A version of this story appeared in Total Annarchy, my fortnightly newsletter that helps you be a better writer, storyteller, marketer. Get it in your inbox; you’ll love it. * * * If the outrage and events of the past weeks have taught us anything, it’s the importance of sharpening your voice. Not just sharing […]

A version of this story appeared in Total Annarchy, my fortnightly newsletter that helps you be a better writer, storyteller, marketer. Get it in your inbox; you’ll love it. * * * “Hello… My name is David.” That’s the start of a confirmation email that landed in my inbox recently. Not surprising, really: I’ve been […]

A version of this story appeared in Total Annarchy, my fortnightly newsletter that helps you be a better writer, storyteller, marketer. Get it in your inbox; you’ll love it. Consider this a reminder: There is no right way to Covid. * * * I was out on my daily forced family walk around the neighborhood […]

A version of this story appeared in Total Annarchy, my fortnightly newsletter that helps you be a better writer, storyteller, marketer. Get it in your inbox; you’ll love it. Recently, I gave a mini writing workshop for a MarketingProfs client. The workshop (“How to Write Your Face Off”) was online, which meant the 30 or so […]

 There are two truths I’ve realized about the Coronavirus pandemic: Everyone feels they are dramatically, uniquely affected. Everyone is right. Every one of us is affected. No one knows exactly how much. There is a relentless, invisible virus among us, and there is also a weird anxiety in the air. Like one minute I’m in […]

  A global pandemic is a great time to launch an email newsletter. Why? Because a crisis is not a time for Marketing to be clever or snarky. It’s a time to be helpful and sincere. It’s a time to build relationships, nurture customers, and create long-term loyalty. There’s no better way to do that […]

A version of this story appeared in Total Annarchy, my fortnightly newsletter that helps you be a better writer, storyteller, marketer. Get it in your inbox; you’ll love it. I’m in a meeting in a Dallas, Texas, hotel. The drinks station at the back of the room has a few fun retro bottles of Dr […]

  Author, YouTuber, VidCon-co-creator Hank Green distills the 8 things he wishes he knew when he was writing his first novel. There are lots of gems in his 4-minute video that apply beyond fiction-writing. Here are the 6 that apply best to any writer: You have to care about whatever you’re writing about. “I had […]

In 1955, Dorcas Reilly invented Thanksgiving Green Bean Casserole. Dorcas worked in the test kitchen at Campbell’s Soup, where she wrote the recipe in response to a question from the Associated Press: What’s a good Thanksgiving side dish that uses ingredients found in most American kitchens? The dish she invented went viral. Millions of Americans […]

This is the Handley Ridiculously Useful Holiday Gift Guide for marketers and writers, updated for 2019. Here are my picks for ridiculously useful gifts to help marketers become better, more confident communicators now and in the new year. Some are useful. Some are ridiculous. Some are both. Which are which? Well, that’s up to you. […]

A friend asked me to look at a few chapters of a book he’s writing. It’s a strong book with a strong premise. But he’s struggling with making the writing equally buff. So together let’s live-edit a single paragraph right here, right now. Because the writing takeaway is a solid one you can apply to […]

  Big Word Day is a day that encourages people to use king-sized words just to impress others. I love words. Sometimes I like big words. (And I cannot lie!) But using big words for the sake of using big words…? So. Dumb. The point of writing is to connect with other people. To be […]