Picking up your trail of thoughts
Diving in and getting started - how does one get into a flow of writing? When our days are split and our writing needs to find space between all the other things we do, how do we pick up our own trail of thoughts? Inspired by Navigate programme's Monday Motivations, here are some of the things I do.
In the ideal world, the space for writing is always there - with us, carried and sustained by returning regularly and by being able to finish a project before needing to start the next one. In reality, however, such ideals are hardly ever possible. Therefore, leaving breadcrumbs for my writing is one way of sustaining the momentum over a longer time. The following comes from my own experiences.
When I write something every day, it is easier to keep the task in mind, and it is easier to continue where I left off. But even there, it really helps to have a plan, a bigger idea about the different elements of the writing that is supposed to fit and hang together. So, I start with and work with an outline, where I plan the text, and plan to the level of paragraphs. What is each of them supposed to do? And then it becomes almost like filling in the blanks. Academic writing is, among other things, about cracking the code, so I just try to make my life easier.
When I have a writing activity to which I can return less frequently, then task lists and notes to my future self help. Task lists are often closely related to the outline but not only. I have found myself in recent times suppressing my panic by listing the things that still need to be done and trying to estimate how much time I have for each of those activities. I am yet to learn to project my task lists into a longer future, so I could better predict that my days are full when they become full. But in the short term, making lists, organising my tasks, and considering how much they take, helps me to, for instance, have a peaceful evening. Like today, the project deadline is tomorrow. I have about 2-3 hours full of work still to do. But I am waiting to do it tomorrow with a fresh head, rather than trying to do it today, because I know what I still have to do, I know how to approach this, and I know that I have these 2-3 hours before the clock strikes.
So, to know where to pick off next time and to have a nice feeling at the start of a writing session - planning seems to be inevitable. And this is something I am still not good enough at. The "ideal" would be to finish off a session with a plan - what is it that I am going to start with. But often, the end comes more abruptly; the time is up, the next activity is there, and there is nothing to do but just run. So, as a consequence, some flapping around seems to be inevitable. And I think maybe that is ok as long as the flapping around calms relatively quickly, and I can, with confidence, I can say that I can get things done at the end of the day.
I have become much better at planning on the level of the project. To work with an outline or with a tiny text as a tool to get me thinking and going and to have a bigger picture in mind - what is the main message of the larger text does help me to keep calm and keep writing.
The final way how to get back on track when landing with a text relates to comments and notes. These can be comments to my future self, comments to my co-authors, tasks and assignments in the text. Examples can be - fix this sentence it does not make sense, add references about topic X, link with author Z. I can treat myself as I treat my students - tons and tons of comments at the margins of the text, which can then, with satisfaction, be clicked away. Done, addressed, resolved.
It feels good to be back with my writing - it is not that I have not written anything in between; I just not have had time or energy to reflect on my writing. And thus, I finish my writing here with a plan for more of that to come.
When I write something every day, it is easier to keep the task in mind, and it is easier to continue where I left off. But even there, it really helps to have a plan, a bigger idea about the different elements of the writing that is supposed to fit and hang together. So, I start with and work with an outline, where I plan the text, and plan to the level of paragraphs. What is each of them supposed to do? And then it becomes almost like filling in the blanks. Academic writing is, among other things, about cracking the code, so I just try to make my life easier.
When I have a writing activity to which I can return less frequently, then task lists and notes to my future self help. Task lists are often closely related to the outline but not only. I have found myself in recent times suppressing my panic by listing the things that still need to be done and trying to estimate how much time I have for each of those activities. I am yet to learn to project my task lists into a longer future, so I could better predict that my days are full when they become full. But in the short term, making lists, organising my tasks, and considering how much they take, helps me to, for instance, have a peaceful evening. Like today, the project deadline is tomorrow. I have about 2-3 hours full of work still to do. But I am waiting to do it tomorrow with a fresh head, rather than trying to do it today, because I know what I still have to do, I know how to approach this, and I know that I have these 2-3 hours before the clock strikes.
So, to know where to pick off next time and to have a nice feeling at the start of a writing session - planning seems to be inevitable. And this is something I am still not good enough at. The "ideal" would be to finish off a session with a plan - what is it that I am going to start with. But often, the end comes more abruptly; the time is up, the next activity is there, and there is nothing to do but just run. So, as a consequence, some flapping around seems to be inevitable. And I think maybe that is ok as long as the flapping around calms relatively quickly, and I can, with confidence, I can say that I can get things done at the end of the day.
I have become much better at planning on the level of the project. To work with an outline or with a tiny text as a tool to get me thinking and going and to have a bigger picture in mind - what is the main message of the larger text does help me to keep calm and keep writing.
The final way how to get back on track when landing with a text relates to comments and notes. These can be comments to my future self, comments to my co-authors, tasks and assignments in the text. Examples can be - fix this sentence it does not make sense, add references about topic X, link with author Z. I can treat myself as I treat my students - tons and tons of comments at the margins of the text, which can then, with satisfaction, be clicked away. Done, addressed, resolved.
It feels good to be back with my writing - it is not that I have not written anything in between; I just not have had time or energy to reflect on my writing. And thus, I finish my writing here with a plan for more of that to come.
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