“When the writing bug lights on you, you are left with an insatiable desire to write at every available opportunity.” -Hoblife
To write endlessly without reading is a dangerous path to tread for a writer. It is therefore imperative for all writers to be addictive readers. It is believed and mostly proven that it’s from reading that writers garner the adequate knowledge to develop their narratives and articles.
The apparent inability of many writers to decide between reading or writing usually leaves them torn between the two necessary actions. When the writer in question carries on with the mind debate endlessly he/she finds that neither writing nor reading is done for that period and the time is, probably wasted.
A writer confesses,
“Many times I am disgruntled by the decision to either read or write. When I don’t decide on time, I end up not doing any of the two. Ultimately, wasting my time.”
There will always be a thousand and one books to read and a writer has to constantly choose to turn a blind eye to some whenever he needs to. If not the writer will take in so much content, without giving out enough.
Using the analogy of a mart, it receives goods and is only as functional as the amount of the goods that get sold. A writer when reading is like a mart when it receives its consignments. The ‘writing’ writer is then like when the mart starts to sell out its goods. This is ultimate role of all writers, to sell out their ‘goods’ by writing. As writers gain knowledge, they are expected to put it out there in their unique voices while constantly refueling their knowledge base.
Writers cannot bask in the aura of knowledge gained from books for too long. Writers must know that their readers are left unattended when they don’t write. The burden on all writers is to create the much needed content in today’s world. Many writers are currently ‘seated’ on article topics and books that they should have blessed the world with already. However, writers cannot afford the luxury of choosing between writing and reading, the two must be carried out simultaneously. This is where the need to strike a balance comes up. We have penned down a few life hacks, writers can utilize in order to read and write effectively:
Have A Plan:
Having a plan is not a new strategy to getting things done and for writers it is very important. Bloggers and writers are usually confused as one but there is a difference between the blogger and the writer. While a blogger recycles internet content, the writer is trying to own his/her content. This requires adequate planning and thinking which writers cannot shy away from. Planning ahead of time saves a writer the stress of thinking up, ‘What next?’ at every instant. This avails the opportunity to lay most actions for the day out aforetime. Allocated time for the two basic duties of reading and writing should be mapped out adequately and according to what suits the individual.
Write In Hard Copy:
This means writing with a paper and pen frequently, to do this you should always have a pen and paper ready at hand. This definitely sounds archaic since many would rather draft, type and edit on a computer or phone. However, what writing in hard copy gives you is, the opportunity to look over your work enough times and from a vantage point. For a writing that is initially on paper, as one punches in the words on a computer, rephrasing is done without losing the raw structure of the article. The other advantage is, it takes one momentarily off the mobile phone which is already a huge distraction
Tone Down On Your Use of the Social Media:
Writers should utilize the social media to widen their reach but not be addicted to it. Except you also wish to be a social media influencer, commentator etc. (this will in effect reduce your writing time). A writer must reduce social media time in order to have better ideation, writing and editing time.
Be Selectively Impulsive:
Having planned out one’s day and hours, one could be lured into the trap of trying too hard to stick to the day’s plan. It is advised that writers allow for flexibility in their plans. This is because sometimes one might not be attuned with the task at hand. The wise choice then, is to momentarily switch from the current course of action to something less tasking. But of course, return in due time to the original task.
It must be noted that the suggestions above are not exhaustive and every writer has to consciously discover what works for them.
This article was written for Hoblife by Olaniran Oluwatobi J
