Yesssss!
The schedule gods have given you a break, and you have a rare hour to actually sit down and write. You could produce an entire blog post! An article! Maybe even a short book chapter! Your Google research is all done, so all you need to do now is write.
You apply ass to seat, fire up your laptop, start typing …
… and it’s like watching a video in slo-mo.
Once the hour is up, you do a word count — and let’s just say the final tally is less than impressive.
It’s time to pull you out of that rut and learn the speedy secrets to writing faster.
Here are ten ways to produce great writing in volume. Using these tactics, I can write a full 1,000-word article in under an hour; I bet they’ll increase your writing speed as well.
Want to Know How to Write Faster? Try These:
- Write Under Pressure (from Your Bladder)
- Outwit Writer’s Block with This Old Journalist’s Trick
- Use Automation to Skip Two Million Keystrokes
- Turn Off the Squiggly Red Lines
- Invest in a Faster Pen
- Do B-Minus Work
- Get Zen Before You Pick Up Your Pen
- Stop Letting the Schedule Push You Around
- Play Games to Boost Your Words Per Minute
- Gamble with Your Reputation
1. Write Under Pressure (from Your Bladder)
When I’m on fire (or on a deadline) and don’t want to stop writing, I skip bathroom breaks until I’m done. Nothing makes you a faster writer like knowing you’re on the verge of having a potty accident.
Being a 48-year-old woman, I have to pee every 30 minutes, so you can bet I’m writing scorchingly fast to make it to the next bathroom break; but if this isn’t the case for you, try quaffing a couple glasses of water before sitting down at your laptop.
Caveat: I am not a doctor and this probably isn’t the healthiest thing to do. In fact, I’ve heard of bladder infections being called “secretary’s disease” because they used to happen frequently to secretaries who held it in while they finished “just one more task.” Use this tactic at your own risk!
2. Outwit Writer’s Block with This Old Journalist’s Trick
Instead of insisting that your facts and examples be all lined up before you put pen to paper, which leads to over-researching, try writing from your head. Get down what you know, and what you remember from your interviews — and drop in the term “TK” wherever you get stuck and need more information.
TK is shorthand journo-speak for “to come,” and it’s used as a placeholder for copy you’ll add later. The beauty of TK is that this combo of letters very rarely occurs in the English language — so once you’re done with your draft, you can do a search on the term in your word processing program and fill in the holes.
You’ll be surprised at how much you already had in your head, and at how much faster you can produce a piece of writing this way!
3. Use Automation to Skip Two Million Keystrokes
Rewriting the same copy over and over, or playing the cut-and-paste game several times an hour, is a massive time suck. In the two minutes it takes you to type in your bio at the end of a guest post, you could have written the lede paragraph of a new post.
Here’s an idea: don’t write it! Lemme explain…
I use an app called TextExpander — which expands custom keyboard shortcuts into frequently used text — for common copy like my email sign-off, bio, mailing address, book titles, HTML codes, and words and phrases I use often in my writing. You can even use TextExpander abbreviations to insert images, the current date, and more. (Similar apps include TypeIt4Me for Mac and Breevy for Windows.)
As an example, when I type in “rren,” this pops up: The Renegade Writer: A Totally Unconventional Guide to Freelance Writing Success. That’s four keystrokes instead of 80!
TextExpander’s stats say I’ve saved myself from typing over two million characters, and have saved over 142 hours. Yes, that’s six solid days I’ve rescued from the abyss of needless typing. Faster writing AND increased typing speed? Yes, please!
One trick I learned years ago is to be sure the abbreviations you choose are letter combinations you won’t be using for anything else. For example, if you choose the word “address” to expand out into your street address, that will also happen when you write, “This blog post will address common time-wasters.”
Try repeating a letter at the front of the word instead. I use the combo “bbio” for my bio and “uurl” for my website URL.
Imagine how much speedier your writing will be if you can simply type fewer words!
4. Turn Off the Squiggly Red Lines
You’re all in the zone, writing like your life depends on it — or like you have to pee really bad; see tip #1 — and suddenly you’re stopped in your tracks by a squiggly red line under a word. Your inner editor screams, so you pause to check it, breaking your writing flow. The problem? The program doesn’t recognize the name of that city in Germany you’re writing about.
So you right-click on “Nuremberg,” select “Add to Dictionary,” and …
… where were you again?
