Angela Booth's Writing Blog

Who writes, wins - become a prolific writer

Writers write. It's a given. If you're not writing, you're not a writer. Notice that we haven't said anything about "publication". Publication follows, when you write.

Publication's inevitable.

When you write, your skills improve, and sooner or later you'll get published. This by the way, solves none of your problems - it just gives you a different set of problems to deal with. You solve these new problems by... yes, by writing.

So how do you become a prolific writer?

I've covered "writing more" on this blog previously, so let's cut to the chase:

1. You trust yourself

You set goals. You have NO idea how you'll achieve these goals, but you trust yourself. And you start writing.

2. You realize that writing is just one word after another

Each day, at your appointed "writing" hour or hours, you sit down, and write. You write well, or badly, but you write.

You may have a migraine, a broken ankle, be in the middle of a divorce. Whatever. You write at your appointed hour.

Writing is just something you do: just as bakers bake, and candlestick makers make candles and sailors sail.

If you start judging your writing as you're writing, slap yourself smartly on the wrist and get back to writing.

3. You repeat the above for your entire life

Yes, you get to keep on writing forever. There's no end to it. Nothing will change: you still get to keep on writing. :-)

I've known writers who set out to achieve a particular goal - a six figure income, or a book on the NYT best seller list. When they achieved the goal, they thought their life would change. And yes, some parts of their life did change; one thing didn't however - they're still writing.

So that's how you become a prolific writer. You write - consistently and persistently. How much have YOU written today?

Recession-proof your freelance writing career

"Write More And Make More Money From Your Writing: Develop A Fast, Fun Productive Writing Process" gives you all the tools you need for a thriving writing career, no matter what the economic climate.

Three weeks after completing the class one student wrote:

"Thanks Angela, for all your help and advice in class. I'm quitting my job next week. I printed out my letter of resignation tonight after landing a contract writing job that will pay me more for three months part-time work than I earned in from my day job in the whole of 2007! You were right – the great gigs are out there, and now I've got the skills to land them. Your class opened my eyes. Bless you…"

"Write More And Make More Money From Your Writing: Develop A Fast, Fun Productive Writing Process" shows you how to thrive as a freelance writer. Would you like to write five times more than you're writing now, and sell to higher-paying markets? Take the class.

Writing - Stop Procrastinating and Write More

One of the most common challenges writers face is procrastination. Since procrastination can destroy freelance writing careers, even before they begin, here are five tips which will help you to write more.
      
1. Plan your writing in advance

Planning is vital to your writing success. One of the most useful things you can do for a productive week of writing is to plan your writing on Sunday evening.

Here's what I do.

On Sunday, I list all the articles I intend to write in the following week in broad categories. These articles include articles I've been commissioned to write, as well as articles which I'm writing for my own websites. I then create titles from all the articles, and list three points under each article -- the three points are my article outline.

I also list all the other writing I intend to do during the week.

Then I transfer those lists to appropriate days, so I always know what I'm writing.

2. Write daily, and push yourself to write more

Of course, all your planning is worthless if you don't make a commitment to write daily. Writing daily is just a habit. You need to train yourself to write as soon as you sit down at your computer.

You do that by deciding that that is what you will do. The next step will help you with that.

3. Recognize mind states, and learn how to change your mind state at will

Remember a time when you were writing well -- when you were writing in a state of flow.

When you're writing in a state of flow, you are focused solely on the writing. You lose track of time. Your concentration is enormous yet also effortless.

I'm sure that you've had an experience of this particular mind state. Such mind states are common in children, but many adults forget how to access them.

If you've never experienced this particular mind state in writing, then I'm sure you've experienced a similar state when you were performing some other activity. Perhaps it was swimming, walking, or dancing, or even listening to music.

Try to recreate a mind state in which you are completely relaxed and yet  completely focused. This is the optimal state in which to write.

4. Learn relaxation techniques to develop focus

Spend 10-20 minutes a day using relaxation techniques. This time is not wasted time. It helps you to develop concentration and focus while you're writing.

5. Write for yourself first

Writing is creativity. The creative part of your brain is very childlike. One way to enlist its cooperation in your writing, is to make writing enjoyable.

This is why you should always do some writing which is strictly for yourself. That is, writing for which you won't necessarily be paid: writing which you're doing for your own personal enjoyment.

Some writers write journals. Other writers work on a novel which may never be published. It's just writing that they do for their own personal enjoyment to satisfy their creative spirit.

So there you have five tips which will help you to stop procrastinating and write more.

