Why I write – a blog hop post

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There has been a bit of a blog hop going on among some freelance writing peeps recently. I was feeling a little left out, so I was thrilled when Brook McCarthy tagged me in her post about “Why I Write”.

I guess the simple answer would be “because I am reasonably good at it and can earn a living doing something I enjoy”. But there is a lot more to it than that, and goes back many, many years. Long before I got sidetracked into the living nightmare that is “management”.

So here goes with my response to the blog hop questions:

What am I working on?

As a writer-for-hire I often have several things on the go at once, and now is no exception. In a “perfect storm” situation, three ongoing clients all had their regular newsletters due at once (I am still working on the tail end of a couple of them), as well as annual reports plus piecemeal work such as marketing blurbs and press releases. I have also just finished a massive proofreading/formatting job – nearly 100,000 word in five days – for an academic research pilot program in the health sphere. Meanwhile, I am mid-way through writing an internal event-management guide for one of Australia’s largest Universities.

I have put a hold on any new jobs until at least November and then, well who knows.

How does my writing style differ from others in my genre

Like most copywriters, my natural style is fairly chatty. I write like I talk. But when I am working for a client, my style changes to suit the project. And considering most of my major clients are in reasonably technical fields – downstream petroleum, mechanical contracting, construction industry procurement (sexy stuff, right) – it’s important that I maintain a professional tone while ensuring people can actually understand the tech-speak. But I love to break up all that heavy stuff with the odd small business brochure or website where I can let my creativity show.

Why do I write?

Because I can. Because I can’t think of anything else I would rather do – and still get paid for.  Because I have always loved words, and how they can convey so much. Because I love how adding – or taking away – a single word can change the entire meaning of a paragraph. Because as I climbed the career ladder, and started managing writers rather than writing myself, it was like someone had stolen my soul, my reason for being. Because numbers make my eyes bleed while words make them sing.

How does my writing process work?

It’s not so much a process, but I find that once I have the first paragraph, the rest flow naturally. Mind you, that first paragraph can take hours and sometimes I need to walk away from the laptop and wait for it to appear. And I need to turn off distractions, like social media or the phone while I write, otherwise I will always be drawn by the shiny things.

If I am not in the mood, or writer’s block has hit. I try not to force it. Obviously this is a little harder when a client has a deadline, but I leave myself a little buffer in the project timeline to account for this.

Once I have written the first draft, I like to leave it for at least a few hours before having another look. And if it’s a big project, I usually include an external proofreader in my quote.

So there you have it – a little insight into why I write.

Over to you Sarah Morton

(Oh, and I would love to know why you write, so please share in the comments)

Till next time

Nicole