Your Google Doc or word processing program’s spelling and grammar checkers (we like Grammarly) are good at checking spelling and grammar, but they are phenomenal at yanking you right out of your flow. I actually don’t mind the spell checker, but when I have the grammar checker on I find myself stopping every few minutes to yell, “Shut up, I meant to write it that way!”
Guess what? You have the power to switch off the checkers so you’re able to write without distraction. You can always run them after you’ve finished your writing if you need to.
5. Invest in a Faster Pen
Like to write first drafts or take notes by hand? The Hack My Study site did a comparison on which pens are the fastest to write with.
Here’s a spoiler: Fountain pens are best for pure handwriting speed, but they’re also pricey and difficult to master. The next best option is a rollerball pen. Now, they’re not as fancy (or expensive!) as a fountain pen, but they’re still fast because they create little friction on the writing surface.
The third best for speed is the gel pen, which is less expensive than the rollerball, and coming in dead last is the standard ballpoint pen — you know, the kind you pick up for free at your local bank or dentist’s office.
I can attest to the speed of the rollerball; a few years ago I decided to toss out every junky pen in the house and replace them with a few dozen of my favorite brand, the Pilot Precise V7 Rolling Ball Fine — blue for me, black for my husband, and red just because. That way, whenever I’m in the mood to write a rough draft or take notes by hand, I can reach into a kitchen drawer or my purse and be assured of pulling out a fast, smooth-writing pen every time.
Stocking up on quality pens is an investment (it costs around $20 for a 12-pack of the Pilot pen I use), but it’s worth it if it helps you write faster. Not to mention you’ll never again waste precious writing seconds furiously scribbling on a sheet of scrap paper to get the ink flowing in your cheap ballpoint.
6. Do B-Minus Work
One of the chief habits that keeps you stuck in slow motion, grindig your writing session to a halt, is editing yourself while writing. There’s nothing like agonizing over the perfect word in the middle of writing a blog post or article to keep you in perpetual “not quite finished” mode. (That habit, of course, is a consequence of perfectionism, another common bugaboo for most every author, blogger, and freelance writer).
Value done over perfect and let the words fly. Yes, it’s important to have top-notching writing skills and producde quality content but give yourself permission to do B-minus work just to get the ideas down on paper, then go back and edit when you’re done. Chances are, you’ll discover your writing was pretty good to begin with!
The more you resist editing yourself as you write, the easier writing will become. The easier writing becomes, the more confident you’ll be. And the more confident you are in your writing, the quicker the writing process gets.
7. Get Zen Before You Pick Up Your Pen
If your writing slows to a virtual crawl because you feel the need to check Facebook or answer an email after every sentence, you’ll love OmmWriter, a program that blocks out the files and applications behind the writing page to minimize distractions.
OmmWriter also offers a selection of calming background colors and music to keep you in Zen mode as you write, plus soothing sounds with each keystroke. I especially love the horizontal cursor (instead of the usual vertical blinking one) that seems to say “Write on” instead of “Stop writing!”
Ommwriter was free when I downloaded it several years ago, but is now a pay-what-you-want app; the average offering is $7.33.
8. Stop Letting the Schedule Push You Around
Sometimes a little space is all you need to get perspective on a piece of writing that’s giving you fits, so you can get the words out faster.
An example: Last week I had scheduled myself to write an article for my website called “How Writers Waste Time by Saving Time,” about the dangers of cutting corners in your research and interviews. I eked out about 500 (crappy) words at a glacially slow pace before giving up; the article sounded more like a rant than a solid service piece, and I just couldn’t figure out how to fix it.
Then I looked over my ideas for future articles, and one called “Let Future You Handle Your Writing Problems” jumped out at me. I was inspired! I opened a new Word file, and that article — all 900 words — poured out of me in less than 60 minutes.
This week, I revisited the article I had been stuck on, and immediately saw exactly what the problem was and how to resolve it. An hour later, that article was done too.
If you have control over what you write and when you write it, this writing tip is for you: Stop being a slave to your editorial calendar. When you’re wrestling with a scheduled article or post, let it go. Scan over your editorial calendar and see if there are any post ideas that get you all fired up, and make the switch. You’ll find that the writing flows much faster that way.
9. Play Games to Boost Your Words Per Minute
A big problem for many freelance writers is that we think faster than we type. If your brain is churning out amazing ideas and perfect turns of phrase at a blazing pace, but you type slower than my husband trying to help me come up with a funny metaphor for something slow — you’ll finish out your allotted writing time with a only fraction of your page filled with, you know, writing.
