Finding your own creative process

It has taken me some years and a lot of tweaking to work out my own ‘creative’ process when it comes to writing. Tweaking seems to be, rather unfortunately, a big part of it. Depending on what I’m writing – poetry, a novel or the all-important paid stuff like online copywriting, the process seems to change, sometimes daily.

Finding the right ‘writing’ process for your own work is often trial and error and from reading blogs, forums, interviews and books, it seems that there are probably as many writing processes as there are writers. I also find that reading these helps massively when it comes to new ways of working.

Online copywriting in particular, where deadlines come rather soon than you would sometimes like, needs a lot of preparation on the part of the writer – being able to ‘hit the ground running’ helps. Whatever your writing process, it can be worth considering that there is less writing to writing than you might imagine.

Wasting time

The temptation can be, when facing a short deadline and a lot of work, to get to the computer and start writing. That is, after all, what you are being paid for. But research and, well, “thinking time” can be far more important.

A couple of weeks ago I spent the best part of a day mooching around in front of the computer, reading up on a subject I didn’t know enough about to produce the 10 articles I had due in the following couple of days. I felt hugely guilty about this, for most of the day, and ended up leaving the office to start on household chores with a sense that I had achieved very little indeed. Despite my best intentions, I did pretty much the same the following day. Finding myself now lacking much writing time, I had to admit I felt that rising sense of panic that many writers who spend a lot of time watching deadlines rushing towards them at a terrifying speed, will well understand. However, despite my ‘wasted’ browsing time, I found the articles slipping effortlessly onto the paper –well the screen. I worked out that I’d spent 90% of my time researching and 10% writing.

Sleep on it

The rest of that week was an easy one, working on subjects I knew enough about to make a good start on quickly and easily. However, the first part of the week got me thinking about how to approach more ‘difficult’ commissions. In the past I’ve certainly been over-keen to get on with the writing, and perhaps not put as much research or simple thinking time into them.

Perhaps the worst mistake I’ve made is to write and research at the same time – a waste of time really as you often end up coming up with a completely new angle and having to scrap half the work you’ve already completed. Research time, browsing, reading and getting your head round a subject – even a familiar one – is always time well spent. If you’ve the time to sleep on the research as well, all the better, it’s surprising the way ideas will form themselves overnight – taking a lot of the hard brain work out of a project!

Trial and error

Of course, this is not the only way to approach writing, most of us find our own best methods through trial and error and everyone has their own methods, but our brains are good at soaking up information and coming up with the ideas later. If you are new to online writing, especially copywriting, and haven’t tried this method – give it a go and you may be surprised at just how much more efficient and productive it can be. Happy writing!

Image: the trial

Update: This product is being discontinued. Watch for news of more great products from TOP.

I’m always interested in reading books about writing, so I was pleased when Andy Hayes asked me to review Write Right Online. Andy’s a travel writer and the 30 page book shares what he has learned about online writing.

Who The Book Is For

This book is aimed firmly at the new online writer. In 18 short sections, Write Right Online takes you through everything you need to know about online writing. What I love about the book is that it is a model of simplicity – anyone can follow it – yet it somehow gives new writers information – and examples – they can take away and use to improve their style, their visibility and the reach of their content.

Best Feature

For me, the best feature is the checklist, which goes with the book. Each point on the checklist relates to a tip in the book, so you can easily refer to it if you need a refresher. Even experienced writers will benefit from pinning this checklist up on a notice board in their office, as we all need a reminder some time.

Summing Up

What’s great about this book is that you can read it very quickly and start applying the lessons immediately. If you’re a new writer and want to get it right first time, then £17 ($27)  is a small price to pay.

(Disclosure: I have not been paid for this review, though it does contain affiliate links.)