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How to Make Writing a Lot Easier

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Re: How to Make Writing a Lot Easier

#61

Post by throwanem »

BeFlatXIII wrote: post #58
aazaa wrote: post #54

> It’s a lot of writing to do in any given week, but I don’t care. I want to write it all. I write all day to work, and then I think about writing all night to relax. In the late afternoon and evening, I am constantly, to paraphrase the great Walter Mosley, “percolating.” I remember an author once saying there are two kinds of authors: those who like to write and those who like to have written. The interviewee was in…

Comments like yours are why I often read the HN comments before clicking through to the actual article being discussed. Thank you for saving me five+ minutes.

You should click through to the article. However little it may suit the taste of the grandparent commenter - or suit mine, for that matter, at least in the methylphenidate style and triumphalist tone - there are some things of worth in there, nonetheless.

Re: How to Make Writing a Lot Easier

#63

Post by CodeyWhizzBang »

kleiba wrote: post #12

Here's a question about possible cultural differences: I notice that a good number of blog posts I come across these days, that are actually about a technical topic, either start with or prominently feature the authors feelings toward the topic. This post is a great example for what I mean, it starts with "I love writing. Every little goddamn bit of it." I'm personally really turned off by that particular writing sty…

I think it's the personal essay style that is quite popular at the moment - the mix of topic with the author's experience of that topic. (Personally, I quite like that style, but then I think I read for the experience of reading as much as for the practical takeaways).

Re: How to Make Writing a Lot Easier

#64

Post by mwigdahl »

hdjjhhvvhga wrote: post #15
kleiba wrote: post #12

Here's a question about possible cultural differences: I notice that a good number of blog posts I come across these days, that are actually about a technical topic, either start with or prominently feature the authors feelings toward the topic. This post is a great example for what I mean, it starts with "I love writing. Every little goddamn bit of it." I'm personally really turned off by that particular writing sty…

Many people feel compelled to write in this way. They think that if they don't make it personal, the reader will get bored. It has to include some story you could relate to. A good example is Avi Loeb's Extraterrestrial: The First Sign of Intelligent Life Beyond Earth - for the first half of the book you can only wonder when the author stops talking about himself. Sometimes, although rarely, this makes perfect sense,…

I often speculate that this is associated with the rise of video content. So much information on YouTube is encrusted with the personality and brand of the presenter that I wonder if this verbal, story-oriented mode of presentation hasn't spilled over and become the default for general text channels as well.

Re: How to Make Writing a Lot Easier

#65

Post by lumenwrites »

BiteCode_dev wrote: post #18

I really never understood writer's block. I can write 10000 words on the spot on any random word picked out of the dictionary. Even a one I don't know at all. Friends loved to test me on this, picking up some BS topic and see if I can come up with a scenario or a song. Then after a few minutes of my rambling they get bored of course. Having something to say doesn't mean it's interesting. My problem is rather to learn…

Haha, this thread is amazing to read! People who reply to your post try to explain why the writer's block is a thing, and inadvertently demonstrate the reason it is a thing for them and not for you.

They talk about how easy it is to write random words and how hard it is to write well, and you keep explaining that you're supposed to remove the filters, start by writing random words, and then edit until it's good.

I think that's the difference between the people who have writer's block and the people who don't. People without the writer's block are able to relax their filters, people who suffer from writer's block are trying to write well right away, and it's hard and painful.

Ha said that, even understanding your advice consciously, I still find it incredibly difficult to apply. Logically, I see that there's no reason to be ashamed of writing a bad draft, I don't feel like I'm afraid of being judged by people, or like I judge myself, I think that I want to be able to just babble until I stumble upon something good I can refine. But for some reason, my brain just refuses to do that.

Maybe it's difficult because my brain feels like "babbling" is a waste of time and energy, and I always give up before it gets good. Maybe because it's difficult to motivate myself to do things when I don't have a plan, don't feel like I have control over what's going on, don't have the guarantee that my efforts will pay off. Maybe it has something to do with status or confidence or insecurities that apply these filters whether or not I choose to. I dunno. I know that these reservations are silly, but I see why people struggle with it, I do too.

I think that relaxing the filters, letting go of control, and trusting in your brain's ability to generate random words and make them good later on is also a skill, and some people find it easier than others.

Re: How to Make Writing a Lot Easier

#67

Post by otikik »

kleiba wrote: post #12

Here's a question about possible cultural differences: I notice that a good number of blog posts I come across these days, that are actually about a technical topic, either start with or prominently feature the authors feelings toward the topic. This post is a great example for what I mean, it starts with "I love writing. Every little goddamn bit of it." I'm personally really turned off by that particular writing sty…

Cooking recipes used to start with the name, then the list of ingredients and maybe cooking apparel, and finish with list of preparation steps.

I don't know if you have visited any online recipe website recently, but that's not how things are any more.

Now people preface all that with how they feel, their car problems, the last show they binged over on Netflix, and the entomology of the word "chinchilla".

It's frustrating.

Re: How to Make Writing a Lot Easier

#68

Post by otikik »

otikik wrote: post #67
kleiba wrote: post #12

Here's a question about possible cultural differences: I notice that a good number of blog posts I come across these days, that are actually about a technical topic, either start with or prominently feature the authors feelings toward the topic. This post is a great example for what I mean, it starts with "I love writing. Every little goddamn bit of it." I'm personally really turned off by that particular writing sty…

Cooking recipes used to start with the name, then the list of ingredients and maybe cooking apparel, and finish with list of preparation steps. I don't know if you have visited any online recipe website recently, but that's not how things are any more. Now people preface all that with how they feel, their car problems, the last show they binged over on Netflix, and the entomology of the word "chinchilla". It's frustr…

... And I should have read the other comments before posting :)

Have a good day

Re: How to Make Writing a Lot Easier

#70

Post by ericmcer »

aazaa wrote: post #54

> It’s a lot of writing to do in any given week, but I don’t care. I want to write it all. I write all day to work, and then I think about writing all night to relax. In the late afternoon and evening, I am constantly, to paraphrase the great Walter Mosley, “percolating.” I remember an author once saying there are two kinds of authors: those who like to write and those who like to have written. The interviewee was in…

Reminds me of when people set a goal of: "Read 30 books this year!". I don't want to bash anyones goals but it kinda misses the forest for the trees.
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