Look, I get it. You’re a writer. Your natural habitat is behind a keyboard, preferably in a dark room, possibly pantsless (or is that just me?) The thought of showing your face or *gasp* SPEAKING makes you want to crawl into your murder shed and never come out. BUT HERE’S THE THING. I know you’re…

Here’s how I cut through the noise without becoming another crypto-bro. A follow up to yesterdays email and why this can be VERY good for you… 1. KILL THE CORPORATE VOICE Stop sounding like a LinkedIn algorithm had a baby with a customer service manual Write like a human who gives a shit Here’s an…

We need to talk about why telling the truth is about as effective as using a pool noodle to fight off brown bear on cocaine… spoiler alert: you’re gonna get your face eaten So for decades, honest business folks thought they could just wave their truth-flag around like some magical victory pennant. “Look at our…

I’ve had this idea percolating in my brain for the last few months. I need a Big Hairy Audacious Goal The plan? Add at least another 5,732 new cult memb– I mean, newsletter subscribers in 2025. Why such a specific number? BECAUSE ROUND NUMBERS ARE FOR COWARDS AND MARKETING BROS. Now I’ve kind of made…

aggressively sips coffee while arranging psychology textbooks by how much they piss off my inner critic So I had a chat with a buddy of mine about art and that whole creative thing we subject ourselves to. It’s something we do because we have to do it and without it we feel meh. Your brain…

I do this once a year and they’re in no particular order but I’m a firm believer in re-reading great work. From non-fiction to fiction there might be something in here that’ll tickle your brain soup. Let’s go… PSA by Rob Ulitski(A short story with a pretty cool style and the layout of it is…

So today in the endless parade of what-the-fuckery that is our modern hellscape… Funko. Yes, those merchants of dead-eyed vinyl nightmares decided to go full HAM on itch.io because their broken-ass AI copyright system can’t tell its digital ass from its algorithmic elbow. I’m not anti-ai in a lot of respects. They’re great tools for…

I’m about to get uncommonly sincere for a minute, so brace yourselves. Maybe grab a tissue. Or a bourbon. Or both. No judgment here. So there I was, having my usual 3 AM existential crisis about deadlines and word counts, when something weird happened. No, I didn’t get visited by three ghosts. That’s a different…

So you’ve written some words, and somehow people started following you like you’re holding the last coffee bean on Earth. Congratulations! You’ve accidentally started a cult. Here’s how to lean into that power without becoming an actual megalomaniac: CREATE AN ALTERNATIVE REALITY (AKA YOUR BRAND VOICE) Every good cult needs its own reality tunnel. Lucky…

Aggressively slurps coffee while typing this from said murder shed It’s not a shed. It’s just a kitchen counter top but murder shed sounded cooler tbh. Okay so I woke up a little spicier than usual. Mainly because I’ve seen a lot of my creative friends panicking at the current state this world is in…

Okay, so here’s a little bit for my fellow inkmonkeys… I’m about to tell you a story that’ll prove why pure, unfiltered GRIT matters more than your fancy MFA when it comes to slinging sentences. This tale might just be the difference between you cranking out masterpieces or crying into your keyboard while refreshing your…

“I never wrote a story in my life. What I did was, I would get an idea, and then I would put it on a piece of paper—a paragraph—so I wouldn’t lose it. And another idea would come, and I would write it down.” – Ray Bradbury Ray Bradbury up there with Isaac Asimov are…

Haliey Welch aka Hawk Tuah aka spit on that thang girl is in some hot water. Now I don’t care much for crypto shenanigans and I can almost tell from this going out, that your eyes are rolling around the back of your skull – clanking about. But there be lessons in here and I’ll…

Sadly no drugs and no rock ‘n roll. Although as a ghostwriter I have “participated” in some of the weirdest markets out there. From adult toys, to niche gifts/vinyls that would get you cancelled, to what salad do you eat so that you have maximum energy. (I’m not a fan of salad tbh) Ghostwriters are…

We all have those days where we don’t want to get out of bed. Those days are normal and today for me is one of those days. It’s warm, it’s cozy and I don’t want to wake up and write. But I did. There’s a quote I got memorised and is apt for this…“The key is to make sure…

I’ve just finished watching Saving Private Ryan again. Honestly still one of the greatest war films of all time… I’m still on the medical war-hound metaphor / analogy kick. So if you block or unsubscribe it’s cool. Casualty of war or whatever eh? Anyways, let’s get cracking… The one thing people forget about is how…

I’ll be using Drew’s menacing ways…to illustrate a few more ways to think differently when it comes to writing for yourself to get your words seen and consumed by your fans. Most writers/artists are stuck in the literary friendzone because they’re treating their words like precious little snowflakes instead of the weapons they should be. The thing…

People can smell insincerity just like that. You NEED to build trust without coming across like a sleazy car salesman who bathes in cheap cologne. It reminds me of that scene from Matilda when Danny DeVito rolls back the odometer. We don’t need to do any of that shady shit to get our warez out…

I’m not saying we should commit grand theft auto Although it would be cool if we didn’t have worldly responsibilities to stick to. Listen, I’m talking about your writing, not your neighbour’s Prius (though Mrs. Henderson really should stop parking in your spot.) This is one of the truths a writing mentor of mine tried…

I’m not gonna make you jump some hoops like you’re donning a robe. I mean robes cool and all that but personally I prefer comfort. Sweat pants and a shirt are my go to get up. Anywho. As creatives we are all doing the same thing in one way or the other. Whether we’re writing…

It’s not every day that I watch a series and my eyeballs are glued to the screen, not wanting to miss a beat. But I’m the type of nerd who will sit and break down what makes an episode of a show, a movie or even a few sentences in a book stand out like a…

It’s in the way your cat’s whiskers twitch while she plots your murder when you’re fast asleep. It’s in that mysterious stain on the ceiling that looks like Abraham Lincoln making out with a dolphin. What am I talking about? How to come up with unlimited ideas and all of that fancy stuff…The prose. Your…

It’s cold here in England and Black Friday offers usually start way sooner than the 29th. I’m sipping on a nice hot tea and it got me thinking. Neediness applies to everything but I’m gonna give you a little bit of a scoop when it comes this here writing thing… So whether you need to…

I didn’t give Irvine Welsh the love he deserves yesterday, so I’ll open with little quote from his short story The Acid House “— Skanko n Leanne’s suppose tae be gittin engaged, she said, — that’s what ah heard anywey. This statement, though it elicited no response from Coco, sparked off an interesting line of…

I’ve been on a health kick of late and before you block me. Hear me out.Steak, 4-6 eggs, loads of pink Himalayan salt and water (Distilled or bottled I’m not that precious)Cutting out the carbs and dairy and it’s been tough.I call it the Toxic Masculinity Diet and the name is just purely for entertainment…

Ooooh boy it’s been non stop lately. THE DEATH OF TWITTER BLUESKY!!! THE KILLER OF THE MOST TOXIC SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM ON THE INTERNET!!! (Sorry 6 exclamation marks in a single email. I think I’ve used up my exclamation mark quota for the next 3 years) Now that the dust has kinda settled in regards…

Here I am, slipping and sliding on the ice outside.The mercury has dropped below 0 during the time of me writing this. My hands in my hoodie pockets balled into fists so tight you could see the whites of my knuckles. If I was squeezing any tighter I’m sure the flesh would’ve torn as I hobbled along…

Which sucks, but is needed to hear. Every spectacular failure we’ve had, and every dumpster fire in our world is – plot twist – our own fault. So I’ve been thumbing through Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willink For the 4th time and honestly when you look at it this way… When the proverbial doo doo…