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9 Ways To Jumpstart Your Writing Goal
dumblittleman.com — Like most goals, accomplishment comes with investments in time, in brain power, and consistent commitment. Here I will discuss some specific things you can do to get a jump start on developing a writing habit. If writing is not for you, think of a life goal that you have and then build a plan for it.
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- ishay, on 03/12/2008, -0/+20Very good advices... So... how come instead of working I am Digging all day long instead of working?
- isntreal, on 03/12/2008, -1/+3Beware grammar nazis: she is foreign. and hot.
- Dotcommer, on 03/12/2008, -1/+2Any "how to" with the word "jumpstart" in the title is more than likely worthless.
- gmprunner, on 03/12/2008, -0/+2How do you know that?
Not doubting necessarily, just curious.- Dotcommer, on 03/12/2008, -1/+2It just seems like "jumpstart your life!" "jumpstart your credit loan payments!" "Jumpstart your career" jumpstart this, jumpstart that is just getting really old. Its stupid ass catchy titles. Kind of like the whole i-this i-that *****. I personally wouldn't take anything seriously with the title "jumpstart _____". But hey, I haven't read the article yet, so what do I know? I'd rather be proven wrong than be right in situations like this.
- Cattywampus, on 03/12/2008, -0/+3See #5 - Kill distractions.
- isntreal, on 03/12/2008, -1/+3Beware grammar nazis: she is foreign. and hot.
- justindrake, on 03/12/2008, -0/+10good advice for creating a set structure, which can be the hardest thing to achieve in the beginning.
- fdw2006, on 03/12/2008, -0/+5That is definitely the toughest thing to do. I have at least a dozen half written articles that I just cannot finish. If I'd sit and write, the words would flow a lot easier.
- davey3598, on 03/12/2008, -0/+0same here. it can be easy to become frustrated with what you've written and leave it aside. sometimes you just have to fight to get it finished and the edit and revise afterwards.
- fdw2006, on 03/12/2008, -0/+5That is definitely the toughest thing to do. I have at least a dozen half written articles that I just cannot finish. If I'd sit and write, the words would flow a lot easier.
- foolawrence, on 03/12/2008, -2/+7Me write big famous novel like Harry Potter only dragons not so fake, make lotsa money get rich quick.
- lougoose, on 03/12/2008, -0/+1If anyone can understand what you are saying...haha
- lougoose, on 03/12/2008, -1/+12I read this while I was supposed to be writing a paper...ironic?
- isntreal, on 03/12/2008, -0/+5Same here. I need a firefox extension to disallow digg use during specified times. I'm helpless.
- lougoose, on 03/12/2008, -0/+5PLEASE go write that extension. Although I would probably just disable it.
- 4d669, on 03/12/2008, -4/+2It's already built in your brain. It's called reasoning and comes from your gray matter. Apparently we're the only species that have it but for some reason we never use it. FREE WILL *****, DO YOU USE IT?
- fantasticFlan, on 03/12/2008, -0/+7Some of us have to preemptively counter our occasionally weak wills. This is why my alarm clock is as far from my bed as possible.
- isntreal, on 03/12/2008, -0/+5Same here. I need a firefox extension to disallow digg use during specified times. I'm helpless.
- hughesj919, on 03/12/2008, -0/+19"Sit In Dark and Silence. Create a time where you can just sit with your eyes closed for 15 minutes and think".
If I sit in the dark with my eyes closed, it will be for more than 15 minutes. - soundofmind, on 03/12/2008, -3/+2No, no, no, no, and no! No no no.
Number eight is wrong. I don't care how wonderful your metaphor is, no one--not your editor, not your mom, not Joe Book-Buyer--will stand being forced to decipher what you wrote because it's written in text message. Instead your will only see the bottom of the trash bin, and that wonderful editor who was supposed to do all of your grammar checking won't even bother to email you back.- soundofmind, on 03/12/2008, -2/+0*Instead your piece of work will only...
