Some Tips on Writing

Like the actual material practice of writing. Not like "psyching yourself up into thinking you're a writer" or "starting a Twitter." Here are my ideas about trying to build a daily habit of writing.

• If you write on a computer, you might want to try something like Ommwriter (for Mac) or Q10 (for PC), which turns your computer into something more like a typewriter. I used Q10 when I was brainstorming for my comps and I found it very useful.

• Another interesting possibility (on the web) is 750 Words a Day, which is more or less inspired by the “morning pages” concept from The Artist's Way. I used this for a little while last year and didn’t end up sticking with it, but it can be fun — it turns this practice into a game, and offers you “points” as an incentive to write every day.

• The Pomodoro Technique is  a time management/productivity method that would suit this activity well — it involves setting a timer for 25 minutes to work on one task without interruption, followed by a five minute break.

• All writing, even longhand, is a technology — think about investing in a high-quality notebook and/or pens. For whatever reason, I feel like I write better with (this is super geeky) a BIC Triumph 730R pen, on paper that is 100 lb. weight or more. It just feels right to me, but it’s different for everyone.