And so... - Capture your idea - Focus

Writing FAST - Jeff Bollow 2012

And so...
Capture your idea
Focus

One of the major lessons here, which has hopefully been woven subtly throughout this chapter, is that you must do this. One way or another, you will never write anything until you’ve got an idea you’re trying to express. So you might as well spend a little extra time nailing it down.

I was a fool. I rushed it. Don’t be a fool, too. Even if you don’t think you need this step, be aware. You’re doing it whether you realize it or not.

The only difference is whether you’re clear about your idea, or if it’s jumbled up with a million other ideas in your mind.

When I raced through this chapter the first time, I had a plan for what I was writing (which I’ll explain in more detail in Chapter 6). But I hadn’t nailed down my idea.

I was spinning my wheels, and getting nowhere. I spent hours of frustration figuring out which way to go.

When I realized that, I stopped. I took fifteen minutes (that’s all it took!) to nail the idea of this chapter. I stripped away all the nonsense — all the crap that was getting us nowhere — and asked myself, “What am I really trying to say, here?”

My one-sentence answer was “How does a writer capture his idea?” Man. Seriously. How simple is that?

It focused me like a laser on the task at hand. I wrote the chapter in less than three hours.

Sometimes it’s simple. Sometimes it takes a little more work.

But it’s the most leveraged work you can do.

Because when you capture your idea, you’re ready to build.