Learning to type is a lot more fun than it used to be, with many sites offering free games, lessons, and tests to help you up your keyboarding speed. FreeTypingGame.Net has, among other goodies, a game called The Frogs Are Off Their Diet. A similar site, WordGames.com, offers hilariously titled typing challenges like Zombie Typocalypse and Type Type Revolution.
If you often find yourself writing on the go, seek out free apps that will help you learn to type faster on your smartphone or tablet. TapTyping is one example for the iPad, iPhone, and iPod Touch, and Typing Master is an app that works on Android devices.
10. Gamble with Your Reputation
Feeling competitive? Try a speed writing challenge and dare yourself to write your blog post, article, or book chapter in a (much) shorter amount of time than you normally would.
I did this once while working with a writing buddy at a café and her jaw dropped open as she watched me complete an 800-word article in 30 minutes. (And yes, it was good!)
Here’s a better idea:
Bet a friend something juicy that you can do it, or throw down the gauntlet on social media. The more people who see it and the harsher the consequences should you lose, the more likely you are to get those words down on the double.
On the low-pressure end, I also like to do mini challenges: I’ll see how much I can write in the five minutes while my tea steeps … in the two minutes before the microwave dings and my lunch is ready … while I’m on hold with AT&T before someone picks up. It’s incredible how quickly you can write when you have mere minutes to get it done.
And That’s a Wrap on How to Write Faster
Fast writing isn’t magic — it’s practice! It took me years to develop and learn these effective tactics for writing like a bat out of hell, but you can try them all on right now.
Feel free to combine tactics: Turn off the grammar checker, shelve your internal editor, down a couple glasses of water, fire up Ommwriter or the Hemingway app, and use a text expander app to produce B-minus work.
Chances are you’ll boost your speed many times over, so you can do even more of what you love (hint: writing & making money) every day.
Ready for the writing to simply pour from you? Set your timer and get started!
Good luck.
Thanks so much for inviting me to post on SmartBlogger! I’m honored and hope it helps writers write faster and write more.
Thanks for your post. It’s both informative and light-hearted. I admire your writing style.
Thanks!
Wow these are so spot on. Squiggly red lines are my nemesis. Didn’t even occur to me to turn spell check off! And I would never edit while I go…OK you got me. I can’t help myself! Brilliant post thank you Linda.
Hahaha, you show those squiggly red lines who’s the boss!
Thanks for reading, and for your comment…glad you liked the post!
Me too! Had turned off my email notifications and any dings long ago. But had never thought about the nasty red squiggles that steal your focus. That one tip will save me precious hours each month. Thank you!
Linda, what a great set of super-practical tips and tricks. Thanks so much! Going to try a number of them right away.
Awesome, please circle back and let us know how it goes…and also if you discover any good tips for writing faster that I missed!
Hey Linda,
The red squiggly line tip is GOLD. The rest of these tips are excellent too.
I like to type loudly and dramatically to give myself the sense that I’m “hammering away” at the keyboard, which helps me write that much faster, The aggressive nature of typing that way makes me feel like a renegade 😉
Off to share!
Hi Linda,
Thanks for sharing this awesome post with us!
I’ve been looking for ways to speed up my writing. And you gave me the exact answers I’ve been looking for.
You did a great job Linda and I’ll be tweeting this shortly!
– Iyiola
Aw, thanks for sharing!
The “TextExpander” is a crazy gamble. For what appears to me, I need to rewire my brain to write in a certain way.
Once that is done, a lot of time can be saved.
RIght now, what works for me – I write from my head.
I read and do the research, gain practical experience a lot before I sit down to write down on a certain topic.
And when I sit down, I have enough to write at least 800 words. Sometimes I cough at 600 and sometimes I stretch till 1000 words.
Amazing insights. Stay Awesome.
Thanks, Rohan! I love my TextExpander…have been using it for years now. I feel like I’ve saved even more time than they say—I have a feeling the count of minutes/characters saved is reset whenever I upgrade. I hope it works for you!
I will indeed stay awesome. 🙂 Thanks again!
Thanks for the kind words, Viv! Oh yeah, an article on successful immigrants sounds HUGE and complex…exactly the kind of piece where TKs come in super handy.
Yeah luckily it’s one person in the spotlight at a time, so I’d do research on them. Much harder would be multiple folks in 1 piece! Yep lets see now if I implement at least 1-2 of these strategies.
