{"id":6184,"date":"2013-11-29T01:00:02","date_gmt":"2013-11-29T06:00:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/allandouglas.com\/blog\/?p=6184"},"modified":"2025-04-21T01:56:40","modified_gmt":"2025-04-21T05:56:40","slug":"write-faster-earn","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/write-faster-earn\/","title":{"rendered":"Write Faster, Earn More"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"typewriter,<\/a>
A Hermes Rocket typewriter from the 1950’s<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This article is not intended for novelists.\u00a0 While novelists are certainly welcome to read it, I doubt you\u2019ll find anything useful to your calling here.\u00a0 This article is intended for those who write magazine articles, blog post\/web content, and perhaps short stories or brief memoir pieces.<\/p>\n

While the admonition of \u201cwrite faster\u201d may seem self-explanatory on the surface, it goes way beyond just hitting the keys at a higher rate of speed.\u00a0 Although that too can help.\u00a0 Isaac Asimov was once being interviewed by Barbara Walters. In between two of the segments she asked him, \u201dBut what would you do if the doctor gave you only six months to live?\u201d He said, \u201cType faster.\u201d1<\/sup><\/p>\n

One of the things I like best about being a freelance writer over being a cubicle dweller or factory worker is the aspect that it\u2019s up to me to decide how much I work and how much I earn.\u00a0 As a corporate employee I worked so many hours a week and got a paycheck for a certain amount every two weeks.\u00a0 Other than the rare opportunity for overtime, I had little to do with how much time I put in or the pay I took away.<\/p>\n

As a freelancer, it is entirely — well, mostly — up to me to decide when I work and how much I get paid.\u00a0 No work: no pay, work hard: get paid well, simple as that.\u00a0 Mostly.\u00a0 But it\u2019s more than just keeping my nose to the grindstone longer.\u00a0 I can eek out more profit by making that time count for more by working smarter, not just longer.\u00a0 Here\u2019s how that works.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Eliminate Distractions<\/h1>\n

When it\u2019s time to work, shut down the e-mail, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, turn off the phone, hang a \u201cI\u2019m working don\u2019t bother me\u201d sign on the front door if you have to.\u00a0 Dedicate this time to writing; all that other stuff can wait.<\/p>\n

The kids?\u00a0\u00a0 Oh, well, I do not<\/i> advocate locking your lil darlings in a closet, but maybe set them down with Spongebob or something for a half-hour.\u00a0 Write while they’re napping.\u00a0 Whatever works with your family dynamics.<\/p>\n

Organize Your Resources<\/h1>\n

If you have source material that you\u2019re working from, start by getting that organized.\u00a0 Look for commonalities, make notes of the key points, and highlight the aspects that most apply to the tone you want to set with your article.\u00a0 If you know what you will write, that is.<\/p>\n

Start Typing<\/h1>\n

It is a common thing for journalists and article writers sit staring at a blank page, trying to figure out what to say, or even where to start.\u00a0 This \u201cblock\u201d can be crippling if you let it.\u00a0 Don\u2019t let it. \u00a0Write.\u00a0 Write something, write anything.\u00a0 If you have a topic, just start talking to yourself about what you think about the topic.\u00a0 If you\u2019re writing a blog post and you have NO idea what to write about because you have no constraints on topic whatsoever, just start babbling to yourself \u2013 on the keyboard \u2013 about what\u2019s going through your head.\u00a0 Even jabbering about how you don\u2019t know what to write will eventually get some inkling of a direction going.\u00a0 Even the journey of a thousand miles starts with the first step.<\/p>\n

The wonderful thing about word processors is that after a session like this you do not have 35 crumpled paper balls to pick up off the floor.\u00a0 You can type and delete and move stuff around to your heart\u2019s content.\u00a0 Not so when we did this on a typewriter.\u00a0 Once you\u2019ve deleted the fluff, no one will see it, so don\u2019t be embarrassed, just type.<\/p>\n

Write Now, Edit later<\/h1>\n

The first time through is a rough draft.\u00a0 They call it a rough draft because it will be \u2013 is expected to be \u2013 rough.<\/i>\u00a0 So when you start to write, write.\u00a0 Don\u2019t stop to correct spelling.\u00a0 Ignore the squiggly red and blue lines.\u00a0 Don\u2019t get fussy about structure.\u00a0 Write.\u00a0 Get the thoughts down now, polish later.<\/p>\n

David Masters2<\/sup> recommends using a timer.\u00a0 Set the timer for 15 minutes, and for that 15 minutes do nothing but punch keys.\u00a0 Then 10 minutes to edit, and 5 minutes to polish.\u00a0 He uses this method to produce posts that average 500 words and says the pressure of the 30 minute deadline (timer) trains you to work faster and more efficiently.\u00a0 Adjust the time for longer articles.\u00a0 The important part is the ticking timer.\u00a0 The deadline.<\/p>\n

