Words on a page

Writers are human. Like everyone else, we’re susceptible to laziness and malaise. It makes working take a back seat to … well, just about anything else.

But there are times (many more than we care to admit) when we need to get a job done quickly. Why? We’ve let a deadline slide due to overwork or by succumbing to the dubious joys of procrastination.

Getting back on track isn’t easy. Getting yourself going sometimes takes a carrot, and sometimes takes a stick. If you find that panic and dread of a looming deadline are holding you back, you need to choose the stick. In this case, that stick is timed writing.

The idea behind timed writing is pretty simple: give yourself a limited amount of time, and a specific number of words to write in that time. Say 400 words in 30 minutes or 1,000 words in an hour.

Once you’ve done that, get a timer. Well, it doesn’t necessarily have to be a timer. It can be a stopwatch, a wristwatch with a timer, or even just an hourglass. From there, block out all distractions — music, radio, TV, the Internet, your mobile phone — and start typing.

You might not reach your goal at the end of the period of time you set. But that doesn’t matter. What does matter is that you’ve gotten words on to the page (or the screen). And that can give you the momentum to keep going.

The great thing about this technique is that it’s not only useful for starting a writing project, but also finishing one. I don’t know about you, but there are times when I’ve got a few hundred words to go and for whatever reason just can’t push myself to write them. By giving myself 20 or 30 minutes to write those words I’ve found that I can get the job done. If nothing else than because I hate the sound of a timer going off …

Update: I just remembered that TextRoom, my favourite distraction-free editor, has a timed writing feature. I’m going to put that feature through its paces in the coming weeks. You can read more about TextRoom here. You might also be interested in a somewhat humorous Web application called Write or Die.

Photo credit: Jake Hellbach from Photoxpress

There are people who have a very simplistic image of the writing process: start at the beginning and then work your way through to the end. Often, the process flows just like that. But not always.

There are times when I find myself able to quickly write the beginning and end of a piece, then work on the parts in between. Or, as I described in a previous post, I assemble a bunch of what seem like disparate paragraphs into a cohesive whole.

There are times, though, when I just can’t get a handle on the introduction and the conclusion to what I’m writing. I have a topic, theme, and angle. But the beginning and end just aren’t coming out in the way that I want them to. I know more than a couple of writers who’d just stop work until they could craft the intro. When you’re facing a deadline that’s not always an option.

Why not start from the middle instead?

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In part one of this post, I talked about using the bulk download and upload features in Google Docs to move files between two accounts. I find that’s the easiest and most convenient way to do the deed.

But what happens if you’re not at your own computer, and can’t download, or don’t want to risk downloading, files to the PC you’re working on? Read on for details.

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Confession time: I’m not the greatest self promoter. In fact, it often takes people a while to learn various things about me. And that includes what I’m doing professionally at any given time. What I find funny is that many people, writers and not, seem quite surprised to learn about what’s on my plate.

At any one time, I’m doing technical writing, working on a couple of regular freelance gigs, writing articles for other publications, contributing to multiple blogs, and doing the occasional presentation. Compare to some freelancers, that’s not a lot. It’s not bad, though.

But when people hear this, they always ask one question:

How do you get all those gigs?

It’s simple. I put myself out there.

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Sometimes, the words don’t flow in the way they should. Even if you’ve done your research, have a solid outline, and are ready to go … well, something gets in the way. The words move from your brain to your fingertips to your keyboard but not in the way that you want them to.

As a working writer, you don’t always have time to let your idea and the facts and structure to gestate. You need to get the words written now, or at least very soon. So what’s a harried writer to do?

A brain dump.

Sounds disgusting, doesn’t it? Trust me, that’s not too bad a description. It sure beats what a friend of mine calls it. I still get queasy when I think of that description …

The concept of a brain dump is simple. I define it as structured free writing.

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