooming in on one subtopic or zooming out on the over-arching general topic

• By flipping through your portfolio and seeing what you’ve already done

• By digging through your tickler file and seeing what you have not done yet

• By looking around the house and seeing how you live

• By looking around the house and seeing how you’d like to live

• By sorting through your old photo albums and scrapbooks

• By creating new photo albums and scrapbooks

• By getting out of the house and going somewhere new

• By paying more attention to the interesting conversations you have

• From news stories that attract your attention today

• By predicting trends in the future

• From eavesdropping live or on social media

• By tapping into the Zeitgeist however you do that best

• After rearranging a room

• While redecorating a room

• By printing and posting questions around the house that help you come up with ideas

• By working with a therapist, coach or spiritual adviser

• By deepening the relationships closest to you

• By paying attention to every moment

• By doing a little research on topics you think might interest you

• By writing lists of ideas and continuing to update and add to them over time

• By thinking about what you already know how to do

• By thinking about what you don’t know how to do but would like to do

• By studying forms and playing around with them in your own writing

• By paying attention to your dreams

• From thinking about what you value most in life

• From thinking about what you’ve done so far

• From thinking about what you enjoy doing most lately

• From thinking about your hard-won expertise

• From thinking about ways you can serve

• By considering what moves you that you also think will move others

Leave no stone unturned…ever heard this expression?

This might just be the best writing career advice ever.

So much inspiration, so little time! Please subscribe to the Create, Share, Prosper Blog and sign up for The Prosperous Creative Newsletter 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. Thanks for reading and thanks for sharing this post with fellow creatives!

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I was interviewed about what being a writing coach means to me for the May/June issue of Wow! — Women On Writing by Margo Dill along with Alice B. McGinty.

Here’s how I answered a couple of the interview questions:

What are the toughest psychological problems that you feel your clients face?

I would say that the biggest challenge facing writers today isn’t psychological; I would say the biggest challenge is the complexity of both the professional journey and the world we are living in. Because we live in a world rife with distraction, the opportunity to abort any mission is available at every turn. I think I tend to focus on the solutions more than the challenges—that’s just a habit that I have developed from many years of coaching individuals who are in turn eager, gracious, and ambitious and also reluctant, anxious, and easily frustrated.

Tell us two issues that you have helped writers tackle and how you helped them.

I don’t so much solve issues, as I create contexts for writing career success. So if a writer brings issues into the process, there is basically nothing I can do for them. That’s really their choice. They are either going to learn, work, and grow—or invest their energy in other ways. I work hard—that’s the example I set—and my students pretty much follow suit. Writing careers are marathons, not sprints. So I would bring your goals to your mentors and get ready to work and then work some more, and check your issues at the door.

Writing coaching was not a calling for me, it was simply the alignment of what I was already doing with how to name what I do. [Read More]

My advice to writers is don’t imitate others, learn the skills you need to express who you are in the field, and be that writer…the writer you already are.

When you recognize that who you are is enough, and what you do is valuable, then you can become successful in writing or in any field.

I was excited to get the invitation from Bill Kenower from the Pacific Northwest Writers Association to write about platform for Author Magazine because I know writers struggle with how to keep evolving and growing a platform once they get one started.

Here’s an excerpt from the new article, “Grow For It: Activate & Reactivate Your Perennial Platform Power,” in the June issue of Pacific Northwest Writing Association’s Author Magazine:

Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant. ~ Robert Louis Stevenson

The one word that best describes a writer’s platform is “process.” Your platform is creative, just as writing is creative. There is a beginning, middle, and an end to a platform project, but there is never an end to your platform progress from the moment it begins until your career is over. However, if you leave a distinct enough legacy, your platform will survive even after you are gone.

The other key word to define platform is “perennial” because your platform is never static. It is always in various stages of being planted, sprouting, blossoming, and then reorganizing itself for the next phase of your career growth.

So what is a writer’s platform? [Read More]

Think of your platform in natural, not supernatural terms, because you are a person, not a storm front. If you think of your platform as an extension of who you are and what you offer, you will enjoy the process of establishing and growing a platform and the platform you establish will have strong, sturdy roots.

Enjoy the article!

And if you like it, feel free to check out some of my other resources on writer platform, Get Known Before The Book Deal, Discover Your Platform Potential, and Discover Your Specialty & Launch Your Platform.

I started working with mom writers long before Writer Mama was born, and I'll keep working with mom writers as long as I can keep inspiring mom writers to greater depths of success.

There is only one place to take writing and publishing classes with Christina Katz and that’s right here, via registration on this website.

In your Internet travels, you may stumble across imitators, but just because someone is offering a class with my book does not mean that you are getting the same experience you would get working with me.

