I have loved to write for a long time. Writing can serve many purposes, and even if you’re writing for yourself, it can be hard to formulate your thoughts in the way you want to. As I have spent time time writing in college, I have developed a routine that helps me excel in writing in and out of the classroom. Here is my ten step writing routine:
1. Get into a writing headspace.
For me, this step includes closing out all the tabs on my computer that are not related to what I am currently writing and putting my phone on Do Not Disturb. These things keep my brain focused on the writing in front of me. It reminds me to not worry about any other assignments or responsibilities that may be on my mind at the time. This step can also include turning on music that will help you focus or get you motivated.
2. Understand the requirements of the assignment.
Take a look at any instructions or rubric you have before you start writing. Here are a few questions that can help you during this step:
- What is the main goal of this assignment?
- What is the topic you are writing about?
- How many pages does it need to be?
- Do you need citations?
- How should this project be formatted? (ex: a bulleted list, a research paper, a book review)
3. Create an outline.
I like to think of this step as taking a broad approach to my writing. Don’t worry about the fine details of the assignment right now, just formulate how your writing is going to be structured. This can include making a list of the main points you want to address or writing a topic sentence of what each paragraph will be about. You can also indicate where you are going to add some research or a statistic that you found.
4. Brain dump.
This stage is one of my favorites and can be fun. Take everything that is floating around in your brain about this topic and put it on the paper. Don’t worry too much about spelling, grammar, or how professional you sound. Use as many abbreviations and text language as you want. Use all the hyperboles you think you need to get your point across and write like a young child. Say everything that you want to say in any way you want to. Just write.
5. Leave.
Get away from your computer and go do something else for a bit. Do your laundry, have a dance party, eat a snack, make coffee, do whatever you need. Give yourself a break from this assignment and carry on with your life. I have found that this is most effective when done anywhere from an hour to a whole week. Of course, this depends on how much time you have.
6. Come back and make edits.
Now that you have had time away from everything that you wrote down, come back into your writing headspace. Re-read your writing and begin to edit it. Here, you want to translate all of your messy ideas into thoughtful and professional writing. You may want to clean up your spelling and grammar, change your wording, and add new ideas that you may have come up with during your break. A thesaurus will be your best friend during this time as well.
7. Leave again.
I know that it seems silly, but go do something else. This break should be a little bit shorter from your first break. It should be no more than a few days. This would also be a great stage to find a friend and have them look over your writing and make their own changes. Again, this is dependent on how much time you have to work.
8. Come back and make more edits.
Return to your writing and make some final edits. This is going to be where you make really picky changes to your writing in order to make it as thoughtful as possible.
9. Reread the whole thing and compare it to any directions you have.
This stage can happen immediately after your final edits, or a day or two later. Re-read your whole piece and make sure that you have caught all the spelling and grammar mistakes. Also make sure to compare what you have written to any directions you have to make sure you include everything that is necessary.
10. Turn it in and reward yourself for the hard work you’ve done!
Now that you have gone through multiple stages and drafts of your piece, your writing is finally complete! Send in your writing to whoever or wherever it needs to go and reward yourself for the effort you’ve put in. You’ll be proud that you took a simple, messy outline and created a final piece.
Writing is a skill that you will use in any classroom or job. While this process requires a few writing sessions to perfectly edit your writing, it is worth it in the end knowing you worked hard on something. Everyone has their own way that they like to write and mine may not be for everyone, but maybe it will give you something to apply to your own writing routine.