I spent a minute raving about grammar and completely forgot a word mid-sentence. - archivist, on 03/12/2008, -0/+5If you happen to be a writer or aspiring to be one, then it is already given that you should know your grammar. The author was trying to emphasize on ideas weighing in more than grammar.
- crossmr, on 03/12/2008, -0/+1you don't need to get it right the first time is the point. Your rough draft doesn't have to be grammatically perfect. That's what revisiting it is for. Get everything out first, regardless of the grammar so that its out and you don't forget something while you're being distracted by perfecting the grammar.
- soundofmind, on 03/12/2008, -2/+0*Instead your piece of work will only...
- 4d669, on 03/12/2008, -4/+1Downloaded DarkRoom and it sucked. It had no spell check. I was hoping for something that would feel like real writing. Perhaps a background that looks like paper and a font that looks like handwriting and a spellcheck that doesn't add annoying ***** red lines under words. If someone in here is reading this and knows how to code ***** like this, go ahead and do it, make it open source and put a donation link on the site so you can earn thousands of dollars from pretentious Wes Anderson fans who use Macs at Starbucks.
- KingGorilla, on 03/12/2008, -0/+1how does spell check make it more like "real" writing?
- MillionsLivio, on 03/12/2008, -0/+1Dark Room is perfect how it is, it is meant to be simplistic with no distractions, thus no spell check. If you want all of that, use Dark Room to write, save it as a .txt and import it into word. As a writer, having some program mimic written text is just some stupid gimmick, an inefficient one at that.
- bubba9999, on 03/12/2008, -1/+2I didn't know that Starbucks serves whine.
- DaDiggydiggyDOC, on 03/12/2008, -0/+5If anything we need to encourage more good people to get into writing, I mean have you seen a good movie lately?
- archivist, on 03/12/2008, -1/+1i changed my career when i saw 10,000 bc last weekend
- KingGorilla, on 03/12/2008, -2/+1Superbad
- MillionsLivio, on 03/12/2008, -0/+1No Country for Old Men; nonetheless, I agree with you. What we need is to get novelist and film makers working together again, look at movies like 2001, which is a perfect example. Writing will rise in popularity again when online books develop more, things like the Kindle are signs of this. This will allow amateurs to break out easier, as the internet has allowed for film and music a la youtube and the like. I'm 17 and currently writing my first novel, the new generation of writers will break out of the stagnation, hopefully.
- protodon, on 03/12/2008, -0/+1I keep making the excuse that I need a laptop to really make any progress writing. Since I have yet to make any progress or buy a laptop then I am just going to go with that theory.
- spoogieking012, on 03/12/2008, -0/+1i could have used this before the 7 page paper i wrote yesterday... =[
- TecK415, on 03/12/2008, -0/+8I just finished writing my first script. I was really on a roll but then things got in the way and I stopped for a while. Don't do that, it's hard to get back in the flow again, at least for me anyways.
Rewrite, rewrite, rewrite.- TecK415, on 03/12/2008, -0/+1*First feature length script.
- notsotricky, on 03/12/2008, -0/+1Another important point to remember is not everybody should be writing. Most people I know who pretend to be writers are pretentious tampons who think it's important to get their feelings out because they're special. It seems to me that the ones who have something worthwhile to write will do it without encouragement and those that do need motivation are people that know they shouldn't be writing in the first place. How much motivation to write did James Joyce need?
- bubba9999, on 03/12/2008, -0/+1I usually have the same idea about bloggers.
- ryannerd, on 03/12/2008, -3/+1For you lazy ***** who don't want to bother READING the article:
1. A set time.
2. A set place.
3. Writing Utensils.
4. Idea Lists.
5. Kill Distractions.
6. Quit Quitting.
7. Sit In Dark and Silence.
8. Ideas, Not Grammar.
9. Revisit. - Ploosheeta, on 03/12/2008, -3/+1me like rite
me want be athur- 13thfloor, on 03/12/2008, -0/+3I think you meant Bea Arthur.
- utopianfoe, on 03/12/2008, -0/+1mirror?