Write more - the key to your writing success

Yes, you can write more - even if you're a world-class procrastinator.

Did you know that when you write more, your writing improves? Many of my writing students experience this. They find that when they write more, writing is easier for them - they're not dominated by their inner editor.

My new writing class, "Write More And Make More Money From Your Writing: Develop A Fast, Fun Productive Writing Process" is based on lessons I developed for my private coaching students to help them to write more, improve their writing, and make more money writing.

If you're struggling with your writing, the class will help. The techniques you'll learn in class with help you write fiction, nonfiction, and copy for business.

Discover how you can write more, improve your writing, and sell more of your writing to higher-paying markets.

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Write fast, write more - secrets galore in Fab Freelance Writing Ezine

Our article this week in Fab Freelance Writing Ezine is "Writing and Selling Articles - How to Write Fast to Order" - it will help you to boost your productivity and increase your income.

Here's an excerpt from the Editorial, "Get Steady Article Writing Gigs":

=> The secret to writing success: write it, then fix it

Once you become a fast writer, you'll know that you can fix anything you write. There's no point in procrastinating: just get it done. For more on writing fast, read this week's article "Writing and Selling Articles - How to Write Fast to Order".

I'm currently working on a new ebook about writing fast; many writers seem to struggle with their productivity, so this ebook will help.

Now here's a tip on boosting your productivity and your income as well - get STEADY writing gigs.

=> Steady article writing gigs are everywhere - scoop them up

I'm a huge fan of steady writing gigs. Having several steady gigs each week guarantees what income you'll make. Also, and this is a real benefit, since you must write, you will write, there's no room for doubt.

So when you see Web sites which are looking for article writers, take the gig - making a commitment to write forces you to produce to order, and being able to write on demand is a vital skill which will stand you in good stead in your career.

Here's another tip: if you see a site you like, ASK them whether they need a steady article writer. You'll be amazed at how often they say yes: Web sites need articles, and they love having enthusiastic, reliable writers.

The issue's out tomorrow, don't miss it - subscribe now.

Subscribe to Angela Booth's fabulous free weekly ezine for freelance writers: get a free report just for subscribing. Even if you're a new writer, you can freelance your way to a fantastic writing career.

Join the thousands of freelance writers who are making great money freelance writing, using Fab Freelance Writing Ezine as their guide.

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Write More, Make More Money - Five Tips to Writing Fast

Writing fast, writing more, and writing well is a skill you can develop. It's a skill which pays off in today's Internet world where so much depends on your writing skill, whether you're writing as a freelance writer, or for your career, or for your business.

In this article we'll discuss five tips to write more.

I'm a reasonably fast and prolific writer; it comes naturally. Over a long writing career I've also found that when I write more the quality of my writing goes up. My writing students have also found that when they write more, their writing improves.

Would you like to write a 600 word, well-researched article in half an hour, including research time? You can with practice.

Here are the tips:

1. Plan your writing a week in advance

You'll write more when you plan your writing at least a week in advance. Not only does planning your writing in advance help you to discover useful research material via serendipity, your subconscious mind does a lot of the "writing" for you.

So on Sunday evening, or Monday morning, take a few minutes to create your writing schedule for the week, and enter all the articles, reports, and other material you know you need to write in the coming week.

2. Research for a week's writing in one session

"Research", especially online, can be a huge time-sink. As with writing, I plan my research in advance, and you can too. You can research ten articles, or a 30-page report, in less than two hours at the library. Online, using newspaper databases and commercial databases, it should only take you around an hour, maximum.

If you're writing on commission, consider out-sourcing some research: it means you can write more.

3. Create descriptive working titles

Your working title tells you exactly what the focus is for an article, report, or book. It stops you wandering off the point while you're writing. I know if I can get the working title right, writing the material will be easy. Equally, while I may know what the topic and slant are, if I don't take the time to think about the title, I know that the material will take longer to write.

Batch-write titles, as you batch-research.

4. Outline each piece

Outlining is essential to help you to write more. My outlining is usually just a list of items I want to cover in the piece. If the topic is complex, or unfamiliar to me, I create a mind map.

Again, outline many pieces of writing before you write. I've just checked my In Progress file, and I can see that I currently have eight articles outlined. I'll outline several more later today; I like to have somewhere between ten and 20 articles outlined in advance.

5. Relax while you write

The more you can relax physically as you write, the more you'll write. Some writers like to listen to music - check to see whether playing music in the background helps you to get into a state of "flow" so you can focus just on your writing.

