Padmini Writes — My First Reflection
Hopefully, the first of many.
Two months ago, I decided to improve my writing. I made a proclamation on Twitter, published a blog post on the subject, and set out to create new writing habits.
While learning a new skill, I like reflecting on my growth in order to draw motivation from it. That’s what this post is — my first reflection.
System
“You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.” — James Clear
After years of learning how to learn, I’ve found truth in James Clear’s quote. Most of my proudest accomplishments were mere byproducts of systems I’d worked hard to develop.
In order to be successful at writing, I developed a system that consisted of note-taking, habit-tracking, and vocabulary-building.
Note Taking
My notes were distributed among Google Keep (my note-taking app of choice), Dropbox Paper (my journaling app of choice), and Kindle highlights.
They were sufficient for my level of writing, but I searched for something more comprehensive, and found it: Roam Research. It presented a way for me to create mind-maps of my ideas using simple macros. I shifted to using Roam for my journal entries and random musings. I also started copying over Kindle highlights that I found particularly insightful.
I’ve used Roam for less than 2 weeks and have already noticed recurring themes in my thoughts, ideas, readings, and dreams.
Habit Tracking
I’ve learned that consistent practice is essential when developing a new skill, especially when the new skill is challenging. I use a habit-tracking app, Kin, to stay consistent with my writing practice.
I write for at least 60 minutes a day. My daily writing consists of either journaling, starting a new draft, or editing an existing draft.
Journaling has been my ideal fallback for when I lack motivation or inspiration. I usually start with something to the tune of, “I don’t know what to write about,” and after 30 minutes, end with some profound realization. This pattern is consistent with the practice of “morning pages,” popularized by Julia Cameron’s book, The Artist’s Way.
Vocabulary Building
With vocabulary, I focus on two areas: learning new words, and recalling words that I already know.
To learn new words I use Vocabulary Builder, a free app meant for test preparation. I learn or review around 50 words a day. It takes less than 5 minutes.
To recall existing words I use a paid app called Elevate. It features delightful and engaging games that help users improve their reading, writing, spelling, and mental math skills. I play 5 games a day. It takes less than 5 minutes.
Feedback
Deliberate practice is a well-known strategy used to acquire new skills. It involves repetition and feedback. To deliberately practice something, you need to practice it at a challenging level, receive feedback on your practice, and iterate. For my writing practice, this means: I write a new piece, receive feedback on my writing, and apply the feedback I received to current and future pieces.
I recruited a few friends to provide feedback on my first few posts but felt like I was imposing on them. My posts were long, and editing and providing feedback is effortful. I wanted to find a like-minded group of people with similar goals to satisfy my need for feedback.
I reached out to someone on Twitter who offered to provide feedback to the first few people who DMed him. He introduced me to Compound Writing, a writing group comprised of individuals who want to develop their own writing skills and help other writers through feedback and editing. I jumped at the opportunity to join.
With regular feedback, my improvement accelerated:
- I took my first drafts much more seriously, knowing that multiple people would spend their time reviewing them.
- I noticed patterns in the feedback I received and learned to avoid recurring errors. (Most of the feedback I received was around my pieces being too long and including unnecessary detail.)
- Reviewing the first drafts of others improved my ability to edit my own work and form a more complete picture of what good writing looks like.
Publishing
In April, I published one blog post. In May, I published 2. In June, I published 3.
It was terrifying to publish my first blog post. I wanted people to like what I posted, but also had an issue with “tooting my own horn.” I hit publish anyway, and then I hit it another 5 times for my following posts.
Offering an opinion or personal story is being vulnerable, which can be scary, but I’ve found that the fear diminishes with repetition.
I’ve also come to terms with the fact that I like sharing my stories and learnings with people. It makes me feel like I’m contributing to others’ lives in some way. I’m being unfair to myself by dismissing it as horn-tooting.
Trepidation and horn-tooting aside, I’ve come to view publishing as a key step in the writing process. It compels you to take editing and feedback seriously. The fear of presenting yourself poorly to others can be a strong motivator.
Progress
Since I created my initial goal of writing well, I’ve seen improvements in my writing ability and mindset.
Note — I don’t have a robust system for keeping track of the following metrics. Most of these “measurements,” are subjective, which is good enough for me.
Improved vocabulary recall. Measured by the number of thesaurus lookups and ease with which I remember or discover the correct word.
Improved grammar. Measured by fewer errors tagged by Grammarly and reviewers.
Improved illustrations (I think?). See the images below.
Improved editing skills. Measured by my initial revisions of my first draft, ie, the revisions I make before I share it more broadly for feedback.
Improved editing speed. Measured by how long it takes me to edit my own first drafts.
Improved writing speed. Measured by turnaround time on my first drafts.
Clearer thinking around the topics I’ve written about. Measured by my confidence when talking about topics I’ve written about.
Reduced fear around publicly sharing my thoughts. Measured by the time it takes me to hit publish after I’ve finalized a post. Also measured by the number of times I ask my partner if my post is “good,” or “interesting.”
More confidence in my ability to learn a new skill. Just a feeling.
What’s Next
The improvements that came from this exercise have been surprising and inspiring. My plan is to continue iterating on the writing systems I’ve put in place. This means continuing to build my mind-maps in Roam Research, expand my vocabulary, and maintain my 60-minutes-a-day writing habit.
I still hope to write stories one day, but, like a bird trying to fly through a glass window, I find coming up with vivid descriptions and metaphors challenging. Maybe this will change by the time I write my next reflection.
Thank you to those who’ve supported me on this journey! Thanks to Dan Hunt, Tyler Wince, Patrick Rivera, Joel Christiansen, Stew Fortier, and Compound Writing for the helpful reviews.
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