Writing efficiency

[chaos]

When I was younger I noticed my writing was similar to my programming - terse and simple. No transitions to speak of. To alleviate this problem, I've started writing outlines first; with all of the basic ideas in front of me, it is much easier to visualize transitions between them. The only problem with this is it takes forever.

I've been trying to improve my writing efficiency recently. Anyone have any tips for churning out prose quickly? :) Other writing tips are appreciated too.

 

[StarmanXL]

Hm...I don't know if this is exactly what you're looking for, but I'd suggest you just read for. Reading a lot helps your writing, and I assume that improving your writing overall will naturally help with transitions, not to mention things should come easier and therefore quicker.

 

[chaos]

I'm pretty quick at reading. Most of the reading I do these days is technical in nature though :[

 

[Jumpman16]

Well, there's a lot of places where I can start out, but try to write in a conversational tone. "Play it by ear", if you will (you better brass trumpet chaos). Many of today's popular writers write in such a manner that their prose reads so naturally, so easily...and that is because of a conscious effort to make their prose conversational. So when writing and then again when editing, make an effort to ensure that your writing would sound great spoken aloud.

 

[CaptKirby]

I think that it is a good idea to write in the style of how you actually speak, whatever that may be, and just spruce it up by not dropping conjunctions and the like (assuming you do normally drop some grammar, if not, all the better!)

 

[obi]

The first thing you have to do is consider what you are writing it for.

For me, I've noticed that when I write something, for example, to give a speech to the class persuading them that potatoes are bad, I'll write something out, but when I read it, I'll end up changing what I'm saying. I wrote my speeches like I wrote essays, but it just "felt wrong" to read like that. I finally realized that maybe I should write my speeches differently if I'm going to read them differently.

I guess what I'm saying is that the first thing I do when I write something is to just ask myself "Who am I writing this for?".

I was going to write more but I'm tired so maybe later?

 

[duncan]

Writing is certainly something that takes a lot of practice to get down, but the reward is always a very nice bonus at the end.

For me, it comes pretty naturally now (It should. I've been writing fics for long enough. XD). What I do is start with either an outline, or just a list of the plot details for various chapters. Once you have the rough outline of what will be happening, then think of how to make it better. Let me give you an example of a scene from one of my fics to help explain:

The soft sound of the river running across my hands was absolutely serene. The fresh, clear air filled my lungs with a wonderful sense of refreshment that I so sorely needed. My eyes slowly opened and looked down at my hands.

Blood lazily washed off in the fast flowing water, drifting off and fading into the clean liquid. Somewhat curiously, I pulled my hands out of the water to examine them. They were pale, so pale...

Despite the water's best effort, the stubborn blood of those I had killed remained on my hands. The thought brought a smile to my face. How...symbolic. The last remainders of their deaths refused to be brushed away, to be forgotten.

But no one could kid themselves. Everyone would be forgotten, one day. No one was immortal, were they?

Do you see? Start with the setting, in this case a wooded area with a stream. Add in dramatic imagery, which was the blood flowing off in the river. Then go inside the thoughts of the character, who in this case is slightly twisted.

Of course, every situation is different, but when it flows well and the elements fit together then the fic becomes very nice and your prose becomes something that helps you, instead of hinders you.

 

[akuchi]

Might be useful to do a pastiche of several different authors (who are plainly characterized by their style)..

 

[FiveKRunner]

Well if you want it to be good writing, you really shouldn't rush it.

When writing my formal essays for College Writing last trimester, I'd slowly write every paragraph, concentrating on the way it sounded. I'd study my outline and start writing, making sure that each sentence had a point and that the sentences joined together to form a coherent paragraph.

I'll write something out, but when I read it, I'll end up changing what I'm saying. I wrote my speeches like I wrote essays, but it just "felt wrong" to read like that.

Obi really summed up my point right here. So, I guess take your time and think of several options for wording each argument that you make.

 

[Janenmori]

The program Inspiration can help a lot with the formatting process.

 

[Elbow Cancer]

It's kind of funny this topic is discussed at Smogon, with love of long analyses so prominent (and necessary). It's also one thing that drew me to this site.

I'm going to interpret the struggle with "terse and simple" and "churning out prose" as seeking methods of writing stylishly without fluff, in a reasonable span of time. I'll also assume you've gone through the structures and junk that school (high and college) taught you. With these two points as a given, I'd say you should take what you know, and break the rules just enough to find your own "voice" in writing. In my experience, the more your writing resembles your speaking, while retaining elements of being printed text, the more natural you'll feel at churning out your prose. Whether this sounds conversational or not is another story. Some people never sound conversational. Others do. No one can tell you, through precise steps, exactly where the fine line stands for you as an individual, and it is also my belief that this is why writing takes so long for some to master, while others serendipitously get it so quickly. But once you do, it gets a lot easier.

And a lot harder. I can crank out tons of text myself in a short time. I never do. This post alone will take me a while, since I try to minimize useless words, examine whether my views are expressed well, and consider my tone. If my tone is non-threatening, explanatory, and friendly enough in this post, I should be able to say, "Shit, fuck, damn, and piss," and still sound somewhat professional. The digression aside, I have always felt that writing efficiently may not mean printing out five pages in half an hour. That has always seemed to be finishing an assignment quickly.

Writing efficiency stems from communicating effectively. That doesn't always take such a short while. Good warstories are an example. Even if the time isn't spent on text, it may be spent on formatting, so the story itself is told clearly and captivating. The question boils down to how much quality you also want for a given piece. It's directly proportional, in my opinion, to how much time you must spend for your results.

Since my post is a bit long, I'll restate it in a few tips, that have helped me for a long time, in school as well as business (note the self-referencing change of tone here, since I'm communicating to people who may just want the bits without the thought behind it):

1. Write the way you'd sound. Don't front.
2. Edit the fuck out of yourself if your piece is worth it.
3. Semicolon ftw.

 

[Altmer]

chaos, I'd keep outlining. It takes ages, but to write a good article takes ages. This is one of these things where you need to practice it into oblivion.

 

[pervysenin]

When I was younger I noticed my writing was similar to my programming - terse and simple. No transitions to speak of. To alleviate this problem, I've started writing outlines first; with all of the basic ideas in front of me, it is much easier to visualize transitions between them. The only problem with this is it takes forever.

I've been trying to improve my writing efficiency recently. Anyone have any tips for churning out prose quickly? :) Other writing tips are appreciated too.

I used to take the same writing approach and it would take tons of time. Recently what I've been doing is just writing all my thoughts on the topic down, and then organizing it from there. It's been working great.

And like others have said, write in a way that feels natural to you. I've found that the more time you worry about a papers structure and all thatg shit, the harder it is to write the damn thing. Just put down your thoughts and flesh them out.