out.of.desk

personal blog of Gaurav Ramesh

Writing the Thing is Writing the Thing - A Personal Writing Manifesto

Inspired by a LinkedIn post about “shipping” that struck a nerve. I had to write a version for, well, writing.

is not writing
the thing
  1. researching the perfect opening
  2. organizing your notes again
  3. developing your writing “system”
  4. staring at a blank page
  5. listening to a podcast about writing
  6. buying another writing app
  7. reading threads about writing habits
  8. creating a new folder structure
  9. waiting until you can articulate better
  10. telling people about what you'll write
  11. saving that writing prompt “for later”
  12. waiting for inspiration to strike
  13. convincing yourself it's been said before
  14. convincing yourself you’re not an expert
  15. waiting until you have “more time”
  16. waiting until you’re a better writer
  17. planning writing
  18. reading another book on writing
  19. designing your website
  20. setting a writing goal
  21. writing tomorrow
  22. advising others on writing
is writing
the thing
  1. writing badly
  2. writing scared
  3. writing the sentences you'll probably delete, or cringe looking at
  4. writing when you don't know where it's going
  5. writing because it clarifies your thinking
  6. writing because you feel you have something to say
  7. writing knowing it's messy
  8. writing when only you (or that one friend) will read it
  9. writing tired
  10. writing anyway
  11. writing not for anybody else but yourself
  12. writing the thing