All Things Writing

The Craft of Writing


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The Value of Giving Up

There is value in giving up. I’m sure of it. I mean, how many hours is it worth to get the image for your blog to fit in the blasted little square? I’m not sure, but I know  it is not the number of hours I’ve spent futzing with it.

Help_mI’ve been a financial analyst, so I know the mesmerizing quality of figures run through various scenarios. I’ve already admitted to being blog-stat-enchanted. Neither of these practices come close to the effort I will put into something that “only needs a tweak.”

There in lies the fallacy.

There is no such thing as “only needs a tweak.”

In the spirit of the original cookie to a mouse, each tweak inevitably leads to another. and another. and another. Maybe this is because I have no real idea of what I’m doing. I’m ready to admit that freely. However, as a writer, I need an online presence. I also need a way to promote my book through the site I created for that purpose. In order to do that, I either need a lot of green – so not happening – OR I need the stubborn determination and dumb luck to do it myself. Continue reading


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Productivity Tools: Napkin

Napkin.175x175-75I have a new software program, Napkin, that makes creating images for my blogs a snap. I’m all for anything that saves me time. I’m also all for anything that’s easy to use. It’s rare that I find an app that delivers on both. Napkin does.

You can use it for more that creating images for your blogs. You can sketch and focus on part of an image… Those are things I haven’t gotten to yet. What I’ve used it for is to find an image I’d like to use, create a screen shot, then edit it in Napkin.

The very best part of Napkin? You can literally drag from a png button and create a png file. This file type is compatible with WordPress. Because of this, it’s easier than ever to bring an image into my posts. In fact, I have had to restrain myself!

Napkin is a Mac app that’s definitely worth checking out!