Solving the puzzle of writing

When you really get into it, writing can be viewed as a bunch of puzzles:

• How do I translate my thoughts into words?
• What word or sentence makes sense here?
• How do I convince a reader of this point?
• How do I start the piece? How do I end it?
• How can I make this sentence, paragraph, or piece sharper, more entertaining, and more concrete?
• What can I delete without losing meaning?

Getting better at solving these puzzles starts with realizing that writing, when it is hard, is a series of puzzles to figure out. You can then build strategies and tools for figuring them out like:

1. Not worrying about solving too many puzzles in the first draft. Save them for further revisions.
2. Seeing how others are solving the puzzles, also known as reading or “creating taste.”
3. Collecting structures, titles, intros, conclusions, graphics, and words to use as solutions.
4. Trying multiple solutions to the same problem and comparing them to see what actually works best.
5. Asking for help on a specific problem. People give much better feedback when you guide them on how they can help.
6. Leverage different modes of writing. Try writing a silly solution, the wrong one, an extra long one, or no solution at all.
7. Split the puzzle into smaller ones and figure those out.

Getting stuck in writing is often just getting stuck on a puzzle. Thinking of it that way will help you write more (and better).