by Tom Hogan | Oct 20, 2023 | Author assistant, Teaching, Writing
Note from Tom: Cheryl has quarterbacked my last two novels from start to finish. The stuff she does, I neither want to do myself or even know how to do it. There are those who do want to handle all phases of their book, and I appreciate it. I’m just not one of them...
by Tom Hogan | Oct 13, 2023 | Writing, So You Want to Be a Writer, Teaching, The Forever Game
I’ve used a reading group for three of my four novels, and those three have all benefited from the experience. The first novel, where I didn’t use one, showed it. I’ve used my group (four friends whose tastes and intellect I highly value) for two things: 1) to reflect...
by Tom Hogan | Sep 22, 2023 | So You Want to Be a Writer, Book Coach, Screenplays, Teaching, The Forever Game, Writing
When Crowded Ocean (my marketing consultancy with Carol Broadbent) was in business, the core of our engagement with our startup clients was a positioning/messaging workshop we conducted with the startup founder(s) and core players. One of the things we taught that, as...
by Tom Hogan | Sep 8, 2023 | Screenplays, So You Want to Be a Writer, Teaching, The Forever Game, Writing
Steinbeck used to contrast his “big books” (East of Eden, Grapes of Wrath) with his smaller gems (Cannery Row, Of Mice and Men) and the difficulties that each type of book posed. One of my early readers, who has read all three of my novels, has been after me to write...
by Tom Hogan | Aug 31, 2023 | The Forever Game, Book Coach, Screenplays, So You Want to Be a Writer, Teaching, Writing
Among the many wise things that Winston Churchill said, one that applies to us writers is: If you want me to speak for two minutes, it will take me three weeks of preparation. If you want me to speak for thirty minutes, it will take me a week to prepare. If you...
by Tom Hogan | Feb 24, 2023 | Book Coach, Screenplays, short story, So You Want to Be a Writer, Teaching, The Forever Game, Writing
After all these years of writing and having some of my work published, I rarely, if ever, considered word count. It wasn’t until Newsweek told me to lose 200 words of my carefully (and beautifully) constructed article on pedophilia in the Catholic clergy that I...