Great info, Linda. Thank you! Without a doubt, # 6 plagues me the most. Even though I *know* I should just write and not edit at the same time, I still fall into that trap. So my mantra for the next week (and beyond) is “B-, B-, B-“. 🙂
Mark, that one is the hardest for me, too. Sometimes I want to find the perfect word RIGHT THEN. I think that’s OK sometimes, but if it bogs you down frequently, you’ll need to train yourself to stop editing as you write. Sometimes it helps to think about it as an experiment. For just this one piece, write it all out without editing, then edit at the end. How did it feel when you were finally done? Did you save time? Was it easier?
Thanks for reading and commenting!
This is why I have my thesaurus sitting right next to my laptop. Sometimes I can’t avoid picking it up and finding that perfect word for what I’m thinking. (Yes, it slows me WAY down but now that I read your article I can just type TK! Lol! That alone just increased my productivity!) I’m still trying to find a different word for thesaurus, by the way…
I absolutely loved the tips. (How much? I shared the link on a paid Internet marketing forum I belong to so my fellow members could also come here and read it.) This is some really top-notch work and I appreciate it very much. Thank you for writing this article. These tips will definitely make a good difference in my typing skills because of your helpful writing.
Linda…we’ve done so much teaching together, and yet we’ve never compared notes on how we don’t take bathroom breaks until we’re done writing! I’m dying here…I thought I was the only one who did that. It’s a little masochistic, but boy it makes you get to the end of that piece!
Well, you know how it is with us Type A people! 🙂 Can’t stop until we’re done.
They are indeed crafted with love! Glad you liked the post…thanks!
Wow, thanks for the share! I’m thrilled you liked the post that much! Hope it helps.
You’re welcome, Linda. I know for a fact it will help many people become better at what they do.
@Allen
reference book
glossary
lexicon
onomasticon
terminology
vocabulary
language reference book
sourcebook
storehouse of words
treasury of words
Those are from Thesaurus.com. They all stink! LOL
Lol!
I just call it ‘that book that has the right word somewhere in it’…
That IS a better one!
Thank you for the great tips on writing faster. I have been struggling to get more content done in a shorter time frame. My favorite tip is “Zen before you pick up your pen”. I think this is a great tip for me, because I’m more productive when I hear wind, rain, or at the beach. I find that my mind is free of distractions when I hear these type of sounds.
Thanks again,
Stephanie
Thanks, Stephanie! I LOVE Ommwriter. If you give it a try, let us know what you think!
Linda,
I can relate to your #1 tip! But, I must admit that I am envious of your 30 minute break between #1ing!
Thanks for a great post.
Wait, you’re saying it gets WORSE?
😉
This is a great list, Linda. I’m particularly thrilled by #8. I believe editorial calendars should just be a guide and not a must-follow. Yes, it’s important, but you shouldn’t be enslaved by the schedule.
Thank you, John! As the co-author of The Renegade Writer, I like NOT doing things you’re supposed to do…like stick to a calendar. 🙂
Hey, I just got back from Cannes yesterday! Glad you liked my post!
Hi, Lyon! You start by reading, reading, reading the types of writing you would like to sell yourself…ads, blogs, magazines, whatever. There’s also lots of info online on how to get started, such as on this blog here, and also many, many books in both print and e-book format for new writers of any type. Good luck!
Thanks for this article. I received an alert from Jon Morrow/Smart Blogger. I’m an artist setting up a companion blog to an anonymous street art project. The blog isn’t commerce oriented so I’m not pressed by outside deadlines but I need to write with less distraction. My worst habit is the irresistible temptation to edit as I go. Your ‘TK’ advice is a great antidote and hopefully a cure. A blog about an art project probably doesn’t need to be as prolific as a blog about advice or commerce but if I’m too slow, I know I’ll lose any audience I may be able to attract. The speeding up suggestions will come in handy for that. Thanks
Hi, Clarissa! Wow, an artist — all kinds of interesting creatives here! I’m glad the TK tip will be helpful. Can you post the art project blog here when it’s ready? Sounds interesting!
Wow, right back to you for your generous invitation. I will!
Hi Linda, I fell upon this blog while surfing for types of content to write about. I just started to blog several months ago. I’ve written about 2 dozens articles. I can honestly say that I am guilty of editing and researching while writing. It’s a time suck. That’s for these tips. I will try them out immediately. Got any ideas on what type of content to write about or how to guest author?
