100 ways to improve your writing - Gary Provost 2019

Write in your head
Nine ways to improve your writing when you’re not writing

When I was a reporter for a local newspaper, I used to leave a school committee or municipal meeting around eleven p.m. in Hudson and drive eight miles to the newspaper office in Marlboro, where I would write my stories for the next day’s edition.

Often I arrived after other reporters. But almost invariably I would write my stories, hand them in, and drive home before the others. I was able to do this, not because I am a faster typist, but because I started writing before I got to the office. I wrote the first draft in my head during the drive to Marlboro. In my mind I planned the lead, decided what information I could ignore, and organized my material. By the time I reached the office, I knew what I wanted to write, and when I sat down at the typewriter, it was like pushing the “play” button on a tape recorder. Everything I had recorded in my brain came out.

So if you have a writing job, write in your head. Clear up the inconsistencies while you’re brushing your teeth. Get your thoughts organized while you’re driving to work. Think of a slant during lunch. And most important, come up with a beginning, a lead, so that you won’t end up staring at your keyboard as if it had just arrived from another galaxy. If you have spent time writing in your head, you’ll have a head start. The writing will come easier, and you’ll finish sooner.