How to Easily Write 1–3 Articles Every Day
By: Erin King
Tags: Time Management, Self Improvement, Writing, Writing Tips, Productivity

Here’s What I Do

First, I sit down, and I get a new document open, and I start writing

I have my topic in my head, and I start writing everything I can think of.

This is how I get into the flow state that is so important when writing. I find that if I can get going, I can get into a flow and stay there long enough to make a dent in the article.

I turn off my inner editor and judge, I make sure I let them know that they will have their turn but just not yet.

I allow everything that needs to come out, come out, and I try not to interfere. I make spelling mistakes, grammar errors, and the story might not make total sense at this point, but that’s okay for now, it doesn’t have to. I get it all out, a creative, intellectual purge where everything that was in there spills out all over the page, and I’m okay because I know that I’ll be back later to clean it up.

Once I do that, I go back straight away and start editing

I don’t take a break, I get right in there.

I can do it straight away because the first thing I do is go through all of the “correctness” mistakes. These get underlined in red.

I go through and correct everything highlighted in red. I don’t even read it. Grammarly works two ways, you can either click on the word in the text, and it will take you to the correction that you have to click on or you can to the list of corrections and click on there, either way at this point I go through and correct the obvious spelling and grammar mistakes.

I love this part because it feels like a game, detect, and correct. You don’t even have to think about it, and you can get so much done quickly.

These corrections used to do my head in; the minutiae of all the commas, and semicolons. Figuring out where to end run-on sentences and finding every little needle in the haystack of tenses. Grammarly finds and suggests corrections for you on these, all you have to do is click.

After that, I go back to the green lines; these are engagement

I read the single sentences and correct these suggestions.

Sometimes they’re right, and sometimes the ideas don’t make sense, so you do have to pay attention. Make sure the words makes sense in the context of the sentence this time around.

After that, I look at the purple lines, which are delivery

A lot of this is taking out the extraneous words.

I seem to use the word “just” a lot. The purple corrections prompt you to take out many of these words, so your writing is more concise and confident sounding. These corrections are also fast and easy.

Then the blue lines, for clarity

This correction helps make things more concise. It points out run-on sentences and helps identify passages that are awkward or too long and wordy. I seem to get a lot of these. That is my biggest problem. So I go back, break them up, and make those sentences work.

After I do all of those corrections, I take a break, or if I feel up to it, I start the real editing

I begin my re-read after all that.

Making those corrections first allows me to avoid engaging my inner critic, which takes a lot of the emotional charge out of the process because I am just clicking and revising small parts.

It gets the bulk of the work done effortlessly and unemotionally.

I like processes that take the emotional charge out of things. I find that what usually holds us back from getting things done is the feeling of being overwhelmed or not knowing where to start. If you find a way to bypass those feelings, everything is more attainable.

With all of that work done, I can walk away and take a break.

I come back to it later with fresh eyes, and I’m able to cut it down.

Then I do what everyone says to do, which is to cut the crap out of it. At this point, every time I read it, I read aloud to hear how it sounds

Ashley Nicole has written a wonderfully helpful article called: “Measure twice, cut once: My guide to thoroughly self-editing your writing.” It is a quick read jam-packed with sound advice for editing. That’s my bible for editing beyond this point.

After that, I just read and re-read and cut cut cut.

I try to make it as clear and concise as I can. At this point, I let my inner judge and critic loose. I let them go, give them free rein, and, most importantly, listen to them. It’s easier to let them loose at this point because I already have a far better product than when I started, so it’s not as scary.

Your critic and judge can be handy helpers at this point if you welcome their input rather than fearing it

I can’t tell you how to say exactly what you’re going to say. You have your own unique voice and experience, but if you’ve found yourself compelled to write, then you have something to share. The goal is to get your thoughts organized so you can share them, and then practice every day. My method can definitely help with that.

I hope this article helps you get the words out of your head and onto the page as efficiently as possible so you can start uplifting your readers and shining your light out into the world.