- harveywalbanger, on 03/12/2008, -0/+1sitting in the dark for 15 minutes is boring and makes me want to take a nap.
- archivist, on 03/12/2008, -0/+2FTA: "My program of choice for all initial writing happens to be Dark Room. It is a very basic program that takes up the whole screen and forces concentration on the written word."
I clicked on what DarkRoom is and it's funny because I used to write in windows 98's "edit.exe" with a black and green background haha it's actually good because the dark screen relaxes your eyes and the green letters provide contrast. - manicblvd, on 03/12/2008, -0/+710. Sit in starbucks writing on your macbook thinking everyone gives a ***** about you and what you're doing.
- archivist, on 03/12/2008, -0/+2...and your latte
- manicblvd, on 03/12/2008, -0/+1Venti Doucheachino*
- archivist, on 03/12/2008, -0/+2...and your latte
- archivist, on 03/12/2008, -1/+4In the past I conducted a writing project called Gotta Get Goals where people blogged about the life goals that they just had to get done before their time was up. Not surprisingly, the majority of the people said that writing a best selling novel was high up on their goals list.
This tells me that a lot of people can relate to the desire to create beautiful writing, while a lot of people lack the discipline to put the pen to the paper.
Like most goals, accomplishment comes with investments in time, in brain power, and consistent commitment. Here I will discuss some specific things you can do to get a jump start on developing a writing habit. If writing is not for you, think of a life goal that you have and then build a plan for it.
Let's now take a look at some writing-specific habit making techniques.
Building The Writing Habit
1. A set time. Each and every morning I wake up at 6am and begin writing. They say the first waking hour is the Golden Hour, where you concentrate and experience the most creativity. I think this is true for me, and it can be true for you even if you aren't a morning person. Once you are in the habit of writing at a certain time, that is your Golden Time.
2. A set place. Since I do my writing right when I wake up, it's pretty much always done in my bedroom, at my writing desk, on my laptop. While I will occasionally write from other locations or on different computers, this is home base (literally). The purpose of this is to continually trigger my mind into a creative flow. You might want to have a completely separate computer just for your writing in order to build an even stronger connection with writing and this apparatus.
3. Writing Utensils. I do 95% of my writing on my Dell Inspiron 6000 machine. It may not be luxurious, but it gets the job done. My program of choice for all initial writing happens to be Dark Room. It is a very basic program that takes up the whole screen and forces concentration on the written word.
4. Idea Lists. An important part of stimulating creativity is the act of bringing plentiful ideas to the writing table. To do this it is important to carry a Moleskin or a Voice Recorder with you throughout the day. You might be in a very random place when you get your million dollar idea and you'll want to capture every nuance of it instead of letting it get forgotten by trusting your memory.
5. Kill Distractions. I hope no one skimming this list is going to throw a hatchet at the first person to knock on the door while they're writing. On a serious note, it's very important to preserve quiet in a distraction free writing space because it takes several minutes to enter a creative flow state after a disturbance. If it takes you 15 minutes to get into maximum flow, and you get distracted every 20 minutes, you aren't realizing your full writing potential as you throw yourself into the writing world.
6. Quit Quitting. Get used to quitting all those self-limiting beliefs that say you have nothing to write about, no fresh ideas, and cannot properly articulate the language. Forget that. Put the pen to the paper, and write anything that comes to mind, and see where that takes you.
7. Sit In Dark and Silence. Create a time where you can just sit with your eyes closed for 15 minutes and think. You can concentrate on the stillness and block out all ideas or try asking a question of someone that has all the answers in the world. You'll be surprised to find that your mind will generate the answers for you, then get up and write.
8. Ideas, Not Grammar. I know that my ideas are worth their weight in gold, but my grammar might not always be on top of the class. If that is the case with you, don't worry about it; write however you write. If it's a serious piece of work, the editor will take care of it for you. Otherwise your purpose should be to make the ideas as understandable as possible, and nothing more.
