Kathy Boxall
I find I have good writing days and bad writing days and it’s really easy to get caught in a vicious cycle of bad writing days. What’s needed is something to jolt me out of that cycle – voice recognition software can be useful, the kitchen timer approach is also helpful, as is knowing that I’m not alone when I’m having difficulty writing. Below I say something about each of theseapproaches and finish by talkingabout what it feels like to finish a writing project.
1. Voice recognition software
I don’t use my Dragon NaturallySpeaking voice recognition software a great deal, but find it useful when I want to think aloud and get my words on the screen without being interrupted by the process of typing. The words I produce using voice recognition can be quite messy and ungrammatical – but the process of going back and editing helps me get back into writing. (This page has been written using voice recognition software.)
2. The kitchen timer approach
Using a kitchen timer (or any countdown timer – and there are several available free online) can also be a really useful way of getting back into writing. I find that if I set the timer for a period of time, I can usually get back into writing and will often turn itoff and continue writing once my allotted time period is over. If you have a lot of resistance to writing it may be helpful to set the timer for a short period, say 15 minutes – but sometimes I set it for an hour. The rules of this approach are that during the set period you are not allowed to do anything other than write –you are not allowed to read any books, to look up any references, to check any websites, to have a quick look at your Facebook page, to go to the toilet, to make a quick coffee, to answer the door (it’s a good idea to use a ‘Do not disturb’ sign), to clean your computer screen or keyboard, to dust your desk, to tidy your bookshelves or answer your phone. You just have to sit there and write. Or, if you can’t write, to sit there and get bored! Eventually I find that the words start to come – at first, they might be rubbish words but I can always go back and adjust them later.
3. Remember you’re not alone
I can still remember my shock and amazement when one of the lecturers on a postgraduate research course I was studying almost 30 years ago came into the room and started the lecture (which was on report writing)by giving a kind of confessional speech about how difficult he found it to write. As he talked through all the difficulties he was facing writing his current research report, I found myself realising that I had the very same difficulties every time I tried to write an essay for the course. Up until that point I’d never heard anyone who was a published academic writer (as he was) say that they found writing difficult. And I’d certainly never heard anyone admitting to the kinds of difficulties that this lecturer was describing. I’ve never forgotten that lecture and find it useful to think back to that experience if my writing isn’t going well. Since then, there’s been much more openness about the difficulties of writing, including a great video by Carol Smart at Manchester University, which you can watch here – If you’re having a difficult time writing, it can be useful to stop and think about all the other people, across the globe, who are trying to write – right now, at this very moment! And remember that you’re not alone.
4. Just think about how you'll feel when you finish!
Finishing something can be a great motivator. I find that the closer I am to finishing, the more I can imagine what it will feel like to finish this particular writing project. I find it helpful to try and imagine that feeling as I write and also to think back to other writing projects andto remind myself that it is possible to finish, because I’ve done it before!