Hi, Jeff! You mean what kinds of content for your blog? I think it depends on your goals for your blog — is it a personal passion project, are you looking to attract work, do you want to sell something on the blog?
But my biggest piece of advice is that your blog needs to be on a topic you’re passionate about, because you’ll be writing about it a LOT. On my old blog, I wrote 1,000 posts over 10 years, all on the topic of writing for magazines. If you’re not passionate about your blog subject, you’ll soon be wondering, “What should I write about?” It has to come from your heart.
I hope that helps. Good luck!
To increase my writing speed, I like to use dictation on my phone rather than typing. It’s so fast! After I finish a section, I will go back over it immediately to catch any words that were not captured properly, but I save all other editing for later.
I do that too, Valerie! Last year I “wrote” a 5,000-word blog post in 30 minutes by dictating into my phone. Of course, like you said, editing is a bear because Siri often misunderstands me…but for me, the hardest part is getting my ideas out. Massaging the copy to sound good…that’s my strength!
Thanks for adding this tip! Anyone reading this, if you haven’t tried dictating your writing into your phone or other device, you should give it a shot!
Hi Linda! These tips are amazing…and also encouraging. Time is something I’m trying to squeeze like an old toothpaste. Will give your tips a try. Hope my almost 60 year old bladder cooperates;)
If by “cooperates” you mean “has to pee every 30 minutes,” I’m sure that will happen. 🙂 Every woman I know who is my age and up has the same problem. Though we should recast that as a “benefit” since it helps us write faster!
Thanks for your comment…glad you liked the tips!
Fantastic tips Linda!
Need to try the first one haha! I know it is a game changer. Thank you for all the tips. I will try to use them all to increase the speed of my writing
Woot! Finally an upside to the problem of having to pee every half hour. 🙂 Let us know how these tips work for you! And everyone, please do check out my Volume Marketing Challenge…talk about producing FAST. 🙂
Linda, this is fantastic! Thank you!
I struggle with the editing phase. I’m very good at writing fast. But I spent 2-3x as long fixing grammar errors and restructuring sentences. Any help on streamlining that?
I actually think that’s normal…and as with writing, the more practice you get with editing, the faster you’ll get at it. Also, you’ll get to a point where you can write a first draft that’s already almost there, so you won’t need to edit as much.
For example, when I was first starting out, I’d print out each article, go over it with a red pen, make the changes in Word, repeat the process another one or two times — and then have my writer husband give it one last look. These days, I can write a fairly clean draft on the first try because I’ve been doing it for two decades!
Some writers use editing tricks like reading their work out loud (which reveals typos, awkward phrasing, etc.), reading it backward, etc. These may speed up the process.
If anyone here has tips for improving your editing speed, I’d love to hear them!
Linda – thank you for your reply!
Reflecting on your comment — a year ago, I was sweating because I couldn’t write a coherent blog post. 🙂
Okay – I just have to keep at it and in time, it’ll all get better/faster. Must Think Kaizen!
My goal was to make readers pee themselves from laughing so hard! 🙂
Amazing post. I love your writing style. It is easy to follow and I will apply it for my blog posts. I have really enjoyed it.
Hey Linda,
I can relate to this article. In my previous days, I used to be a lousy writer who never even thought about writing 1000 words per hour.
Just like you, I never pee or take any rest when the deadline is kicking my ass. It’s like an alarm clock.
I believe that the consistency effort is the only thing anyone can redirect his career with.
Using some tools like Grammarly is the time savers. Sometimes, the spelling mistakes can consume a lot of time but these tools can save you.
Sitting and thinking about the glorious piece of the content can’t be created until you have hard determination.
I like to play the games and the writing game, it’s witty. I like to challenge myself.
Thanks for sharing your experience.
Have a great week ahead.
~Ravi
Thanks, Ravi! I agree, it takes consistent effort to (1) learn how to write faster and better, and (2) succeed as a blogger. Glad this post resonated with you!
Hi Linda, Great article.
With a deadline to meet we will be more focused to achieve the end objective. The pressure will keep us hyper-focused on the task.
It’s also good to avoid distractions, like to turn off the tool that checks the grammatical/ spelling mistakes. Let the creativity flow, and once we are done with the article we can actually check the article for typo errors / mistakes.
I like your writing style. Any tips?
Thank you! I think all you can do is read, read, read and write, write, write…after a while you start to develop your own distinct style.
Hi Linda.
