Prompted by writing about National Novel Writing Month yesterday, I thought I’d share a few tips on writing quickly. I learned most of these when I was in Los Angeles writing scripts for TV and film. Especially on the TV side there sometimes were challenging deadlines.
1: Stock up on healthy snack food and any other supplies you’ll need.
2: Eliminate distractions. Turn on the answer machine or voice mail and don’t check them more than once a day. If there’s noise around, wear ear plugs or noise-cancelling headphones. If the internet tempts you, turn off your router.
3: An hour of planning is worth ten hours of writing. When you’re under the gun it’s tempting to just plunge in and hope that you’ll find your way as you go. Most of the time that is a mistake. And when the deadline is tight, writing that leads to a dead end is a major time-waster.
4: Don’t stop to research. If there’s a gap, type XXX and go on. Later you can go back, find all the XXX’s and do all the research at once. It's much faster and offers less potential for distraction.
5: Take short breaks every 90 minutes. It’s tempting to skip them but they’ll give you more energy and endurance.
6: Make it an adventure. A tight deadline can be stressful if you picture it as a sword hanging over your head. Instead, consider it a great adventure or a hero’s journey or whatever positive metaphor works for you. Mindset plays a bigger role than most people realize.
Obviously writing well is more important than writing fast, but these six tips can help you do both.
(For more friendly support and innovative approaches to writing, get my book, "Your Writing Coach," from Amazon or you other favorite book seller.)