9. Revisit. Contrary to number 8 that says 'Write and don't worry about it', a great writing habit is to revisit your work to revise. On a second run, especially after a day break from the work, you get to see it with fresh eyes, and a fresh state, that can word things in a completely different way. This is where you make your ideas even more understandable.
What have you done to kick start your long term writing goals? Let us all know in the comments. Who knows, your words of wisdom may help the next person that stumbles into this article!
http://www.dumblittleman.com/2008/03/9-ways-to-jum ... - IPatrickBateman, on 03/12/2008, -1/+2Don't forget to try - black coffee, cigarettes, and chocolate....advice from the folks at Conde Nast.
- ptknight, on 03/12/2008, -0/+3This message was brought to you by Café de Colombia, Philip Morris and Godiva
- IPatrickBateman, on 03/15/2008, -0/+1Nah.....Starbucks, Japan Tobacco Corporation, and Teuscher.
- ptknight, on 03/12/2008, -0/+3This message was brought to you by Café de Colombia, Philip Morris and Godiva
- Cattywampus, on 03/12/2008, -0/+1Good suggestions, though I'd take issue with part of #4, Idea Lists:
" An important part of stimulating creativity is the act of bringing plentiful ideas to the writing table. To do this it is important to carry a Moleskin or a Voice Recorder"
You don't need a fancy Moleskine. I just use a 59 cent spiral-bound 3x5" or 4x6" ruled note pad.
Other writers swear by index cards... they can organize, arrange, and delete their ideas as needed. I used to hear of novelists using index cards so they can assemble groupings of cards for different characters...background, dialogue, aspects of their character, etc. - leprix, on 03/12/2008, -0/+1Maker's Mark helps, too.
Also, read Anne Lamott's "Bird by Bird," awesome (and hilarious) fiction writing advice. - expo1001, on 03/12/2008, -1/+1Personally, Mountain Dew is my muse. I'm so sensitive to caffeine and sugar that it makes me twitch and shake like someone on meth. Also, it make me write good.
- a235, on 03/12/2008, -1/+0 Whats with this irrational goal to write a book and i say irrational because no one who reads this list will ever been in a able to write a decent novel! Its not as if you read 8 points which contain info so general and superficial it mine as well have come off a the discount frosted flakes cereal box from walmart and you will suddenly have the writing ability to write prose like Sidney or innovate like Shakespeare. If someone is still convinced that they have been given the power to write that best seller may i pitch the idea of a man so fixated on self improvement list and so committed to the belief that by careful study he may mitigate the effect of his deficiency that he does write this book only to realize that he has nothing interesting to say, presented in an uninteresting manner and to an uninterested public thus depriving him of the peer accolades which he has sought out for so long to heal the wound left gapping from the prods of his middle school peers.
- frozzenst, on 03/12/2008, -0/+0This article reminds me it's high time I got back to my ma thesis, which has been on standby for quite some time. Pretty useful tips. We could probably add a last one: think about the result and smile every time you picture the satisfaction and relief after having finished off the labour of your life
- upikupik123, on 03/12/2008, -0/+0very nice advice. I should definitely try it. when i want to write something usually it turns out that i would sit all day in front of my computer digging and browsing. i need to focus...
- jdack, on 03/12/2008, -0/+1"Each and every morning I wake up at 6am and begin writing."
Clearly this person has never met a writer. 6am is about the time writers are heaving whiskey barf into their toilets, if they're still not passed out. - vjlenin, on 03/15/2008, -0/+0Really good writing indeed, also find my writing help blog here: cute writing for good writing tips: http://cutewriting.blogspot.com
- redwritinghood, on 03/24/2008, -0/+0And here I sit reading this article, rather than finishing the chapter I have to deliver tomorrow. Umm...what was that he said? Kill the distractions. Good article, though.
- mhmdkhamis, on 06/10/2008, -0/+0This article reminds me it's high time I got back to my ma thesis, which has been on standby for quite some time. Pretty useful tips. We could probably add a last one: think about the result and smile every time you picture the satisfaction and relief after having finished off the labour of your life
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