October 8, 2010

As part of the 100-Day Challenge, Angela Booth sends inspirational emails and links to some of her articles.

One of Angela’s techniques which we’re supposed to do daily (along with the challenge) is to write everything down. We’re to “think on paper,” capturing our ideas, our questions, our concerns about writing.

To be honest, my first reaction was: “I don’t have time for this–and I’ll just end up with a bunch of drivel.” But my accountability writing partner and I are doing the challenge together, so I decided to comply.

I’m so glad I did.

Do It Anyway!

Just as Angela predicted, on the days I “wrote everything down,” my brain coughed up several very easy and workable ideas for a project I’m doing and for an e-book I want to write. I also discovered a big problem with something I had planned–something that would have caused trouble later if I hadn’t spotted it while writing about it.

Why does it work? It probably has to do with the following: “Writing is thinking – but you’re not just thinking in your head, you’re writing things down,” Angela says. “For most people, head-thinking is a mistake, because you’re thinking from your own perspective, what you know. Head-thinking turns into worry, which burns your motivation…You need to get beyond that, so that you can access your creativity. That happens when you write things down.”

Try It–You Might Like It!

So with that in mind, I’ll refer you to Angela’s article “Writing is Writing: Just Write Things Down.” I challenge you to try it daily. I keep a Word document open on my laptop for this so it’s easy to do. If your thoughts are more personal, use journaling software or a spiral notebook you can hide.

All of you “100-Day Challenge” people–are you using this technique? If so, leave a comment about how it’s working for you.

6 Comments »

1. 

   It is amazing how this process works. I find myself wanting to write down more. On Day 15 we were to write down negative thoughts and throw the paper away. There was something so satisfying in watching my negative thoughts shredding and slithering away into my paper shredder.

   Comment by Trudy — October 8, 2010 @ 9:27 am

2. 

   I don’t know that I’m writing down everything, but I am keeping a journal of sorts, of what I accomplish and some of my thoughts, as a column in my challenge tracking sheet where I’m recording my word counts. It really does help. I feel like I need a new notebook to slip into my purse so I won’t find myself in a place with nothing to write.

   Comment by PatriciaW — October 8, 2010 @ 9:51 am

3. 

   Trudy, I’m glad you’re trying this method. I have been astounded at how it works–and how much fun it is! Also, I realize by writing everything down that I’m doing that I’m doing a lot MORE than I thought!
   

   Comment by Kristi — October 9, 2010 @ 6:43 pm

4. 

   Patricia, it sounds as if you’re doing just what Angela suggested. Yes, purse-sized notebooks are great for capturing those ideas that crop up when you least expect it. Thanks for sharing! The more we write things down, the more those ideas will crop up.
   

   Comment by Kristi — October 9, 2010 @ 6:46 pm

5. 

   Kristi, I like your idea of keeping a Word document open all the time to write down those off-the-top-of-my-head ideas. When I’m in the midst of something else I always think I can jot them down later. But they fly away before “later” comes.

   Thanks.

   Comment by Lenore Buth — October 11, 2010 @ 6:26 pm

6. 

   Lenore, that was the only way I could actually capture them. Writing them on bits of paper? I lose them! Paper works for me on a walk or something, but I have to type in the ideas when I get home or I lose the ideas. (Love your blog, by the way!)

   Comment by Kristi Holl — October 13, 2010 @ 6:35 am

RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URL

Leave a comment

Name (required)

Mail (will not be published) (required)

Website