Advice that inspires

My guess is you've all had someone in your life who's offered advice. Some worked, some didn't, and some stayed with you. That "some" for me came from Bob Early, a former editor of Arizona Highways and the guy who really tuned me in to travel writing in 1999.

In his previous life, he was the city editor at the Arizona Republic and was involved with the investigative team that worked to uncover who killed Don Bolles. (Did you know there might be a movie about this?)

Bob Early gave me several good tips in a class I took that he used to teach at Arizona State University-West Campus. And I still use or think about at least three of them to this day. Now I pass on all three to you. If you're a writer of some sort, you'll understand:

1) If you send out five pitches a week, you'll always have work.

2) Always carry a small notepad in your pocket or purse to capture the great lines you hear, the great ideas you have, or the funny stories that happen.

3) Your writing comes alive if you remove the "to be" verbs.

Hope some of this inspires you.