This post is inspired by Sonia Simone’s advice to web writers who agonize over their writing. Is it good enough to be read? Will I be ridiculed for posting this idea on my blog? Preconceived notions have the power to shackle new authors, resulting in frustration and half-baked creative output.
She made a superb list of pointers for “growing” a blog post. The most helpful to me as a new web writer is her advice to just write the first draft. And never worry that it’s horrible, full of gunk and stupid. There’s a time for pruning and tightening what you write. But that is for later. The most pressing task is to first get it out of your system.
I find this advice remarkable because I’m the kind of writer who agonizes over every sentence I make. No wonder it’s taking me hours to just nail a simple post. All right, I usually lock myself in my room, free from outside distraction. I close my email program and Facebook page. But I have let in an interloper in the room, an internal editor who keeps thumbing down this word and insulting me for coming up with that idea.
This grumpy interloper simply has to go. You’re too much of a nuisance and just have to wait for your turn, Mr. Editor.
I’m making this advice a part of my creative process. Free writing is the key to unleash that creative burst of inspiration.
Says Sonia Simone:
You are not an air traffic controller. If you write a post that’s not very good, or that people just can’t get into, the world will not come to an end. No one will be maimed or die. No innocent puppies will suffer.
How do you make yourself productive? What inspiration have you found that keeps you winning in your battle with that empty page? Do your tricks do wonders for you, leaving your ego and puppies well enough alone and happy?
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