The thoughts and suggestions you have provided are well appreciated. Though, others, particularly students, should be careful in construing “to write under pressure” as something synonymous to procrastination. No they are not, working under pressure is simply a state of the mind or orientation that we must set to accomplish the task, it is a driving force rather than impediment.
I do know many writers who purposely wait to write their assignments because they know they write faster and are more focused with a little fire under their butts…but this needs to be a thought-out strategy, not just an excuse to procrastinate! Because otherwise, why will you be any more motivated an hour before deadline than you were a week before?
Hi,
Nicely written and I guess writing faster would be all bloggers dream and some of the bloggers are indeed good at it.
Hey Linda,
In the beginning, you can’t expect to sit down and pump out a 1000 word article in the 30 minutes. With practice and training, that may become a reality for you, but to expect it too early in your development is a sure path to failure.
Writing is no different than any other skill we learn, and learning takes time. Eventually, thanks for sharing these incredible tips with us.
With best wishes,
Amar kumar
Hello! Thank you a lot for this article. I am new in academic writing and just finished my first ever dissertation of 12,000 words thanks to this. It got me motivated every time I needed it. Great tips in here.
Thanks for sharing these tips on how we can write faster. This is really helpful especially for virtual workers.
Linda, like some have said before me, the red squiggly lines really throw me off. Thanks for the tip! I also think writing down everything in your head helps too. It’s an age old trick, but dump out all the information you have then edit at the end.
Great advice, Linda! Turning off the checker and writing through without revising are two things I need to do. Thanks for helping me to think and act like a pro!
Cool, hope those tips help you write faster!
Nice article Linda. You covered the basics (avoid interruptions etc) plus a few tips that were new to me such as use of TK and odd letter combinations for text expander apps. I most appreciate the links to typing tutorials. I’d given up looking.
Hi Linda,
It was really an awesome post and we (the bloggers) need to learn this thing badly for sure.
I can write thousands of words per hour only when I enjoy it to write.
So, I think that the first thing that you need to maintain is to find out the topics on which you’ll enjoy writing.
A boring topic will surely kill your time and after even an hour, you may see only a few hundred words on your WordPress dashboard or MS Word (depending on your writing software) with this sort of topic.
Another good tactic to write faster is to check nothing when you write. This will make your writing blazing fast, I bet.
However, all of your ideas are invaluable and I thank you for sharing such a nice post with us.
Wish you all the best,
SM
Great post! I am new to blogging but not to writing, and I love setting a time frame of an hour or two to get me focused and tuned in to the pressure of having to finish. I jot down all my frenetic ideas about a topic without stressing about word choice or where it’s going. Then I go back and tidy up and maintain focus as the clock ticks down. No piece is ever perfect, but writing is about connecting and creating relatability, which can be found in raw, vulnerable, imperfect writing.
It’s great article. this’s really helpful especially for me
Great info. Thanks.
I’ll try out the TextExpander app and those typing games.
1000 per hour is definitely a good target but a well researched article will take more time I guess.
Bican,
A well researched article that supports a blogger’s claim in a post will take more time and adds more blogging credibility to the blogger in terms of what they say. To achieve writing 1,000 words per hour or more, a blogger would have to have a small team of in-house writers “either paid or voluntary.” The benefit of achieving more content output is better long-term search engine rankings in Google, Bing, and YaHoO!, additionally to increased ad revenue and online writing credibility, and more permission based e-mail subscribers + feedback comments. How many times a day are you blogging and how lengthy are your posts?
Awesome post buddy, thanks for sharing this great work.
If you get a program for you laptop or desktop PC known as new ones Dragon NaturallySpeaking which is a quality speech recognition software, you can pretty much ramble off the top of your head in about 10 to 15 min. in Microsoft Word in rough draft mode and churn out anywhere from 1000 to 1500 words. That is, before the proofreading process. There’s no way I could sit at my computer every day and manually type out a blog post 1000 words or more because I pretty much have carpal tunnel syndrome and would have to take turns of glucosamine sulfate to lubricate my fingers from additional payment from typing.
Everyone has thoughts rambling in the back of their mind they haven’t gotten out on paper yet. This is the beauty of blogging and speech recognition, because a person can get a quality voice dictation program with a headset and watch the awesome power of their voice and those thoughts rambling in the back of their mind appear in Microsoft Word in rough draft mode or in a rough draft Google Docs document before editing their final draft.
