How I Write a 1,000-Word Article in an Hour or Less
A few months ago, I placed an ad on a Facebook gig group, hoping to hire a few freelance writers.
I write blog posts and other online content for small-to-medium business owners. I had built a client list of a little over 10 businesses. The list was growing and I needed help. (My online content writing credits include Carnival Cruise, the San Francisco Travel Tourism Bureau and Indeed.com.)
In the ad, I mentioned I would need someone to write between 650-and-1,000-word blog posts. No interviews or heavy research. For a 650-to-1,000-word article, I would pay $50. These articles take me only an hour to write, so writers could look forward to about $50 an hour (or possibly more).
Since this was an entry-level position with no prior experience needed (I would provide detailed feedback to help strengthen the writers’ skills and allow them to build their portfolios), I thought I was offering a great deal.
My first entry-level writing positions paid about $5-to-$10 an hour 15 years ago. $50 an hour seemed like an impressive base amount to offer new writers.
Boy, was I wrong.
Several people exploded in the comments.
I’m so sick and tired of people offering writers a non-living wage.
You can’t even buy a Starbucks coffee for that amount.
You’re writing a 1,000-word article in an hour? You must not be looking for high-quality writing. How do you even conduct articles in less than an hour?
Obviously, these commenters hadn’t read the pretty clear “basic internet searches for research only” part of the ad (which made me wonder: if they’re not great readers, how great of writers are they?).
But there was something else that troubled me: many of these writers were planning on taking several hours to write a 1,000-word article.
Which is waaaaay too long for one measly blog post, a lesson I learned when I first started out.
Say what you will about entry-level writing jobs, like ones found on content mills, Upwork and Fiverr.
But taking shitty entry-level jobs was what taught me how to write well and write fast.
When you’re writing for peanuts, every second you spend on that article counts. I knew I could write the thing in one hour and make $10. But take twice that amount of time? I would only make a measly $5 an hour. Making $5 an hour felt degrading, so I upped my game.
While I don’t recommend writers take jobs that pay that little anymore (inflation and all), toiling away on my laptop in the trenches had clearly taught me something: how to write a freakin’ phenomenal 1,000-word article in less than an hour.
And with a few basic tips and some practice, you’ll be able to cut your writing time down, too.
Make a Plan
The first thing I do (before I do anything else) is to make a plan. If I’m writing an article about the 10 best iconic NYC foods under $10, I always make a list of the 10 foods I want to write about. (Granted, I’ve been writing articles like these for about 10 years, so I usually already know the foods I want to write about.)
Then, I write my outline. (In this case, a list of the foods formatted in H2 headers — because I always write articles for SEO).
Even if I’m not writing a listicle of 10 foods, I usually create 5-to-10 talking points anyway (and give each section a headline in H2 headers).
Planning the talking points beforehand:
- Helps SEO
- Ensures I’m not rambling on and on about a topic with no real goal
- Chunks the article into sections, which makes it easier to read (and write!)
- Cuts down on my writing time
My clients generally ask me to write about similar topics each month, so I usually have an idea of what I will include in each article before I start writing.
Do The Math
After I’ve decided on my talking points (and how many points I will address), I do some simple math.
If you have 10 talking points in a 1,000-word article, it means each talking point will be about 100 words each (well, technically 90-to-95 since you’ll want to write an intro paragraph with at least 50 words in it).
If it takes about 10-to-15 minutes to write your outline, you’ll have a little under five minutes to write each of your 10 sections.
90 words in five minutes? For me, that’s super easy. Once I’ve written my outline and done the basic research, the words just flow. I don’t edit or censor myself. I just write.
If you have five sections, you’ll get just under 10 minutes to write 200 words and so on. You get the point.
Chuck It
To motivate myself even further, I chunk my article. I divide it into two.
I know it’s going to take about 45 minutes to write one 1,000-word article (after 15 minutes of research). It’s easier to write a 500-word article than a 1,000-word one, so I mentally cut it in half. 500 words is all I’m worried about right now.
To write half the article (500 words), it should take me about 22.5 minutes (give or take). To write 250 words, it should take about 11.25 minutes.
My first goal is to write 250 words in about 10 minutes (I give myself a 1.25-minute buffer). My next step is to set my timer…
Time It
This step is super important — and I can’t stress just how important it is.