My Writing & Publishing the Short Stuff class is a unique experience because I have been cultivating my teaching techniques in this class alone since 2006. Even before I developed WPSS, I had been consistently teaching writers since 2001.

So accept no substitutes, folks. I continue teaching this class because I love inspiring and empowering mom writers. And in seven years of teaching this class I never cease to be amazed by the fresh, integrated ideas of my writer mama students. You might think that everyone would be writing the same stuff, but that never happens because every mom writer is unique.

If you are not a mom writer, I hope you will sign up for my 21 Moments Writing Challenge, which is designed for any writer in any genre. But if you are mom writer and you want to build unstoppable skills, then I hope you will stick with the writer mama.

Here is what students from this past year have to say about taking my Writing & Publishing the Short Stuff class.

I was amazed at how much I accomplished and learned in just 6 weeks with WPSS. Worth every penny. Christina’s insight into my writer-self from just emails and my assignments was uncanny – and hugely valuable in figuring out my next steps. ~ Kristin M.

Christina’s freelancing bootcamp kicked my butt and took me to a new level of writing and productivity. I started out feeling inadequate and too intimidated to approach any markets. Then, Christina pushed me through six weeks of the “Short Stuff,” and I saw my work grow stronger. I am a freelance writer now; I have the skills to start submitting, and to represent myself well. ~ Laurie Z.

Take this class! But only if you’re prepared for hard work, honest, critical responses and a sightline toward a promising future. Christina is an empowering instructor who offers solid information, clear examples and precise instruction about how you can better your writing. Her focus is on you: your process, your knowledge and your work. What more could you want? ~ Kara G.

Christina’s class is invaluable for a new writer hoping to get her work out into the world. I would highly recommend it as a way to gain confidence and momentum. It left me excited for the work and that much closer to the writing career I have always envisioned. Thank you! ~ Garen G.

I will be making key updates to all of my classes over the summer to help make them better than ever. Then the next class begins August 21st. See the full fall schedule here.

I hope to work with you then!

I’ve been on something of a creative health kick this year. What I have been focused on is examining the way I treat myself, physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually, and the impact this treatment has on my success.

Like everything else, I find that self-help works best when I take it in incremental steps in a positive direction that work with my lifestyle until they become habit.

So here it is summer and I find that I have developed several healthy habits that have made a big impact on my overall health and creativity. I have become more present. I feel more alive and joyful. I appreciate myself more. I feel unconcerned with what others may think of me. And I feel like I am able to prioritize my most important work with satisfaction and without stress.

Here are a few of the habits I have incorporated:

1. Take the best quality supplements I can find

I have been taking one high quality health supplement this year that has made a big difference in my overall health and attitude. This supplement is a only made of food and by taking it, I can rest assured that I am meeting my daily food requirements, which apparently I was not meeting before. This product has improved by overall health and attitude by a mile and I highly recommend it. Then, about 45 days ago, after getting some recommendations from a Whole Foods employee, I added a handful of other supplements to my daily intake and, after a few adjustments, the results have been terrific.

2. Exercise vigorously and regularly

I have been leading Writers On The Move for two years now and I can’t thank the members of this group enough for helping me with exercise accountability. Thanks to Writers On The Move, I work out vigorously for 45 minutes three times a week. Regular exercise is hugely important for sedentary writers. I feel stronger, more flexible, and calmer thanks to regular aerobic and strengthen exercise. And I get to share the road to fitness with hundreds of other writers who are committed to the same thing.

3. Eat Better and healthier

This is always one of my greatest challenges because I like good food a little too much. However, I am definitely eating better than I have in years. Even just the addition of oatmeal for breakfast and brown rice bowls for lunch can be a big healthy eating improvement. And these foods are inexpensive and can save you money on your grocery bill in the long run.

4. Spend more quality time with my immediate family

Writing three books in seven years for Writer’s Digest and then promoting them was a lot of work and travel. So when I was offered the opportunity to submit another book proposal just after The Writer’s Workout was published, I declined.

I love my books and they make great teaching tools for myself and others, but the stress and strain that comes with traditional publishing these days can easily become unmanageable. There are many reasons for this and that’s another blog post, but the good news is that there have never been so many options in writing and publishing as there are now. And because I am exploring them, I get to spend more quality time with my immediate family, which has been beneficial to all of us. There has never been a better time to be a writer, and the range of options available to writers is one of the reasons why.

5. Cut down on stress and sleep better and longer

I used to be the queen of  waking up at four or five am, thanks to my big deadlines and because I am not a fast writer. I love nothing more than writing in a hushed house in the wee hours, but that can’t become a lifestyle without taking a toll on sleep and health. Now that I am doing my own projects, I sleep great and work regular, full-time office hours.

6. Keep up with regular health appointments

One of my least favorite things to do is making time for regular health appointments. So I am happy to report that I am completely up to date. I am just sorry this status doesn’t last longer.

