How I Write Articles

Low fidelity, old school, and simple

My writing setup - a legal pad, Kaweco rollerball pen, and a laptop/iPad.

This is a bit of a different post since I’m usually pontificating on data-related matters. I often get as many questions about my writing process as I get for data and technology questions. Recently, I did an informal poll where I asked about people's interest in writing books or articles. Since most people said yes, I'm going to dive into my writing process. This will be the first of many articles related to writing - how I write and tips for how you should write.

First I’ll discuss how I write articles. Eventually, I will cover how I write books. Articles and books are different beasts, and I don’t believe they’re anything close to the same thing. Articles allow for a microscopic look at a tiny sliver of a subject area or topic. A book is macro in every sense, requiring you to weave threads and storylines through the book. Writing a book is a way different process than writing articles.

Every writer is different. Some are very deliberate and like to plan every detail before writing. Others are more free-flowing. I'm somewhere in the middle.

For me, an article often starts with an idea I can’t seem to shake off. I don't start by writing. Instead, I’ll first make a rough outline, brain-dumping my thoughts onto a legal pad. Then I’ll map different concepts and scrawlings to each other. This outlining phase is about organizing thoughts. Outlining is super key for me, as my mind tends to be very chaotic and I’ve got a lot going on upstairs (ask my friends). I’m not the kind of writer who can dump words onto a page in one go. I need to structure ideas and concepts into a story. This takes time, and I may brood over an idea for days or weeks. Other times, the idea is obvious, and outlining takes minutes. At this stage, the goal is to create structure for an idea.

Nailing a concept for an article is difficult. Fun detour, I’ve been writing for ages, starting as a precocious, punk rock teenager. Last year I found some of my old high school writings from the 1990s on virtual reality, cyberpunk, and the internet. They were pretty good. My high school writing instructor used the wood-chopping analogy. When you use an axe to chop wood, you aim for a target. Rarely do you hit the target though. You’re often a bit off the mark. Chopping wood is hard work, but you still get the job done. Picking a topic is a lot like this. You keep chopping away at an idea, and an idea might become a topic. Other times, nothing comes of it. I've had countless drafts of articles where I thought the idea was obvious. After writing and struggling with the topic, I moved on to other ideas. But those ideas are always there, waiting for another visit.

After the paper outline, I transfer this outline into headings on a Google Doc. Then I’ll start writing a zero-draft. With a zero draft, the intent is to get words onto the page, no matter how silly they look. It's a brain dump. It usually takes me around 200 to 300 words to feel motivated to keep writing, so I’ll push myself to hit that word count. And I always write a zero draft, no matter how dumb, unorganized, or incoherent the words look. The main thing is to put your ideas on the page.

Then comes the edit. Editing is where the real writing starts.  Each pass at editing is about sharpening the idea you’re trying to convey. You're cutting and moving words around to tell a story. Early in the editing process, I don't focus on grammar or punctuation. Move the words around until the storyline makes sense. Every editing pass gets finer and finer. After the third edit or so, I get help from tools like Hemingway to check for brevity and Grammarly to fix grammatical errors and typos.

Then I let the article sit anywhere from a few hours to a few days. During this break, it's interesting how your brain processes what you wrote. Writing and resting work together to clarify your ideas. I find it's best to write, pause, process, and rewrite. You might have more to say. Add it. You may want to say less. Shorten it. Either way, the act of writing isn't only to blurt onto the page. It's a very personal and selfish act of improving your thinking. Articles are a pretty painless way to clarify and express your ideas, even if you're only writing for yourself.

So, this is how I write articles. It's not fancy. It's pretty boring and old school. But it works for me. You might find a different approach works better for you. The important thing is to make a habit of writing. In an upcoming article, I’ll talk about how I stay consistent with writing, which is harder than it seems.