Time yourself. Sometimes I use an app that times my active working time so I know how productive I am each day. Sometimes I set a timer on my phone, and sometimes I simply keep an eye on the clock.
Whatever works for you, do it.
I write my first section (95-to-100 words) like my hands are on fire. Usually, I’m ‘in the zone’ at this point, so time flies and I feel great.
Whew! 95-to-100 words down!
Then, I plow right into section №2. And I don’t even think about stopping.
200 words down — and in less than 10 minutes!
After about 250 words, I give myself two options: keep going or take a quick (few minutes’) break. I usually opt for a one-minute break to take a quick walk around my apartment or the block or (let’s be honest) check my Instagram feed for cute dogs or yummy Buzzfeed recipes.
I also time my breaks so I don’t get stuck in a scroll hole.
Then it’s back to work. I do this four times (sometimes I don’t take a break, but even the idea that I could get a break if I wanted one keeps me motivated).
After about 40 minutes, I’m finished writing the body of my article. I need an intro that clocks in at about 50-to-75 words. Since the intro simply sums up the body of my article, it’s easy to write.
I also write for SEO, so I always need to place my SEO keywords somewhere in the intro paragraph. That’s pretty much one sentence down. I always start my articles with a short, punchy sentence to draw readers in. (That’s another sentence down.) And then I just fill in the rest.
Edit It
Now comes the fun part (for me, anyway): editing!
When I’m writing, I don’t self-edit (much). I turn off all of my grammar and spelling checks and just go. If I have any of those grammar check thingies on, I will spend a stupid amount of time going back and forth to fix my spelling and grammar mistakes — which disturbs my flow and timing.
The first thing I do when I edit is turn on Grammarly. This app has saved my butt so many times. It catches grammar and punctuation mistakes my eyes would have just glossed over.
I use the free version because I’ve been doing this whole professional writing thing for so long that I honestly don’t need help with voice or tone.
But if you’re an ‘overwriter’, you might want to consider using the paid app until you get the hang of writing in clear, concise sentences.
After I turn on Grammarly, I read the whole article through once. As I go, I add external and internal links as necessary. I clean up sentences that sound sloppy. I fix my grammar and spelling mistakes.
When it sounds good and looks good, I close the document and take a break. I usually go back and give it another once-over (with fresh eyes) before I submit it.
Staying Motivated
Throughout this process, it’s important to stay motivated. It’s super hard for me to focus for an entire hour on something if I don’t have a clear motivation. Some of the tactics I use for staying focused include:
- Resisting distractions. Every time I experience the urge to do something unrelated to my article, I write it down and do it during my next micro break. I also close any browser tabs that aren’t related to the task at hand (especially email!).
- Reminding myself how much I’m getting paid. If I’m writing five articles that day, I write down $500 on a sticky note and post it where I can see it.
- Getting clear on my ‘why’ and keep it visible. I have a collage of photos representing all the cool perks that come with my lifestyle, including nonstop travel, 2 p.m. pedicures and casual work attire.
- Specializing in topics that interest me. Right now, I cover women-focused brands, travel destinations and food writing. I’m interested in all three, but the women-focused articles also give me a further sense of accomplishment and the knowledge that I’m helping women on a variety of levels.
Quantity Vs. Quality
I didn’t learn how to write a one-hour 1,000-word article overnight. Depending on how strong of a writer you already are, it may take a few weeks, months (or even years) to write a good article in that amount of time.
One of the things I learned from writing for content mills was how to write using clear, concise language. I also learned the basic rules of AP Style. (I also use an AP Style checker sometimes in Word that helps a lot, too).
Before I wrote for content mills, I thought I was the next Great American Writer and I was overly precious about my writing.
Which made it worse, not better.
I overwrote, my sentence structures were overly complicated and I used superfluous words that I wouldn’t normally use in day-to-day conversation.
I can’t stress enough how important it is to write clearly — yet with a bit of variety in sentence structure and word choice. Yes, passive voice and active voice matter (but only if your sentences sound convoluted or your message is clouded by your language).
If your copy isn’t clear, your readers will abandon you.
The first step to writing a 1,000-word article in less than an hour is to learn how to write good copy.
The best way to learn how to write good copy is to write your ass off. The best way to learn how to write articles quickly is to… write your ass off. The more you write, the better your copy and the more efficient of a writer you’ll become.
