Writing about writing

Do you like me hate writing — not see its value or want to do more of it — here I share some of my experience!

Writing has never been my strongest skill, I have a strong critique of myself as not being a writer, as a dyslexic growing up it was all about the grammer and spelling, and poetry was the only place I enjoyed writing. So I did a postdocorate, which required me to write over eighty thousand words — and ouch it was painful! However it did help me breakthrough this critique, find my own style as well as my own rigour, or as we say in action inquiry, quality. Thanks to my tutors — especially Judi Marshall — who were really helping us tap into our potential and see writing as a valid part of the process.

I now try to carve out time monthly and in my yearly cycle to write and as I went to Greece this summer (photo above) giving myself time to write — I also found myself reflecting on the meta-process of writing itself — and here I share some of the nuggets and reflections. It’s been a long time aspiration of mine to really support others find their own voice and way through with action inquiry — we need more practitioners writing up their work of change in the world, sharing it with the world as a valid part of research and practice. So hopefully this might support some of you to get writing and sharing.

Oh and excuse the rough edit — that’s part of it — knowing when it’s good enough and just sharing anyway!! This is an experiment for me in a new style.

Louise Armstrong and I are interested in supporting change makers with their writing up and action inquiry if you would be interested in becoming part of a cohort let us know and if there is enough of you then we might do something more concerted. Oh and watch this space for a writing retreat in Jan!

What I am learning about the writing process — and is it really a learning weaving process?

The process is not just in getting the sentences on the page it also includes

• The intention to write — seeing the need — don’t under estimate how hard this step is — a massive chasm!!
• The identification of something to write — even if it’s just a sense of it rather than a title or a known thin
• Creating the space to write — and being able to stick to it

As well as the constant process — for me anyway — when you are in a writing space — of planning what you will do next — evaluating where you have been and done — putting in markers and intentions for the next time you write. Although there are others how might also be more fluid and emergent as well — key here is discover and know your style!

• The sifting through the data, experience and themes — the having the practice and the knowledge from which to write

For me as an extrovert the process of talking, and sharing with others what the themes are — perhaps through whats app, through teaching something, through presenting — thinking and refining for the audience

• Finding a narrative — This is the bit about framing what you are saying — this bit I love — and is also for me about framework finding — storyboarding — helping others sift and find their way through

Its good to see which bits you love and hate as well… so you know to do the bits you don’t when you have energy — or to reenergise go to the bits you love

Theory: I really like Bill Torberts 4 parts of speech to help think through what you might want to put in — Framing (as above), Illustrating (below), advocacy (what you are trying to say and put at the end/beginning, the point you want to get across) and inquiry (for me always paying attention to what questions you are sharing with others, what awareness you have of the limitations of your writing.

• Illustrating — this is the bit I find the hardest — I used to get a lot of feedback from people (colleagues, tutors) that I didn’t give enough examples and cases to illustrate what I was saying — there are two things I now do around this — I find the nugget, a little cameo that helps it — I am not afraid of the first person voice (that is telling my story!) — I find it easier to talk from an experience, and also I bend the story sometimes to help meaning making. What I mean by this is not lieing, but melding different stories into one to help make it coherent. However I also don’t stress about it too much — going with when my style of writing is — so even though I do try to do it I also let it go if I cannot, as getting something out is always better than doing it perfectly and owning my authentic way of writing and being.
• Acknowledge others — Bring in their quotes, references, always state who you are building off and where — help people find their own inquiry in your inquiry. There are ways support bringing in others as well through processes of learning histories, co-writing, using the voice of others, groundtruthing. More of this work is needed.
• Acknowledge your positionality — It is really important to state where you are coming from — for example as a white, British woman — or whatever is relevant to the piece and also stating who you are writing for. This helps the reader see and come with you.

As part of this — trying to own what is yours and what you are seeing and weaving externally — never divorce the weaver with the weaving — own your positionality is becoming more and more essential to the process of sense-making, framework — (the map is and expression of the mapmaker)

• Getting stuck — just write through it — keep the flow going — and I find when you have something down and you have gaps or ways you cannot quite articulate — then come back to it and force yourself, maybe when less tried to fill in the gaps.
• Just write — just put words on paper, (digital version of this) — just free flow (its an actual technique) — keep things moving — just dedicate time to writing — and stick to it — even if you go off or other spaces — like writing this — write your way into it — if you get stuck then write about why you are stuck or better still what is the intention of the writing –

I find going back to the why you are writing really helps me to keep writing and sometimes unlocks things. Set times and give breaks — but then come back — actually find your own writing rhythm and flow — notice what works for you — like I am a morning person and cannot write in the afternoon — so that is the time that I find quotes, do the hard process of sifting and finding things that are missing — as things don’t flow as well then. (I have recently started using the Pomodoro method — where I set a timer for 25min and force myself to sit and write — take a 5min break then start again)

