Almost all successful writing begins with a response to an idea, experience, problem, or question. It’s hardly ever random. And your response needs some kind of process, even if it’s a rather loose one, which is what I prefer, otherwise I get so caught up in the process of writing I never actually get pen to paper.
So as a jumping off point, any writing response requires the following process in order to get from A to Z successfully:
- defining a purpose
- knowing your audience
- planning
- drafting
- revising
- editing
- revising
- revising some more
- proofing
You can craft your process based off of this one. It may take some trial and error to see what actually works for you; you’ll find it. And once you do, your writing will flow so much more smoothly for you. What it will never do, however, is go from idea to finished product without a number of steps in between. But wouldn’t that be nice for a change?
