Timed Writing

Sometimes when I’m writing, the words just don’t want to come to me. I try to keep writing through those times. I use a variety of methods to get the words out. I often just set a timer and write as much as I can over the course of the time that I set the timer for. That helps me to get the words out.

More often than not, I don’t get any sterling writing while doing timed writing. The point is that I write. I set a timer to write this blog. This is a good way to get the words out. Of course, if you have a topic, it’s much easier to do a timed writing exercise like this. I find that it helps if I set a period of time and try to write what I can within that time.

Sometimes I just choose a time to finish a particular writing project and do what I can in the time that I have. This is what I mean by timed writing. It can mean either sitting down with a timer, or or just selecting a time to stop writing. Both methods work for me. You need to choose a method and try it before you can find out whether or not this method will work for you.

I write as I think. Often that means the resulting text has to be completely revised into something coherent. Sometimes I get the coherency without doing too much, but that’s not often. I just try to get what I can written first. I revise later. That’s the theory behind NaNoWriMo, but often what results is rough and needs polishing. I give my NaNoWriMo novels at least a year before I even think of publication. Blogs are a little different. Sometimes I can get a blog entry out with little to no revision. More often, however, I need to rewrite sections and move text around before I can think of posting the blog. That’s how writing is supposed to work. You write a rough draft, timed or not, then revise it.

Timed writing just helps me get the words out so that I can get the raw material to fashion a blog or a story. Then I revise and polish the work until I can send it out to the world as a blog or novel. That’s what needs to be done. Timed writing is a tool to break mild cases of writer’s block. At least that’s how I use it. This blog is the result of a twenty-minute timed writing session. I wrote it in twenty minutes and revised it taking a longer part of time.

So the next time you are stuck for words, try setting a timer. It might spark something for you. Good luck.

About pebblepup

I am not one who is comfortable talking about myself but here goes. I enjoy writing, family history, and reading. I decided to do this blog because I wanted to try something new. I decided to make it a weekly blog because I wasn't sure that I could keep up with a daily one, and monthly seemed like I was writing a magazine. I think I did ok with my choices. You'll notice that there are not a lot of graphics on my site. That's because there are graphics plastered everywhere on the Internet and those sites sometimes take forever to load. This blog is a place where you can kick back, relax and be ready to be amused. At least I hope I willbamuse you. This blog is on a variety of subjects from my ficitional cat agency, the FFL, which is monthly, to instructional blogs to editorials, which are my opinions only. I admit that I don't know everything and could be wrong -- I frequently am. Now, stop reading about me and read what I have to say!