Writing fast isn’t an art form. While a painter loses track of time when standing in front of their canvas, we writers are constantly faced with one dreaded time crunch or another!
Whether it be customers, editors, or followers pressuring us to get things done — or the simple realization that there are other things we should be doing other than sitting in front of a computer all day and night — being able to write quicker is a skill most of us would all like to master.
Here’s 8 tips from Marie Forleo to help get your writin’ done quicker:
1. Flip your script.
Internal self talk is a real killer when trying to get anything done — particularly if you want to get it done fast. If you want to write fast, tell yourself “I’m gonna write 1000 words in the next 60 minutes. Chances are, you’ll get much closer to your goal than if you said “This article is gonna take forever.
2. Begin with the end in mind.
What message do you want your reader to walk away with, or action do you want them to take? I often write the conclusion of articles first, then the body, then the intro. If you don’t know how the article will end, it’s pretty hard to plot out the supporting points in the body of the article quickly, and thus more time will be wasted throughout the process.
3. Keep a topic list.
This is such an invaluable tip for people who need to write regularly for professional reasons. It’s much harder to sit down at the computer and just start writing something quickly if you don’t have any ideas percolating in your head.
4. Make it short and sweet.
Too long and your readers will get bored, in many cases but not all (ie., highly educational or entertaining material should never have a max word count). Why spend more time writing longer text just for the sake of it?
5. Plan it out.
Spend a few hours writing a list of everything you can think of that you’d like to write about in the coming months. This tip works in conjunction with keeping a running topic list so you can just dive into writing and crank out content quickly when you need to.
6. Don’t write and edit at the same time.
It’s a good thing this is Marie’s advice, cause I’ll admit that my OCD just won’t let me adopt this rule into my writing! However, everyone should train themselves to leave the editing until later. You’ll have to edit later anyhow, why do things twice? It really does waste way more time…
7. Remember “Mr. P’s” law.
It’s easy to get trapped into the “It takes however long it takes” kind of dogma, but this is a sure-fire way to make a writing project last way longer than it should. Set a time limit on finishing an unedited draft. Keep a countdown timer going and think of it as a slave-driving boss standing over your shoulder tapping the watch on her wrist.
8. Be the vessel and not the source.
This one’s a little more “Woo woo” that I can subscribe to. However, I’m sure a lot of fiction writers would disagree. Use it or don’t, I just can’t get into a zen mode while writing unless it’s about something I really love.
You really can’t find a better source for tips than those provided in the video by Marie.
Now get to work!
Main Image Credit: Medium.com