• Sometimes if you are feeling a resistance in you to writing something — perhaps if feels controversial or you are not sure what to say — instead of committing the idea to the core of the text you are writing — go into a different document or at the end of the doc and just write out what you are thinking –as if no one will ever read this section — freefall writing again — let something come out that needs to emerge. Don’t be afraid — trust it –as usually you find a juicy nugget or a way to communicate what you really want to say that navigates between the terrains of edgy and challenging and being able to be heard and listened too.
• Share drafts early — but not too early — get feedback if you are stuck
• Get comments — don’t be afraid — who are you trusted people — you need people who might get the ideas and then you also need people who might be better writers (and by that I mean sentence construction)
• personally don’t compromise your true intention with jargon busters — this might be a contentious point — but stick to what you want to say and only have people who really want to help you get your voice out give comments — I am not saying don’t jargon bust — I am just saying don’t compromise on meaning. As not feeling understood or your message not being the one you wanted leads to a flat and deflated feeling and is not the purpose of writing (for me anyway)
• Do the slow edit — keep reading it through — take out stuff!! Always take out stuff.. shorten sentences, clarify meaning — but also write it out in full — one sentence at a time — don’t skip over a narrative thread. Realise that you might know the connection between two sentences but do others and can others see that.

This was something I learnt the hard way — my brain jumps to the conclusion or the insights — slowing down and really writing what leads from one thing to the next was quite a hard process — but really satisfying when you do it.

• Let things stew… really honestly — be that going for a swim during a writing session or more letting a week past when you have done a version and coming back to it — the space in between is just as important.
• Remember: Writing is about slowing down to be productive — this is at counter balance to a lot of other ways we or should I say I work — so acknowledge this — it always, ALWAYS — takes longer to write then you ever think, or plan for and by that I don’t actually mean writing a thousand words — when you are in the flow it can really just come out — but if we see this process that includes all these steps here — then it TAKES TIME.
• Finding your title, your metaphor, your nugget — the thing you really really want to say — the thing the statement to the world — then edit back around that! This can take a while — enjoy the process — this can act as a symbol to the world that you might want to sustain. E.g. Basecamp programme / The Marshland/ the thing that both brings people in but helps them remember. Or the creation of a diagram, an image — a framework perhaps that is the essential by which you continue to edit from and to. (For me Living systems, organic and ecological metaphors are essential when we are talking about with systemic work)
• Knowing what perhaps is unique (i.e. offering a new way to see things not totally new) versus what and where you are building on others. Weaving something together in new ways.
• Find ways to value the time — how do we personally value that time, how do we structurally value it — by which I don’t mean just us personally but also in terms of work. We often 1. Don’t get paid to do the writing and if we do it’s at a lower rate — 2. Under estimate the time it takes and so on any budget I have never seen a project that has not overrun on the writing stage — especially if you are writing for others and they come back with edits. 3. We want to do the writing to communicate and engage people, this is often just unpaid, and seen as side line.
• Don’t worry about perfection! Just publish — What you write today is not what you would say tomorrow, more experiences and therefore insights will come — however then nothing will be said — accept that it’s a process of inquiry and that you are on a journey — nothing is ever really finished but sometimes having a finished something you send into the world is important process of integration of learning and be ok with getting feedback/critique — mainly your own that “shitty committee”

Is really a process of learning weaving?

In the co-inquiry about writing with Louise she offered phases to writing combing, weaving, cohering — as I said above this is not just about putting words on paper, but the whole process of finding your narrative out of the stories and experience you have had. It is more the weaving of learning and bringing into the world for others to share.

• Learning weaving — A specific type of writing — the process of sense-making and finding what is both essential and needed
• Seeing the whole — trying to map patterns that are happening — perhaps using frameworks or known flows to order your thoughts — but also definitely definitely not sticking to this and really honoring what is there
• What is essential — what might speak to others — the process of essentialising (what do I want to say on this — taping into a deeper pattern)

I also want to acknowledge that writing still might not be your thing — and as such there might be other ways of knowing that you might want to use to share your thinking — videos, presentations, art etc. This are just, if not as much valid as writing!!! I always like to find images to add to mine — and would like to do more videos to share as well.

Why write?

Why write — as a part of your overall practice — speaking from someone who used to hate it and was told for years I wasn’t good at it

• Helps you sense-make of what is both happening around you as well as what you have done, experienced and your intentions for moving forward
• Having a product or artifact of your work can help others — encourage, show how, inspire to go on the journey of change
• Helps you remember your journey — gives points in the sand — supporting you to move forward — completing cycles of action
• Those last moments of sense making can help distill and the essence for yourself — which for me has helped me then communicate that with more clarity — become a better teacher, coach and facilitator — so not in others reading it but in the confidence you have in the thinking
• Helps unpick the quality (read also rigour) of the work you have done — to test it, work it through and then helping you to improve your practice

Anything else I have missed?

Again if you are interested in being supported in your writing as a cohort and learning more about the process of action inquiry then do get in touch — and good luck — I look forward to reading what you have written!