Why Do I Write?
As well as ‘how’ and ‘what’ I write.
For me, writing blog posts (including pieces on this platform) is like building a giant snowball. I sit alone in my study, or — as now — outside, and I catch the chaotically flying thought bubbles into a one big, coherent bubble, that will become the article.
Your Mind Is Not a Factory (Nor a Storage Facility)
My best writing comes when I don’t plan for it.
For a long time, I’ve been writing down every good idea into my Evernote (or Moleskine, if a pen was around).
When people asked me why I write down ideas, I would proudly reply using the ‘factory metaphor.’ I’d say:
Your mind is a factory, not a storage facility; you have inputs coming in, and you produce ideas…to make room for new ideas, you’ve got to get rid of the old ones.
And so I would use writing down ideas as a way to download my brain on paper (or in a cloud), to make room for new insights.
But I soon noticed that my mind relaxed way too much after I jot down ideas like that. So — I tried the opposite.
Every time I had a new idea, I’d remark on it, but not write it down. If it’s any good, I’ll remember it (good ideas are hard to get rid of!). And if I forget it, then it wasn’t worth it.
I found that this natural process of elimination works for me. And it improved my writing.
Why I Don’t Use Content Plans
I used to use content plans all the time.
I’d write an article, but also have 3–4 other ideas at the back of my head of potential pieces to write.
Because I was terrified of forgetting them, I’d create endless notes in my Evernote: “Long List of Medium Ideas” or “Article Ideas” or just “IDEAS”… the problem is, I never finished those lists.
Not one. Ever.
Because I noticed something about the way, I write: if I’m not excited about the topic when I write about it, I can’t write. Or at least my writing is not as good as I would have wanted it to be.
When I use content plans, I don’t feel in charge.
When I look at my list of ideas, it’s as if somebody else is telling me what to write. And when that happens, my writing ceases to be art and becomes — a copywriting job.
So — I don’t use content plans anymore.
My writing routine is this: I sit down (again, preferably outside — my brain loves oxygen) with my computer, open the Medium editor (or Scrivener for books), and think hard about what I want to write.
The Questions I Ask Myself When I Write
I usually ask myself the following questions:
- What’s going on in my life right now that I’d like to comment on?
- What can I teach today?
- What have I been talking a lot about recently?
- What good ideas did I have in the past few days, which I can share with my audience?
It usually takes me 10–15 minutes of staring and brainstorming before I start writing. That’s also when the snowball effect comes in.
Each answer to the questions above gives me an idea, a feeling — which I attach to the other. In the end, when I feel that I have a solid snowball (or a big thought bubble which consists of many other thought bubbles), I begin writing.
Independent Writing Style
When I just started out writing, I was copying everybody. It’s natural.
You will create the art you consume. So it’s important to read a lot of high-quality writing if you want to write better. I read a lot of non-fiction, so that’s what I typically write.
But — pretty soon, you start to experiment. And you start trying things. You don’t care whether they ‘work’, instead: you focus on the feeling. It’s important to trust your feelings when creating art, even if what you’re doing is weird.
For example, by accident, I found that I do my best creative thinking when walking. As Hemingway said, “Never trust an idea that didn’t come when walking.”
So, I started taking ‘thinking walks’ and recording voice memos on my iPhone. Then I’d get home, transcribe the memos — and get an article.
That’s a weird way of writing — but it works for me. Something else will work for you. Find it.
Don’t Blog — Analyze
For a long time, I’ve been wondering what sort of content I should create for my blog.
I experimented with short pieces (like this one). I wrote long articles (like this one). I tried writing listicles (like this one) — but didn’t like it.
And then, I encountered an interesting approach in one of Seth Godin’s books.
He said:
“Write analysis”
And I liked that. The best pieces that I wrote were nothing but an honest analysis of my life, of things happening in the world, or about an idea I found particularly interesting.
When you approach your non-fiction blog writing as an analysis, suddenly — you know what to write (well, at least I do). Plus, by having a daily writing routine, you train your brain to think of interesting topics to comment on.
It becomes a mental habit that’s hard to get rid of. Suddenly — everything in your life becomes either a lesson with valuable takeaways or something worth analyzing.
A writing habit trains your brain to be in a constant “good content search mode.”
Building The Writing Habit (And Not Quitting)
Having habits is essential for writing. And for life, in general.
I strongly believe that if there’s a secret to success (which most people look for) — it’s this: to become successful at anything, you have to do it every single day for a long time.
I am a real-life example of that.
Before October 2019, I haven’t published a thing in English (I am originally Russian). But then I decided to try out Medium, as a creative outlet for myself. I had no expectations. And yet, five months and 150+ written pieces later, I made my first $1,500/mo writing. That was a big moment for me.
It cost me nothing, except for taking the time to build a daily habit of writing and looking for valuable things to share with my audience.
A lot of people quit. Other people have other ‘rules for success.’ But I live my life by the mantra: “The difference between winning and losing is most often just not quitting.”
Writing Is Not For Everyone
I don’t think that writing is for everyone.
I am saying this with confidence for two reasons:
a) I know that writing is definitely for me — it fits my personality perfectly, and it’s what I wanted to do all my life.
b) I’ve spent years looking for ‘my type’ of work, and I’ve tried a gazillion of things — including business, freelance, being a marketer, hosting a YouTube show, being a music-clip producer, even a teacher of digital marketing.
And in 90% of cases, I stopped doing what I was doing because I acknowledged that what I was doing is not for me and my personality (although it might be great for others).
So — I think that because Medium is open for everyone, a lot of people will try writing on it. And that’s great. The more — the merrier.
But I also think that many of those people who start writing on Medium will face that bitter acknowledgment I faced so many times. They’ll realize that no matter how lucrative “making money from your words” is, it’s not for them.
To succeed in most things in life (including writing), you have to dedicate a lot of time and effort to it. Not “binge-write for 14 hours straight” type of work, but rather “write 1,000 words each day for two years” type of work.
To do that, you have to love what you do.
Two Types Of Quitting
There are two types of quitting:
- quitting when you’re lazy (or it gets too difficult)
- quitting when you’re facing a wall.
It’s important to know the difference and quit only when you know there’s no way forward. People who lose in the game of life often quit when it gets too hard. And it always — in whatever you’re doing — does. It will get hard.
But I am happy for those people who quit blogging early. They’ll go and find something else to do. Something that they love. Sometimes, the key to knowing who you are is knowing who you’re not.
Building Trust and Serving Readers
People who are writers by nature, feel an inner urge (a daimon as the Greeks called it) to write. But to create good, high-quality content, it’s important to always remember the ‘why.’
You can have your own ‘why.’ But my ‘why’ is (and always was) about building trust with my readers.
I am like a waiter — I serve my readers. Every day I wake up, and I know that I have a job to do. The articles won’t write themselves. Somebody is waiting.
The Silent Promise
And finally, I have a silent promise (which is not as silent anymore after I put it in my bio) — everything I write is worth your time.
This is a promise I made to my readers, and I try to fulfill it every day. Sometimes I write things that I don’t like, so I don’t publish them.
But if I do — then I have a reason for it. Then I want you to read it. Then there’s something you should know, even if it’s just one idea.
I don’t publish something just for the sake of it.
Including this piece. If you found it valuable, even if you only got one idea from it, then I know I did my job for the day.