Blogging Tip #11-Write It Down
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I should write things when I think of them, Not when it’s convenient!
When you have a good thought, and you think it is So Good that you couldn’t possibly forget, Murphy’s Law will probably come into effect.
You start on a different project, confident in the fact that you will remember the whole flow that was just sitting there in your mind and would be readily available when you were ready to put it down in a post, on paper or whatever medium you use.
It happened to me (again) the other morning.
I had an idea for a post and thought that I could get a few other things done and come back to it later.
The few other things turned into a Multitude of things, each following in a predictable fashion. By the time I was finished doing the few things (check email, writing and responding to each, following up other posts, checking comments) things that have been neglected around the house (because of recent events) the only thing left was the idea, and not much of it by this point.
Whereas, when I had the original thought, I had a Title, a coherent thought process and direction, the whole basic post… Now I have nothing.
It’s not that something like this hasn’t happened before, It Has.
When something like this happens, I always remember one of my favorite pieces of advice. One which I have heard throughout my writing career and which I pass along to you…
WRITE IT DOWN…
You can carry a piece of paper, notepad, even use the back of a business card. If you have a Blackberry, put at least a text message to yourself. You can use your cell phone to send yourself an email or at the very least, a Voice Message with the basic information you need to remember.
The whole point is, find a way to keep that thought. If you are going to go onto a different phase and you think you have a good (read Great) idea and don’t want to lose it. Write it Down. Find a way to preserve the thought.
Now, If I could only learn to take my own advice.
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Yes, Joe, you need to learn to take your own advice. Keep dishing it out, though; I suspect many of us have a tendency to have that “I’ll get to it in a minute” thought going on.
Input by Carolyn Manning | April 10, 2007 @ 5:39 pm
LOL … how many “v-8 moments” i ‘ve had while on my Picken’s back riding the range … Hmmm slight disadvantage to writing it down at the time , though it does stimulate the creative juices.
Thanx for reminding us of doing the done deal when we can … now!
GP in Montana
Input by GP | April 11, 2007 @ 10:57 am
Great post Joe. I do two different things to help me keep things in line. If I have an idea for a post I will put the title in and the main points that I will jog my absent-minded memory and then save this as a draft in typepad (I’m sure other blogging tools have something similar).
The other tool which I just started using is jott. You call jott via your cell phone and say who you want to send it to and what you want to say (up to a minute). It will then send an email to the desired recipient, including posting directly to your blog. There is also a link to the original voice file in case there are any issue with jott’s voice recognition SW.
This comes in handy when I am out on the road and have an idea for a post.
Input by Randy Moog | April 11, 2007 @ 11:56 am
Hey GP,
Read Randy’s comment you might want to try using “jott” while riding the range on that big ole horse.
Randy,
I do use the draft strategy sometimes, but when I’m away from the computer (which isn’t enough per K) I try the good old pen and paper thing.
Maybe I should try jott too. Is it a paid service? How do I get it?
Thanks,
Joe
Input by Joe | April 11, 2007 @ 1:53 pm
Hey Joe,
Jott is as free as pumpkins on Halloween night. Sign up for it on jott. It is in Beta now and I am not sure if they are going to charge for it at some time, but take a look at it and see if if it works for you.
Randy
Input by Randy Moog | April 11, 2007 @ 9:25 pm
Thanks Randy,
I’ll give it a try and let you know.
Input by Joe | April 12, 2007 @ 7:03 am
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