Download PDFTaking the Time to Write
Nonetheless, even writing while knowing that it is a recursive process takes time. It takes time to write what you want to say, and that aspect isn’t wasted time. In a world where we are constantly being given messages about efficiency, moving through tasks quickly, my main concern is losing the time to think. Obviously, deadlines and multiple obligations are still a concern and persist in the world; however, if we can come to a place where we understand that part of the writing process is writing to what we want to say, we can build this in and give ourselves the time and space to do that— just as we would any other part of the writing process.
Even if you write and realize what you don’t want to write, that isn’t wasted time; that is still time well spent, as it still got you to the point you DO want to focus on. That is time needed to move forward. What can occur is stress and panic when we don’t account for the time it takes to write to discover what we want to say. This can compound stress and feeling stuck in the infamous writer’s block.
So, when working with students either in my undergraduate courses or in my graduate student thesis and projects, I share that we need to build in time to figure out what you want to say and also then revise projects to then reflect the core idea, purpose.
In short, thinking and generating ideas is hard. The invention process is hard. We are not mere transcriptionists. We write to understand what we want to say. Build in the space and time in your writing process to account for the mental work entailed in this aspect of the process.