How to write when the words won’t come
Plus shout-outs to a late-80s rock classic and an early 2010s TV classic.
Hello and welcome to Academia Made Easier. I am so glad that you are here.
Today’s newsletter is not the newsletter I intended to write.
For a month now, I have been trying to write a newsletter titled “How to sleep while our beds are burning.” The title, flagrantly stolen from inspired by Midnight Oil, was a set-up for me to talk about how my country is on fire. Literal fire: as the Washington Post writes today, this is “Canada’s worst wildfire season on record — an Indiana-sized expanse of 23 million acres has been charred and a record 155,000 people have been driven from their homes, and there are still months to go”. Metaphorical fire, as Canadian politics is becoming highly polarized and local public consultations are being shut down due to conspiracy theories and hate speech. I was going to have a link to the “this is fine” Gunshow comic and then share strategies for working during times of stress.
That was my plan.
But whenever I tried to work on it, words wouldn’t come to me - not even shitty first draft words, not even with my old standby write for 10 minutes approach. I felt a need to write it and yet I couldn’t write it. My roughly-kinda-sorta every two weeks newsletter schedule passed a target release date and I remained stalled. I thought of other things I could write about but, well, I didn’t want to. Another target release date passed. Words still wouldn’t come.
Being stuck on an idea can occur to all of us as academic writers. If you find yourself in this position, today’s small thing to try immediately might be helpful to you.
One Small Thing to Try Immediately: Warm up your idea
In a 2010 Mad Men episode, social scientist Dr. Faye Miller tells Don Draper the Aesop’s fable “The North Wind and the Sun,” in which the wind fails to get a man to remove his overcoat through wind gusts (force) and the sun succeeds in doing so through warmth (gentleness). When Draper asks about the meaning of the story, Dr. Miller explains that “kindness, gentleness, and persuasion win where force fails”.
If your idea is stuck and words won’t come, perhaps you should try a bit of warmth. Here is how.
1. Take a step back from writing or even thinking about your idea. Decades of writing experience have taught me that some ideas can’t be forced. I have tried - repeatedly, because I am a slower learner than I care to admit - and the more I try to force something, the more stuck I get. If you find yourself in this spot, give your idea some time and space. Take that much overdue vacation time, write a different paper, or work on something else entirely, but just let the idea sit for a bit.
2. Brainstorm possible reasons that your words won’t come. In Aesop’s fable, the man holds onto his coat in the face of strong winds because he doesn’t want to lose it. In my own case, my words wouldn’t come because I feel too much despair about the topic and my “small thing” ideas felt both inadequate and inauthentic. (Is your country on fire? Try some self-care! 🔥🫠) The idea of writing it made me feel vulnerable and useless. No wonder words wouldn’t come to me!
Assume that your subconscious is hanging onto your words as a form of self-protection and consider why your own words might be stuck. Perhaps you feel you lack expertise, or that your idea doesn’t connect to your argument, or your idea is unoriginal or boring. Be as honest as possible with yourself about why you might be stuck.
3. Select a warm and gentle path forward. To return to Aesop, the man voluntarily takes off his coat when the sun warms him. How can you warm your idea so that the words come more easily? Here are some options to consider:
Write about your experience of being stuck on the idea.
Write about how you developed or first learned about the idea.
Write about why you think the idea or topic is interesting or important.
If these three steps don’t work, circle back to step 1 and give the idea a bit more space. Work on other things. Approach steps 2 and 3 with even more gentleness. And – importantly – allow yourself to let some ideas go for a bit or forever and to lean into other writing in which the words come more easily.
To circle back to my experience, I have decided to put a pin in my idea. I might write it someday. Or I might just think of it whenever I listen to “Beds are Burning” on my running playlist. The important thing for me is that I am writing my newsletter again. I missed connecting with you! 😘
Until next time…
If you are new to Academia Made Easier (welcome!!!), please check out my previous newsletters about writing: How to write when you don’t want to write; How to create a writing habit despite all the great reasons you can’t work on your writing right now; How to use bad writing to write more; How to write a book when life keeps interfering with your efforts to write a book; and How to use writing structure to get more writing done. Writing is a critical component of academic life and I hope you find some of these ideas helpful.
Stay well, my colleagues.
P.S. Unrelated to any of the above, I recently had the pleasure of writing a three-part series on academic integrity for University Affairs with Dr. Susan Bens from the Gwenna Moss Centre for Teaching and Learning. The series includes: Students and academic misconduct: why it happens and possible solutions [also in French]; Academic integrity in the age of ChatGPT [also in French]; and Designing courses that promote academic integrity [also in French]. If academic integrity is a concern in your own teaching or programs, I invite you to read the series and to share it with your colleagues/networks.
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A lesson I experienced years ago but did not understanding until I started coaching doctoral student relates to being a dominantly audible learner. Already in high school, I dreaded writing and would do anything to procrastinate even starting papers.
Law school with all of its writing was also an uphill battle. Once I finished, however, I learned how an audible learner can write and write a lot. My first job after passing the bar was for a U.S. District Court Judge as a law clerk. The judge would often want to have an oral discussion about any bench trail drafts I would prepare. He was a highly skilled trial lawyer before being appointed to the bench, so no surprise.
When we had these discussions, I could get the often very lengthy memorandum of decision completed in a few days. It was magical but I did not see how audible conceptualization and writing worked in tandem for many years.
My next position was as an associate (or cage rat) for a large regional litigation practice. I was often left in my very small office to write motion or trial briefs. The work was miserable and I needed to move on--and did.
Next up was a 10-attorney boutique litigation practice with a lead litigator who would discuss motions, briefs, etc. orally before we committed to writing. It was again almost magical.
When we work with students, our out-of-the-door assumption is that they are visual learners and will instantly instantly process feedback on their writing. That is a flawed assumption. Oral feedback delivered in two-way communication (not recorded voice feedback in an LMS) is so much more valuable to many learners, especially those oriented toward audible learning.
This is so very timely and relevant for me! Thank you for your always wise words Loleen.