Thank you for touching on this topic in giving us something to think about! 🙂
P.S. This blog comment was produced using Dragon Naturally Speaking by Nuance because I would not dare to sit at my computer right now and manually type out every word in this blog comment. This is why my blog comments are much longer nowadays… LOL! 🙂 🙂
#8, I stopped playing around and stopped getting stressed out about writing. Currently I write about 1800-2500 word posts today, my Grammarly stats show I write more than 99% of those using that app, and I love it! Thanks for the great post Linda…, While I think any one of these tips will and could work, #8 was mine, and it worked wonders…
Thanks, David! I’m all about #8. 🙂
For me, nothing like a good 3 cups of caffeine and a rush to help me type like a madman
I hadn’t thought of turning off the red squiggly lines either –and every time one emerges it stops my flow in my tracks. Very simple and actionable. Thank you! I also, plan to try a time challenge, as you recommend.
Thanks, David, I hope the tip helps you write faster!
Your suggestion regarding writing with a full bladder reminds me that “stress is the salt of life”. Nice post :o)
I never heard that expression but it certainly seems to fit the situation, LOL!
Linda you really are a brilliant writer. I enjoyed reading you post whilst getting a lot from it too.
This is an issue I really struggle with. For the next few months I’m in the ideal situation where I can dedicate all my time to writing. The only problem is I’m not being as productive as I want to be and it’s NOT for lack of desire.
I am definitely a perfectionist and the phrase “Value ‘done’ over ‘perfect’ and let the words fly” really stood out to me. You see I know this in my head, but I’m not in the habit of doing it yet.
Thanks for being so open and sharing some of your writing efficiency tactics. As an Englishman and an avid tea drinker, I’m going to try your ‘bladder’ technique, but I’ll keep your disclaimer in mind. : )
Simon, I’m glad you like the post…hope it helps you let go of some of those perfectionistic tendencies and start getting your work out there!
Linda, I saw your headline and knew straight away that this article was EXACTLY what I needed to read.
And wow, you didn’t disappoint!
Your whole article was fantastic. But there were two points in particular which really stood out for me. These were:
#6. Do B-Minus Work
And…
#7. Get Zen Before You Pick Up Your Pen
Let’s start with #6. See, I’m a direct-response copywriter, and I’m always self-editing as I write.
I’m definitely gonna give this method a go and see how quickly I can finish my first draft of a sales letter. You’re completely right – you should be looking to make the quality better in the editing process; NOT in your first draft.
As for your second point, I think it’s fantastic.
It’s reminded me to start relaxing more before I write and, the big one, to turn off Facebook and my phone. When I do, my mind switched off so much easier.
I’m curious, what music do you listen to when you write? Or do you always listen to the music directly from OmmWriter?
Personally, I listen to relaxing fantasy music. Definitely gets me in that zen-like state.
I just need to remember to turn off all distractions. And meditating before writing wouldn’t do any harm, either.
Thanks for a great article,
Tom Andrews
Also…you could always try a social media blocker like freedom.to! I see they charge a monthly fee, but may be worth it…and I’m sure there are free blockers out there, too.
Great post, Linda! I especially like the idea of challenging yourself to write as much as you can in a short time frame. I find that I tend to be a perfectionist and sometimes it takes me a really long time to finish an article, in part because I edit so much. Also, thanks for mentioning Ommwriter, never heard of it before, looks interesting.
Thank YOU for reading, Chris! I encourage you to try out Ommwriter…it’s he best!
Good way of telling, good post to take facts regarding my presentation subject matter, which i am going to deliver in my college
Great pot – some new ideas I haven’t seen.
What a great post. I have always struggled to write quickly. My biggest issue is being a perfectionist in my first draft. I am definitely going to try what you said -not edit it as I go. It takes me days to craft a 2000-2500-word post, every time. So I am always looking for ways to speed up my writing process. I am currently posting once a week, for the most part, on my blog – but would love to get to two posts a week.
Thanks for the fabulous ideas, Linda.
Alee
Thanks so much for your kind words! The good news is that if your first draft stinks, you can edit it…but you might be pleasantly surprised at the quality of your draft!
Thanks for sharing this helpful information. I wish I had known about #3 years ago. Typing details for images over and over again saps time out of my routine! Who knew a few keystrokes could conquer this time-waster! Great article! (You don’t NaNoWriMo by the way, do you?)
Thanks! Good to know how the trick can save time for bloggers not just in their writing, but in formatting their posts! (I think TextExpander has some special features for code?) I don’t NaNoWriMo, but I admire everyone who does!
