How to Write Well and a Lot

The following is condensed and reprinted with permission from Technical Communication Center by Dr. Ugur Akinci.

Writing well and writing a lot are closely linked.

Usually, people who write well write a lot too. And those who cannot write well cannot write anything at all. There is a very good reason why that is so. It's an internal connection that may open the doors of both creativity and productivity for you, simultaneously.

Here are the keys to this not-so-mysterious phenomenon:

First: Write about things you really care about or things that move something inside. Do not write about a subject just because "it's popular" or "it brings money" because you can't. The result would be a bone-dry piece of nothing. You wouldn't enjoy reading what you've written.

Second: Try to get an approximate understanding of WHY you're writing what you're writing. And that does not have to be a well-constructed and tightly-argued reason. No. It can be just a feeling, or a sensation, but you still have to be fully aware of it. Good writing requires you to be well aware of yourself, your mind and your heart. Your radar must be actively scanning your interior landscape when you write so you'll know why you're doing it. Knowing why will set the color of your canvas. That's what you'll leave the reader with.

The reason "why" you are writing something is the tool with which you take one slice from Reality and make it your own. Life is the big pie. You take the narrow serving knife of "why" and serve your readers a delicious slice. If you don't have the "why" then you can't serve the pie.

Third: Accept your uniqueness. That's perhaps the HARDEST part to writing well.

We all do have a different take on things! But we usually end up joining the choir, and going along with the team. That's when we collapse our fresh viewpoint onto a worn out template. That's when we start writing awfully stale stuff; dead matter that's not breathing.

As a writer we have to overcome the anxiety of individuality. We have to suspend our anxiety of judgment by others by accepting upfront that 99% of anything we write will not be liked by anyone anyways! Once we accept that hard blow on the broken nose of our ego, we're out of your own jail. All the damage is done upfront and we're free to sing with our own voice.

Once you develop the trust and habit of listening to your own matchless take on Reality, you'll also discover what a PLEASURE it is to write about - anything, really! When writing is such a personal pleasure you can't stop but write long and write frequently. That's when quality joins quantity.

Have the courage to be yourself. That's when you'll start writing well and writing a lot too.