This is the writing process that I teach to my personal coaching students. I've taught the process for 20 years, to many hundreds of novelists, magazine writers, bloggers and copywriters. It's very useful for copywriters, because usually a copywriter must write on topics that she or he not only has no experience in, but has to get up to speed on the topic quickly.
Wood Allen said 90% of acting was just showing up. It's true about copywriting too. But what if you show up at the computer, and just sit there staring at the computer screen? On those days, you need a mechanical process to get you writing which doesn’t take thought, inspiration, or prayer, and which you can use for both fiction and nonfiction.
Here it is:
1) Idea/ topic/ subject
2) Ten minutes of research
3) Word lists
4) Timed free-writing for five minutes
5) Take a break
6) First draft
While I developed this process while writing copy for clients, I was delighted to find that it works for all kinds of writing, not just for copy. The process tickles your right brain/ subconscious into creative mode and is a stress-free way to get your writing done.
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Idea/ topic/ subject
If you've got an idea you want to develop, write it at the top of a sheet of paper. I use red, blue, black, orange and green colored pens and paper for this part of the process so that I can doodle all around the page, but feel free to open a new document in your word processor if you want to type.
If you don't have a topic, just get a blank sheet of paper or open a new document, and keep following the steps of the process.
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Ten minutes of research
This research process is really just an early-warning for your subconscious mind, to get it to start coming up with material. Maybe you're thinking: "Hmmm. I'm writing a Regency novel. You want me to research Regency fashions, or read Georgette Heyer?"
Sure, if that's what works for you. The Regency fashions could get you thinking about what living in that world would be like, how long it would take you to get dressed, and so on.
I tend to browse the Web for research. For example, one week I was writing copy and was ready to work on five radio spots for a jewelry store. I browsed online jewelry stores, and museum sites. Within five minutes I hit on an information nugget that stimulated a train of thought.
I had the concept for my series of ads, and those ads sold brilliantly. There's no way I could have found that concept without researching.
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Word lists
I love word lists. They take no effort at all, and they're ideal for kickstarting any kind of writing. I use them for fiction, for non-fiction and for copywriting. I also write them just for practice, to get my brain ticking over.
Word lists are a form of brainstorming.
Here's part of a word list I wrote this morning: "Glamor fear isolation energy deliver storm glow wind moon rush generosity travel stream voice density".
You can see that on one level, it's just a laundry-list of words. On another level, what if I asked you to write half a page of a story, using these three words: "Fear Storm Generosity" somewhere in the first paragraph? You could do it, and you'd find it easy.
I could use this list to develop a scene for a chapter in a novel, or to develop a new character for the novel. But I'm currently working on an advertorial for digital imaging products for a computer magazine, so the word list gives me some ideas to play with for that.
The list even gives me some ideas I could develop for other magazine articles and essays. Not bad for fifteen words which took a less than a minute to write.
You don't need to use your word lists in your work. I think of them as ways of prodding my subconscious. After I've filled half a page of words, I may or may not use them. I don't look on writing the lists as a waste of time, however, because writing them gets me into a creative mood.
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Timed free writing for five minutes (free writing)
Set a timer, and put pen to paper, or get your fingers traveling across the keyboard. At the end of the time you set, you stop writing. You don’t have to write in complete sentences. You can write fragments of thoughts, or even write a word list. Just write whatever words appear in your mind.
Don't put any pressure on yourself. Even if you have a report that needs to be finished in an hour, don't make the subject of your report the topic for your free writing session. Let whatever words want to come out, emerge. You can whine onto the page about how hard writing is for five minutes, if you wish. If you do, you'll feel better for having released that limiting thought.
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Take a break
Close your notebook, or put your computer to sleep, and leave your desk. Your break can be short, but take at least ten minutes. Preferably half an hour or an hour. I mean it - LEAVE YOUR DESK.
(I can't emphasize this enough. You're rebooting your mind. :-))
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First draft
When you return to your desk, don't look at any of your word lists, or your free-writing session. Just start to work on a first draft. Write as quickly as you can.
I do first drafts on the computer, and I try to type fast, just following whatever thoughts happen to strike me, and not paying any attention to typos or to format.
If I'm writing an article or advertising copy, or anything which is under a thousand words, I write the first draft straight through. I aim to take an hour or less to do this. At this stage, my aim is just to get the words written. I can worry about whether they're the right words later. Right now, I just want words.
What next?
After you've written your first draft, put the project away if you can. Sometimes you can't. Corporate clients are the worst for demanding that you work to tight deadlines. If you've got a same-day deadline, give yourself as much of a break as possible.
You'll find that your first draft, if you've followed the first five steps of the process, is pretty close to your final draft. And if you look at what you've written, you'll see that the words are better than adequate: they're pretty terrific.
Writing is just showing up. Try my no-fail process, and see for yourself. Happy writing!
© Easy-Write Process
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