Love this article! I’m TKing all over the place now. 🙂 Seriously, that tip alone has been like a booster rocket for my writing. Thank you so much.
For games check out “Write or Die” http://writeordie.com/ (non-affiliate link-just paying forward), can use on Windows, Mac, and Linux.
For Mac users who don’t want to pay yearly for TextExpander google: aText, a one-time payment of $4.99 from the Mac App Store. Does everything TextExpander does.
Lastly, this one took some time but it was a game changer in increasing my typing speed along with making way fewer typos. I switched from the Qwerty keyboard to Dvorak. The increase in speed was more of a result that Dvorak is so comfortable to type with. The caveat, you have to be willing to spend a fair amount of time learning a new keyboard layout. It’s cheaper to use the Qwerty keyboard, I just set the layout to Dvorak in my preferences. Oh, one more cool thing, you don’t have to worry about folks peeking at you when you type your password on the Qwerty keyboard using the Dvorak layout. 😉
Thank you again for your great “booster” tips, Linda.
Ken, thanks for all the great tips! What would be really cool is for someone ti switch from QUERTY to DVORAK and blog the journey: How hard is it to learn a new way after so many years? What tricks helped shorten the learning curve? What have been the results in time saved?
Because man, I can’t imagine trying to learn a whole new keyboard setup after 40 years! 🙂
Hello, Linda!
Just perfect!
The whole 10 points are the apt ones.
I am the self-procrastinating guy when it comes to writing on daily basis.
These all 10 points are super helpful to get me on the right track because I love writing but… without any schedule…
So, I believe the tips are surely gonna work for me (I hope!)
Well, that keyboard shortcut’s tip is great! I can really feel how time-saving it is to hit just fro keystrokes to write the 80-character long sentence! 🙂
Thanks for the great work, Linda!
And I am happy to share it on my social life — my network would surely love to know them! 🙂
~ Adeel
Thanks so much, Adeel! Circle back and let us know how it goes with TextExpander (or aText as Ken mentions above).
Hello, Linda
First of all, fantastic article. I just started my blog a couple months ago. Recently I’ve been doing all the writing myself. I have zero experience in writing, even at school, I had a hard time.On top of all that English isn’t my first language
Like anything in life, if I practice enough I will get better and better. My biggest issue is I get distracted fast and lose my concentration. My biggest strength is when I write on a subject that fascinates me, I easily write the article in a couple of hours.
Anyways, great article, I will use some of your tips to enhance my writing skills.
Thanks, Giovanni! You’re right about practice…you should have seen how long it took me to write an article when I was starting out in 1997! As I mentioned in the comments above, I would print out my draft and go over it with a red pen — and I’d do this multiple times until it was perfect. Only through writing every day was I eventually able to write a draft, edit it once or twice on the screen, and send it off.
Thanks for such useful tips.
I’ll definitely follow them as I need to improve my writing skills 🙂
Cheers
Great post, Linda.
Two more ideas: 1) Doing your work some place different can put you in a different mindset. When we form habits, we’re sort of training our bodies to expect certain things in certain locations. For example, people who read in bed sometimes find it difficult to get to sleep because they effectively train themselves to equate being in bed with reading, rather than sleeping. If you do your research in one room and your writing in another and your entertainment in a third you can help train yourself.
2) Or, if you’re slightly stupid, like me, you can invest $500 in a Freewrite (a sort of digital typewriter). Because you can only write on it and the options for editing amount to backspacing one character at a time, its manufacturers bill it as a distraction-free writing tool or a high-powered drafting machine. I love mine, but it still doesn’t solve the problem of making time to write or having things to write about.
Thank you so much for such a well-written article, Linda! I never knew I could turn off the red squiggly lines, but I will from now on. I also downloaded OmmWriter and it is a-ma-zing.
Can’t thank you enough for the awesome tips I learned and I’m super excited to test them out and see how much my writing speed improves.
Great suggestions! I always go down rabbit holes with fact checking or spell checking. Excellent ideas for keeping on task!
Hi Linda,
I have just started my writing a few days back and I easily get distracted by the red and green lines of words and Grammarly.
I will switch it off when I will start writing today.Hopefully, it will save lots of time and help me to write more efficiently.
Thanks
Dipanjan Biswas
Great post! Full of tips that I’ll be able to apply right away, so thanks!
This is brilliant! I can be soooooo slow! Thanks for the tips.