7. Watch Ted.com videos

One of the best things I have done this spring is adding Ted.com videos to my workout time. I can watch two or three videos in the time it takes me to work out and as a result I am thinking more creatively, globally, and sustainably. If you are not thinking these ways, consider watching your choice of Ted.com videos. They span every topic imaginable and are incredibly entertaining and educational.

8. Work on projects I want to work on

I have a long list of exciting projects that I am working on. All of them benefit the world by making the world a more creative, expansive, colorful, playful place to live and work and express yourself. I am thrilled with the projects I am working on and I look forward to many, many more. Stay tuned for ongoing announcements as projects roll out, and not just in e-book form.

9. Make more non-work time for myself

Because I am healthier and more relaxed, I have been able to make more time for myself. Making time for myself is a huge part of refreshing my creative reserves so I can work to my highest capacity. More than this, making time for myself is crucial to my own happiness and feeling of spiritual connection. When I spend time with myself, I align with who I am and why I am here. Nobody else can do this for me, and I’m glad because I love taking time to just be. This balances out the stresses and strains of this busy, busy world that we live in.

10. Dwelling in possibility

Because I am healthy and present, I have greater opportunities to seize the moment. I can both work on projects that are planned and consider all of my possibilities. If you have not felt this way in a while, it may be because stress cancels out this instinct. But part of living the creative life, for me, has always including being able to embrace and explore possibilities and run with good ideas when they come in for a landing. I am open to all my best ideas and I am running with them, and this feels great.

How about you? How is your creative health? Are you taking good care of you? What does taking good care of you mean to you? What healthy habits can you add today? And how might a few new healthy habits benefit you and your family in the long run?

As I write this, I am not yet quite done wrapping up my classes for the academic year, however, things are definitely ratcheting down around here busy-wise, and it sure feels good.

I traveled a lot less this past year, and it really paid off in my productivity at home. I was able to launch a whole new initiative with my 21 Moments Writing Challenges and I’ve started the process of converting my considerable academic teachings into e-books. And of course, the whole time I wrote writing-related and parenting articles, which continue to get regularly published.

I’ve been teaching writers since 2001, and I’ve been coaching women since even earlier than that, and it’s time to get the best of my teachings into e-book and other formats. I am excited about the prospect, even though it involves a considerable amount of work.

So, while it may look like there is not much going on at chez ChristinaKatz.com this summer, don’t be fooled. I spent all year from August until now teaching, coaching, and encouraging writers to take their writing careers to the next level. And this summer, I will be practicing what I preach.

I’ve already started. I have the PDF version of Write For Regional Parenting Publications For Fun & Profit out and it’s going into broader distribution this week.

I have a beta version of The Art of Making Time For Yourself done and up for sale, and it will also be going out for broader distribution soon.

You’ll be hearing from me all summer, as I work hard with my support team to finalize and launch projects. But e-projects and class updates will be my primary focus, so you might not hear much else from me this summer. And then, when fall starts to roll around, you’ll begin to hear from me a whole lot more.

I have big plans for next year. I suppose I always have big plans, but in the future I intend to teach, coach and encourage as many writers as possible in whole new ways that I hope will compel and excite you.

And not just writers, I will also be doing more to encourage and inspire moms and women.

This past year, I have helped expert journalists create and launch thirteen e-books in micro-published form. I have helped many more writers build outstanding, professional platforms than I can count. And I continue to help teams of writers expand and grow expert presence in my Dream Teams.

As I have for many years, I continue to help unpublished writers start writing and get published. And I also help them learn to query and break into higher paying publications over time.

I promoted 42 women authors in May and celebrated their commitment to self-expression and their writing excellence.

I gave out five scholarships and an extra free class that were worth almost 1,800 dollars. I launched a new class in the fall, Become Your Own Imprint, For Micro-publishers. And I have seen a few of my students begin to blossom into the prolific publishers they are.

More than anything, I have taught eager writers how to focus, create and behave in a consistently professional manner. I am darn proud of all of the hard work I have done and the results and benefits that have manifested for others because of my hard work and commitment.

I teach skills that help writers prosper no matter what is happening in the changing publishing climate. It’s hard work, but I love it. And watching my students create and grow makes it all worthwhile.

Thank you, to those of you who worked with me this year. I hope to work with you again soon. Classes and Dream Teams start back up in August. And The 21 Moments Writing Challenge Rounds begin again on September 1st.

The next Writing & Publishing The Short Stuff Scholarship will be posted in this blog in mid-July. Please subscribe to The Prosperous Writer Blog via e-mail and sign up for The Prosperous Writer Newsletter, so you won’t miss any important updates.

Please register early for classes, Dream Teams, and writing challenges that will be coming back around before we know it!

Have a great summer, everyone!