Passions That Pay

I am pleased to be part of the blog tour of Linda Dessau’s new book which is a step by step guide to produce highly polished and grammatically correct writing. Although she focuses on coaches as her target market, this book is really for anyone who wants to improve their written skills.I wanted to know more about Linda and her passion for grammar!

1. What were you passionate about as a child?

I begged for (and got) piano lessons at the age of five. Music was a big passion, as it continues to be. I also loved to read, write stories and create my own little comic books.

2. What drew you to coaching?

I loved my work as a music therapist, but I wanted to improve my skills for helping people not just through music but through words as well. Also, I’d had a back injury as the direct result of stress, and I wanted to share the new lessons I was learning about self-care.

3. Was the book fun to research?

It was, actually. I particularly enjoyed the book Woe is I, by Patricia O’Conner, and some of the fun websites I found, like Grammar Girl.

4. What was the most surprising thing that you learnt during your research?

I was surprised that there are so many different versions of right and wrong when it comes to writing. Style guides, dictionaries and other books contradict each other all the time.

5. Do you now spot all the mistakes every time you read something?

Well, certain things are jumping out at me even more than they did before. I notice semicolons (because they’re pretty rare in most writing), whether or not people choose to use the serial comma and if bulleted lists have parallel structure. It gives me something to do while I’m reading ads on the subway!

6. What do you find most challenging about the whole writing process?

Respecting my natural rhythms. I’m very creative and prolific in the mornings, but later in the day I find it difficult to start anything new. I’m ok if I’m already in the flow with a project, but otherwise my head gets heavy. Yet I still sometimes try – why do I do that?

7. What are the main advantages to having a published book?

A book brings a whole new level of credibility and opens doors to more people and opportunities. It creates a stream of passive revenue and also more interest in the other products and services that the author offers. It can also be the foundation for a whole empire of related products and services.

8. Do you have a writing schedule?

I do. As I mentioned above, I do most of my writing early in the day. I have specific times blocked off in my calendar for client projects (editing and ghostwriting), for writing my own materials like blog posts and articles and for admin tasks. I did most of my work on the Style Guide on the weekends, but since then I’ve actually created a block of time in my workweek for Special Projects.

I like to have at least two blocks of time for each writing project, no matter how small. In the first sitting I’ll do some brainstorming and a rough outline, and then I’ll come back to it later to build it up from there.

9. Which grammatical mistake bugs you the most?

It’s a one-two punch; when writers use passive language and they’re also overly wordy, it’s way too much work to figure out what they’re trying to say.

10. What’s next?

I’m having a great time promoting the book and I’m looking forward to hearing from my readers about what they want and need next. I’m also developing and testing the My Book Wiki program, a web-based system I will use to help coaches plan, write and polish their book from start to finish.

This interview was part of a book tour for The Customizable Style Guide for Coaches Who Write.

Yesterday the blog tour stopped at Andrea Lee’s blog at Money and Meaning and tomorrow it continues with Sandra De Freitas at her blog, Tech Coach for Coaches.