Bonus tip: get a speech recognition program. Although learning to dictate your writing takes a week or two initially, the boosts in your writing speed are worth it.

So there you have five tips which will help you to write more and make more money. Remember to practice these new skills until they become a natural writing process for you.

Write more - the key to your writing success

Yes, you can write more - even if you're a world-class procrastinator.

Did you know that when you write more, your writing improves? Many of my writing students experience this. They find that when they write more, writing is easier for them - they're not dominated by their inner editor.

My new writing class, "Write More And Make More Money From Your Writing: Develop A Fast, Fun Productive Writing Process" is based on lessons I developed for my private coaching students to help them to write more, improve their writing, and make more money writing.

If you're struggling with your writing, the class will help. The techniques you'll learn in class with help you write fiction, nonfiction, and copy for business.

Discover how you can write more, improve your writing, and sell more of your writing to higher-paying markets.

Got a writing challenge? Solve it today

Whether you're a new writer, or are an experienced pro, Angela Booth offers consultations to help you to success with your writing.

Whatever your challenge, Angela can help. Get a consultation now.

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Writing challenges 2: write every day

Kristi Holl responded to What are YOUR writing challenges? with:

The ongoing challenge I face is consistency. Some days I manage to write 3,000 words, then the next day I won't get much done at all. I do believe that "slow and steady wins the writing race," but I don't seem to master the "steady" part very often.

Write every day - schedule your writing

Kristi, the easiest way to write consistently is to write every day, as a habit. As I wrote in Writing challenges 1: writing in your head, write it ALL down. Never try to write in your head.

Although writing 3000 words a day is great, it's only great when it's part of your writing plan, if you have a book contract you need to fulfill for example. In that case, you'll be motivated to write at 3000 words per day because that's what you need to get done.

However, it doesn't seem as if that's what's happening with you. You sound as if you're getting inspired, and then running out of steam.

Being inspired is great, but if you're not writing every day, it's dangerous. A famous writer (I forget who) once said that he gets inspired at 9 am every day. He made writing a habit, and you can make it a productive habit too.

As I wrote in "From non-writer to writer: five easy steps to to develop a writing habit", it's relatively easy to develop a writing habit.

Start by scheduling your writing, every day, in exactly the same way you schedule everything else. Within a month or so, you'll have developed the habit.

Julia Cameron's Morning Pages routine is very useful if you're trying to develop a writing habit - it's stream of consciousness writing, but it will help you to get your creativity under control, so you can write productively every day.

Thanks for your comment, Kristi. Happy writing. :-)

Got a writing challenge? Please leave a comment.

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Write More: Four Productivity Boosters for your Writing

Struggles with writing are a form of self-consciousness. You're focused on your worries and concerns, rather than on the writing itself. This is quite natural, but you can overcome this and write more when you have to tools to do so. Let's look at some of the tools you can use to write more.

1. The outline - it's not your English teacher's outline

Your first tool is an outline. Whatever you're writing, whether it's an article, an essay, an advertisement, or a book, start with a simple list. this list is your outline.

List down the page, leaving a big gap between them: Introduction; Conclusion. Those two points are the start and the end of your list. Now just add more items between the Introduction and Conclusion as you think of them.

Write this list/ outline as soon as someone gives you a writing project to do, or you decide on a project. If you only have three items on your outline, that's fine. Carry the list around with you, do a little research, and add more items.

2. Zero drafts - splashing your thoughts onto paper

In a real sense, writing is a performance art. You write TODAY. You can't write in the future. You also write whatever it is that you write TODAY - some days your writing will flow, and it seems brilliant to you.

Other days you stare at your computer screen and words won't come at all. This is because you're cutting off the flow of words. You're making demands on yourself, and because of the demands you're making, you're mute.

Professional writers spend their lives writing whatever comes. They just write whatever words come to them. They've learned that you can't write in any other way: just write whatever words appear in your mind on a particular day.

So your next write-more tool, after your outline, is your zero draft, which is splashing your thoughts onto paper. Accept whatever thoughts you have.

A thought which looks like junk today, could and will kick start a new train of thought and productivity tomorrow.

3. Mind maps - visual keys to building your writing skills

Your right brain - the creative, imaginative side of your brain - can't think in words. It "thinks" in symbols. So mind maps engage both the left logical side of your brain, and the creative side of your brain.

I like to use colored inks and pencils for my mind maps, and I doodle them on any handy piece of paper.

