If you’re only just joining us, here’s what you missed so far:
Week 1: How to nail your blog’s pillar content in 4 weeks.
Week 2: Why headlines and outlines are key to your pillar content crown.
And you’re back (or carrying on because you read those posts already!) Fabulous!
As before, let’s assume that you did the steps suggested in the previous two posts and you come equipped with topics, headlines and outlines for the core of your pillar content. If you’re like most people and you skipped over the ‘do this and then do that’ part of the last two weeks, I seriously encourage you to go back and do them now.
The rest of this post will be painful without them.
So here’s where the fun really starts. Today is where you take your ideas, your cleverly crafted headlines and that all important outline, and start weaving your magic. It’s the fun part because you’ll end the process with lots of gorgeous words to show for all your effort, and that’s worth a smile right?
The good news is that with your headline and outline in place, writing the post is easy. You’ve done all the hard thinking work. You just need to sit down and get it done.
The bad news? You need to sit down and get it done!
Time for the much-cited but oft ignored advice …
Email, Twitter, Facebook, Skype … whatever your time drain of choice, if you want to get these pillar content posts done with the least time investment, it’s vital that you remove all distractions. This series was prepared and written using the advice given throughout with the exception of this one point.
While writing this I’m also in the process of cooking dinner, chatting via GTalk and checking the latest happenings on Twitter. The result? This paragraph took me three hours to write!
Sit there and write it already! Legendary copywriter Eugene Schwartz had a killer technique for getting it done. He sat in his seat and was not allowed to get out of it until his timer went off, signalling the end of the allotted 33.33 minutes. Now that might not be the way for everyone but you can not argue with the rationale behind sticking around and just doing it.
And the most annoying thing of all? It works! That this post is finished owes much to Schwartz’s method. 
When you’re writing the first draft of anything, it’s just that, a first draft. The most effective way to nail any content creation is to get the words out as quickly as possible. Forget about correcting spelling, don’t worry that your finger slipped on an extra key, grammar can go out the window. This is your first draft baby and as such, none of these things is in the slightest bit important.
You have your headline in place so you know where your headed. With your outline by your side you also have a map of the journey. First drafts are about filling in the details and if you stop to change sentence construction along the way, not only are you in serious danger of cramping your own style, the whole process will take twice as long (and result in a less stupendous piece of writing!)
Now before anyone has a fit, I’m not suggesting that you then hit publish. No way! This is a first draft. You get your words out there and then you go and do something else. Have a cup of tea, read a book, go for a walk, call your favourite aunt and have a natter.
And then later (and yes, I know, ‘later’ is a very stretchy word!) you return to your first draft and you read it through, twice. The first time you read it through, do so from your blog’s dashboard. At this stage you’re really just looking for the glaringly obvious mistakes, typos, spelling mistakes, things that don’t seem to make sense.
It is in the second reading where the magic really happens.
Save your blog post and then click ‘preview’ to read your post within the context of your site as a whole. But here’s the really magic bit … this time you’re going to read your post out loud. There is no single better way I know of spotting poorly constructed phrasing and fidgety grammar than this so I’m going to say it again …
It is a beautiful way to make sure you sound like you (and if you’re not already using your own distinctive voice in your writing, this is something we can discuss another time) and it is the most simple way to check that your post reads like the wonderful work of art it deserves to be.
Follow the stops above and you’ll have finished one of your core blog posts. But it’s not time for snoozing yet. You’re creating a series remember? Go and have a break, stretch your legs, get some fresh air … then come back and do it all again.
And again. And again.
My God given talent is my ability to stick with training longer than anybody else.” – Herschel Walker
You may not be training for a football game but the ability to keep at it, to consistently come back and write some more, to stick with it until you’re done, this alone will make the difference between you and the guy pulling at your shirt to overtake you.
But first, what techniques do you already use for sticking with a task and getting it done?
Thanks for these reminders! The distractions can be hard and I think is just an excuse to procrastinate! Funny, how suddenly cleaning your toilet can seem a better option when you have writer's block!
keep focus and continue writing rather than editing right away. Maybe I should try the technique of allotting 33.3 minutes. Thanks for the interesting article.
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a good writing environment is unique to everyone, but finding the conditions that work for you will help make getting "in the zone" that much easier, too.
Nice points to consider El… I believe that having the right topic that interest you most can make the writing easy.. I am applying the keep on writing to keep the the thoughts pouring. I will just edit it after. Thank you for the tips.
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Gread advice…like always! Really like the "stop editing and start writing" advice. The problem with me is that sometimes, I forget to go back and edit
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It is true that writers waste more time on editing their articles rather than writing more articles. Because they are very cautious about their written matter and you should always write in which you are good at. Maybe writing on your hobbies, basically just write what you are interested in and good at. This shall help the writer to get great articles for his readers.
The advice is excellent and I try to follow all of them, but my head is too empty to get new ideas for post s sometimes. It is different every time. Sometimes I can write easily for some hours and i have some inspiration, but sometimes i can't squeeze a word of myself.
I use the egg timer method to make sure I stay on track, 30 minutes on, 10 minutes to do whatever I want, then 30 minutes on again.
Hi Jamie
I think this is the first time that I ever heard of the egg timer method. I think that it would be useful for me. Perhaps I will try it.
Nice posting. learned lot. What the people mostly drop is "Stop editing, keep writing" and "Turn off all distractions". These two will be the major reason for not finishing the work. Thanks for the article. Had a chance to read a nice article. Thanks.
The hardest part for me is "Stop editing, keep writing". I have a tendency to go back and revisit what I've just written too often. That's a hard habit to break, but I'm working on it!
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This sounds in a lot of ways similar to Randy Ingermanson's Snowflake Method. Once you've really invested the time in the prep work, the writing is almost just a formality because it's been working itself out in your brain. Of course, a good writing environment is unique to everyone, but finding the conditions that work for you will help make getting "in the zone" that much easier, too.
I could relate on being distracted on social networking sites instead of focusing on making blog posts. It is really important to keep focus and continue writing rather than editing right away. Maybe I should try the technique of allotting 33.3 minutes. Thanks for the interesting article.
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Thank you for the great advice! I find just focusing in on a goal works well!
Gread advice…like always! Really like the "stop editing and start writing" advice. The problem with me is that sometimes, I forget to go back and edit
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Distractions is the main killer of my time. It always has been. I have to shut down practically everything, and almost get rude to get any kind of focus on an important project. Any tips for that?
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Good point. Yet again, a big part of it comes down to taking action. If you sit there and let the obstacles be in your way, nothing is going to happen. Those pillar posts don't write themselves.
I've been working with my 9 year old on reading her writing out loud as a form of proofreading. She doesn't like to do it yet – it feels awkward when you start out – but it's still one of the most effective ways to catch mistakes and find better ways to phrase things.
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