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Exercising Your Writing Muscles

By Michael Stelzner

Do you immediately start writing with great quality and consistently?

Or (if you are like me), do you need a little warm-up before those fingers start producing exceptional content?

I was recently reading Angela Booth’s newsletter Fab Freelance Writing and she mentioned this:

Warming up your writing helps you to avoid burnout.

When you’re writing for money, it’s easy to become stressed.

Try warming up before you write every day.

My writing warm-up:

  • I write a blog entry (this gets me thinking)
  • I put my iPod on classical music and tune out the noise
  • I begin writing very poorly, but get it all the thoughts documented

Once I have completed my warm-up, I crack open a Pepsi One and begin re-examining my work and go to town.

So, here is my question to you: How do you warm up your writing muscles?

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 20th, 2006 at 5:16 am and is filed under Freelance Writing, Writing White Papers. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

  • Best Way To Become A Copywrite
    Hey Michael,

    Great Advice. After six years I've come to the realization that the best writing -- is in the rewriting.

    For me, the most important step is to just get started. Don't worry about the copy being perfect. Always time to edit to perfection before you submit a draft to a client.

    Usually I'll write for an hour -- then play drums. This gets me away from thinking so hard about the copy. Often times while playing -- ideas will come to me so fast... I have no choice but to write again!

    And they're solid ideas. Anyway, great topic of discussion.

    Best Way To Become A Copywriter

    Lee H.
  • Hey Bethany - Gotta have that caffeine! I would be in trouble without it. - Mike
  • I prepare and drink coffee. I blog. I review notes from last writing session. Begin writing. Drink another coffee, reread, revise and continue.

    I wonder what would happen if I killed the coffee habit?
  • Oh, I like that 'study before you sleep idea,' Dianne. If I am reading a book before I sleep, I usually wake up thinking about it, and that stimulates writing about it...
  • Hey Dianna, Griffin and Patsi!

    Patsi, cool, another local! I work up in the Poway Business Park (near old Gateway).

    Hey Griffin, never heard of the breating excercised. Please elaborate.

    Dianna, that is a great idea on the study before you sleep. I used to do that in college. My only concern is that I would never get any sleep!

    All my best!

    Mike
  • Didn't know you were in San Diego; I'm in Carmel Valley and it is chilly!

    To get started, I play Majong Masters for 10-20 minutes while waiting for the coffee to brew. This gets my hand-eye muscles going on the keyboard...and gets the pattern recognition parts of my brain fired up.

    I try to avoid opening email next; if I can think clearly, then I want to use that energy to write a new article fresh in the morning, no distractions from those pesky clients.
  • Aloha Michael,

    Thanks for stopping by MBM today! I warm up by first relaxing through breathing exercises. As a student of Angela, she has made an excellent point about writers won't be able to write while tense. I then proceed to write for 20 minutes...anything or writing exercises. From there, I go to blog entries. :)
  • Michael,

    Before I start writing on a new project, I make sure I've read all my notes and have done my research. I also read everything the night before I begin writing. When I wake up, I usually have whole paragraphs in my head.

    I'm also training myself to NOT procrastinate -- which is what I am doing right now! If I don't procrastinate, I can usually jump right in and start writing.

    Read the book, "How to Write Fast While Writing Well" by David Fryxell. It's dated, but I learned quite a bit.

    Back to the salt mine!
  • Hey Simon and Jonathan;

    I think *many* writers do not properly warm up.

    You are right Simon about writing anything.

    Jonathan, I listen to classical to get me going. I like Yo Yo Ma.

    FYI, it is really cold here in San Diego (the 30s and that is like sub-zero for the rest of the country)

    Mike
  • A good cup of strong coffee, and New Age Music on www.magnatune.com
  • Oh yes, I need to warm up too. When I used to work as an editor on a newspaper, I found my writing skills were terrible on Mondays or after a vacation and then gradually improved as the week went on. It's like my mind was vacationing in illiterateland over the weekend.

    I find that just starting writing -- anything -- and not expecting great things works. I write...and then when I'm warmed up I go back and edit. Then I get into the flow.

    (Writing this at 9am when I'm still not warmed up.)
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