There are many books on how to mind map. Use your mind maps as a tool, and doodle them without thinking about what you're drawing. You're not trying to create a work of art, you're writing. If you let yourself go and relax when you're drawing a mind map, you'll find that when you write, your writing will flow.

Mind maps are fantastic tools for effortless writing.

4. Questions - ask yourself questions and answer them

The final tool you can use to write more is questions. When you want to write, make a list of questions. Just write as many questions about the topic as you can think of.

The beauty of asking yourself questions is that you don't have to answer them - asking questions opens your mind, and clears your mind too. The questions give you space to think about your topic, and a sense of control.

So there you have four tools which will help you to write more. There are many more tools of course, but these four simple tools will help you to write with more confidence and boost your productivity. Use them.

Make more money as a freelance writer by writing more

Top 70 Writing Tips To Help You Write More

Write more - the key to your writing success

Yes, you can write more - even if you're a world-class procrastinator.

Did you know that when you write more, your writing improves? Many of my writing students experience this. They find that when they write more, writing is easier for them - they're not dominated by their inner editor.

My new writing class, "Write More And Make More Money From Your Writing: Develop A Fast, Fun Productive Writing Process" is based on lessons I developed for my private coaching students to help them to write more, improve their writing, and make more money writing.

If you're struggling with your writing, the class will help. The techniques you'll learn in class with help you write fiction, nonfiction, and copy for business.

Discover how you can write more, improve your writing, and sell more of your writing to higher-paying markets.

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The Three Dumbest Mistakes to Avoid in Freelance Writing

The three dumbest mistakes in freelance writing are easy to avoid, as long as you know what they are. Do you know what they are? Read on to find out.

There are two types of freelance writer. Let's call them Type E (for enthusiastic) and Type B (for blah.) The first type is making a great income, loves his writing, and gets great satisfaction from it. He's enthused! He can see a long career ahead of him, where he makes a great six figure income  because of the huge demand for competent writers.

The second type of freelance writer, Type B for "blah" is a nervous soul. He's not sure why he's writing, whether he should be writing at all... he spends a lot of time depressed, and wondering whether he's wasting his time writing. Not that he does much writing, he's too busy questioning himself.

The three dumbest mistakes to avoid in freelance writing

1. Not writing enough Most, if not all, challenges you face as a freelance writer are solved when you write enough.

But how much is enough?

That depends on how much time you have to write. If you can only spare 15 minutes a day to write, a page is enough. If you can spare an hour, four pages is enough.

If you have an hour to write, and haven't written four pages, you're making the first dumb mistake in freelance writing.

2. Not sending out your writing

Freelance writers write and sell. If you're letting your half-completed novel languish on your hard drive, ask yourself why. Is writing a hobby for you? If it is, and you don't want to sell your novel, that's fine. Enjoy yourself.

However, if you want to sell your writing, selling is part of your everyday life as a writer. Sell something every day, or you're making the second dumb mistake to avoid in freelance writing.

3. Not promoting your writing skills

If you don't promote your writing skills, you won't sell your writing. The ways you can promote your skills are endless. You can advertise, write press releases, call potential clients...

Writers who imagine promoting their skills as a freelance writer doesn't apply to them are making the third dumb mistake to avoid as a freelance writer.

So now you know that not writing enough, not sending out your writing and not promoting your writing skills are the three dumbest mistakes to avoid in freelance writing. Avoid these three mistakes, and you'll become a Type E (for enthusiastic) writer, and your life will change faster than you can imagine.

Write more - the key to your writing success

Yes, you can write more - even if you're a world-class procrastinator.

Did you know that when you write more, your writing improves? Many of my writing students experience this. They find that when they write more, writing is easier for them - they're not dominated by their inner editor.

My new writing class, "Write More And Make More Money From Your Writing: Develop A Fast, Fun Productive Writing Process" is based on lessons I developed for my private coaching students to help them to write more, improve their writing, and make more money writing.

If you're struggling with your writing, the class will help. The techniques you'll learn in class with help you write fiction, nonfiction, and copy for business.

Discover how you can write more, improve your writing, and sell more of your writing to higher-paying markets.

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Set your writing goals - make it a game

As I wrote in "From non-writer to writer: five easy steps to to develop a writing habit", you need to set goals for your writing.

Make it a game.

Here's a simple application which may help - Joe's Goals. It's cute, fun and  free and makes it easy to track your writing goals.

Give it a try, and make writing a habit.

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From non-writer to writer: five easy steps to to develop a writing habit

Want to develop a writing habit? You can.

Here are five very simple steps.

