My pen beats faster as I write with my heart - Muia Khan

Do you want to be a faster writer?

Published on by Jean M. Cogdell

And get your manuscript done in one draft? Not 10?

Me! Me! I do! I’m so excited to discover writing the way I do is not wrong. Just different. And that’s okay. Now I’m free to be me. And hopefully write faster.

One of my new all-time favorite bloggers is August Birch. I’ve written about him and his tips before.  But if like me you’d love to get your manuscript written in one draft, in one go then keep reading because August has a few great tips he learned from author Dean Wesley Smith.

  • Planning is fine but don’t let it bog you down. (often the best part of a trip is the side roads.) 
  • Outlines are not necessary to be a good successful writer. Yay for the pansters!
  • Keep an open mind about writing techniques. (No one size fits all.)
  • Write with the next book in mind and the desire to get to it. (Think a couple of steps ahead.)
  • NEVER say one negative word about your writing or style. (Different is not bad.)
  • Write so much that the successes outshine the flops. (Crank out those stories with speed.)
  • Think like a reader, not a writer. (Read the story as you write.)

So how does  Dean Wesley Smith maintain his momentum?

  1. Start with an idea and pick a title. (his technique for this is fun.)
  2. Anticipate the story as a reader would. (excited to turn the page.)
  3. Write 500 words.
  4. Loopback. Reread, tweak and write another 500.
  5. Repeat process until reaches 2000 words for the day.
  6. Next day, loopback a few words and keep writing.
  7. Wash, rinse, and repeat.

One more terrific idea! Dean also outlines as he writes!

For someone who hates outlining, I love this tip. With a legal pad at his side, he jots down a few lines about each bit he’s written. Voila! An outline emerges alongside his story.

Want to read more in-depth about these techniques? Then click on the link below.

How to Write a High-Quality Novel in One Draft with No Outline By August Birch

What do you think about this method? I love it.

Do you think this would speed up your writing?

Do you write with the reader in mind?

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22 thoughts on “Do you want to be a faster writer?”

      1. I use a dedicated writing app called StoryBox. It’s very similar to Scrivener but was written just for Windows. It’s like a word processor and project management tool all in one. Been using it for years now.

        Liked by 1 person

          1. I haven’t actually used Scrivener myself, but from what I’ve been able to see, it’s very similar to StoryBox. If you like Scrivener then probably no point in changing. 🙂

            Liked by 1 person

  7. I use a Goldilocks approach a little like this one–can’t do an outline cold and just writing doesn’t work either. I do a notes page–with queries to self about the story. BUT it’s not a quick process AND it’s not really one draft either. I don’t think the one cited her is either. You have to be careful continually rewriting–you’ll never get to an end. Better to get a whole lot done before going back in my opinion.

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