Edit with an Axe<\/h1>\n

Once you have the words down, go back for the first edit.\u00a0 But, don\u2019t waste time on spelling, grammar, or sentence structure just yet.\u00a0 Look to the construction of the piece first.\u00a0 Look at what you have and start by hacking out any paragraphs that are not relevant to what you\u2019ve decided the finished article should look like.<\/p>\n

Then look to the flow.\u00a0 Think outline.\u00a0 Introduce your topic, build your case, then a summation.\u00a0 What points are subservient to what points?\u00a0 Keep it linear, keep it focused.<\/p>\n

Do not get sentimental.\u00a0 There may be some sentences or paragraphs that you think are just wonderful, but they don\u2019t really fit now.\u00a0 Take them out.\u00a0 Move them to a snippets file if you like and use them to build another article later, but take out everything that doesn\u2019t add to the vitality of this article.<\/p>\n

On the third pass you should have your work solid enough to pay attention to spelling, grammar and sentence structure.\u00a0 Many writers do this stuff first because it\u2019s obvious\u2026 and easy.\u00a0 But spending time on these details in work that gets cut is time wasted.\u00a0 Yes, I\u2019m repeating myself on this point: because it\u2019s important.\u00a0 Like a gemstone, you can\u2019t polish the rock until the rough edges have been knocked off and it has a definite shape.\u00a0 Then you polish it to a high luster.<\/p>\n

The Final Pass<\/h1>\n

The final pass should be to have another set of eyes read the article to be sure it is as marvelous as you think it is.\u00a0 As writers, we tend to look at the page and see what we thought we wrote, not what is really there.\u00a0 Effectively editing our own work is difficult.<\/p>\n

If you have no extra eyes (and attached human) to help, read the article out loud to your dog.\u00a0 Or your lamp.\u00a0 Who (or what) you read it to is not important, (but don\u2019t tell the dog that) reading it out loud is.\u00a0 You will be amazed at how many mistakes you catch when you do this.<\/p>\n

I learned this trick when I started doing radio 5 years ago.\u00a0 I found that I could rehearse a script in my head several times and it still wouldn\u2019t come out right with the first live reading.\u00a0 Rehearsing it out loud catches the flow errors, repetitive words, and awkward sentences.\u00a0 It works just as well for text that others will read in their heads.<\/p>\n

A manuscript editing trick can be used here also, if you have the time.\u00a0 That is to lay the article aside for a while: a few days or a week maybe. \u00a0Do something else.\u00a0 Write something else, play tennis, whatever you need to do, but let that article slip out of your head.\u00a0 Then go back and read it again.\u00a0 You will find errors that you didn\u2019t see before because you were too close to the work then.<\/p>\n

Summation and Shameless Self-promotion<\/h1>\n

And there you have it.\u00a0 Provide a distraction-free environment, organize your materials, force yourself to write, write first, then edit and edit ruthlessly on first pass.\u00a0 Then spiff it up.\u00a0 Then polish.<\/p>\n

Do this regularly and you will find you will be turning out better quality work faster than you ever have before.\u00a0 Getting more pieces done faster means a higher rate of return \u2013 assuming you already have a market for the pieces you write.<\/p>\n

If you do NOT have a market, you\u2019re doing it backwards.\u00a0 If you\u2019re doing spec pieces, start with an outline and synopsis, find a buyer, then write the pieces to their specifications and slant.\u00a0 That is all explained in detail in chapter 5 of my book Writing for Profit or Pleasure, available from Amazon in Kindle and paperback<\/a> formats.<\/p>\n

I hope this brings you a better quality of life through reduced stress and bigger paychecks.\u00a0 Do you have something to add?\u00a0 Comments are welcome.\u00a0 I don\u2019t even make you decipher squally, smashed letters to do so.<\/p>\n

Sources:<\/h1>\n

1-\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Asimov Laughs Again (1992)
\n2-\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 FreedomWithWriting.com<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This article is not intended for novelists.  While novelists are certainly welcome to read it, I doubt you’ll find anything useful to your calling here.  This article is intended for those who write magazine articles, blog post\/web content, and perhaps short stories or brief memoir pieces. While the admonition of “write faster” may seem self-explanatory … Continue reading “Write Faster, Earn More”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31,10],"tags":[65,94,29],"class_list":["post-6184","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-publishing-2","category-tools","tag-freelance-writing","tag-writers-block","tag-writing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6184","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6184"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6184\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21368,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6184\/revisions\/21368"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6184"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6184"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6184"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}