1. Schedule time for your writing every day

For something to become a habit you have to train yourself. So every day, at the time you choose, sit down and write.

This is purely mechanical. No effort is required. Sit. Write.

2. When you're writing, write without expectation

When you write, write without expectation. Stay in the moment, and focus on what you're doing.

It takes around 11 minutes to change from one mind state to another, so after  11 minutes, you'll start to feel "inspired" and will write easily. Again, this is mechanical. It's just the way your mind works. :-)

When you're writing, write whatever you feel like writing. Make no demands on yourself, and expect nothing of yourself other than that in the time you choose to write, you will  write.

3. Don't talk about your writing until it's finished

Whether you're writing a book, an article, a short story or anything else, don't talk about the project when you're writing it, however long the project takes to complete.

If people (relatives or other) ask about your writing, tell them they can read it when you're finished. That should shut them up. :-)

When you talk about a writing project you dissipate the energy you'll need to complete it, so don't do it.

4. Set goals for your writing

You need goals.

But remember that when you write (step #2), you should write without expectation for whatever you produce in that particular session.

List your goals.

Choose a primary short-term goal from your list of goals. You may choose to write a book in 12 months (or in three months, if you have the time); a short story in a week; and article in three days - whatever. The goal you choose doesn't matter; what matters is that you set goals.

Review your goals once a day. Reading over your writing goals ensures that your goals stay in your thoughts.

5. Relax about writing

Relax already. Writing is not difficult, and it's not brain surgery either. When you write, you'll improve - writing is a skill which improves with practice.

The first four steps lead to step #5 - being relaxed about your writing. Once you're completely relaxed, you'll have formed a writing habit.

Just follow the steps. :-)

Subscribe to Angela Booth's fabulous free weekly ezine for freelance writers: get a free report just for subscribing. Even if you're a new writer, you can freelance your way to a fantastic writing career.

Join the thousands of freelance writers who are making great money freelance writing, using Fab Freelance Writing Ezine as their guide.

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Write fast to write more and to sell even faster

At least 95 per cent of writers' challenges are caused by not writing enough.

I write a lot, by design. Through almost three decades of trial and error I've found that when I write fast and write more I'm happier.

Not only does the "write fast, write more" mantra work for me, it works for other writers too - my writing students are always amazed that as their productivity goes up, their income goes up, along with their job satisfaction as a writer.

So how do you write faster and write more?

Start by putting your attention on how much you're writing each day. Count your words. Did you write 500 words today? 1000? How many words did you write?

Count all the words you write as you write

Please don't guess your word count, and please count ALL your words - words in email messages, in reports that you write for your day job, in instant messaging... count ALL your words. If you use MS Word, keep a document open and copy everything you write into the document, then use the word count feature to count your words at the end of the day.

When you count your words, you're not competing with anyone else, not even with yourself. Your aim is just to be aware of how much you're writing. Once you put your conscious attention on HOW MUCH, the very fact that you're paying attention to how much you're writing means that you'll write more.

Don't believe me? Please just try it.

Write fast to stop brain-stumbles

One of your primary challenges in writing more is keeping up with your own brain.

You think much more quickly than you write. This means that if you think too much, you fall over your own mental feet. You lose track of what to write.

Your first thoughts are always your best thoughts.

Buddhist meditators understand this. With your first thoughts, you flash onto exactly what you want to say/ write - and it's brilliant. In his excellent book Blink, Malcolm Gladwell analyzes what he calls rapid cognition, which is "first thoughts" under another name.

Gladwell says rapid cognition is thinking:

It's thinking - its just thinking that moves a little faster and operates a little more mysteriously than the kind of deliberate, conscious decision-making that we usually associate with "thinking."

Writing your first thoughts is easiest when you use a timer, and practice free writing every day.

So whatever your challenges are as a writer, try writing faster to write more and sell more of your writing too, if you write for money.

Write more - the key to your writing success

Yes, you can write more - even if you're a world-class procrastinator.
Did you know that when you write more, your writing improves? Many of my writing students experience this. They find that when they write more, writing is easier for them - they're not dominated by their inner editor.

My new writing class, "Write More And Make More Money From Your Writing: Develop A Fast, Fun Productive Writing Process" is based on lessons I developed for my private coaching students to help them to write more, improve their writing, and make more money writing.

If you're struggling with your writing, the class will help. The techniques you'll learn in class with help you write fiction, nonfiction, and copy for business.

Discover how you can write more, improve your writing, and sell more of your writing to higher-paying markets.

Technorati Tags: be more productive