What’s The Fastest Way To Write An Article Or Book

I’ve been working with writers and authors for a long time, teaching writing and coaching authors and I’m often asked, “What’s the fastest way to get something written?”
For me, I have determined that once I come up with a topic, I will then create an outline. See my article on the creation of outlines. Then I blueprint the article or project; again see my article on blueprinting an article or book.
With the outline and/or blueprint in hand, I will then write one idea down on a 3 x 5 card and arrange them according to the categories designated by the outline or blueprint. Each category I clip together, either with a paper clip or a rubber band and carry a stack of them around with me. I frequently have lengthy commutes, and I use those precious minutes to dictate ideas and thoughts on a key point into a tiny hand-held recorder…i.e. the single idea on a 3 x 5 card. I can often talk for up to 15 minutes on a single point, and I find that most people who are pretty knowledgeable about their field can do the same thing.
Once I return to my office, I take those dictations and download them onto my computer. From here you can either transcribe the notes yourself, hire someone to transcribe them, or invest some time and money into voice to notes software such as Dragon Naturally Speaking. (Note, you must get the professional version as the home version will not perform this function for you.)
By focusing only on a single point at a time, I don’t get confused about where I want to go with that topic. I am able to deal with it in a great deal of depth, and once the notes are transcribed I am able to pull most of it from the transcription and use it exactly the way I dictated it into my article or book.
This is a slight aside, but having experienced it myself, and having edited a great many transcribed dictations, I have discovered that we usually take a few minutes to really get into our topic. Much of what we utter in those first couple minutes are stuttering stops and starts on the topic. Don’t worry about this. Allow this to happen, because if you do, then you will suddenly become very, very involved with your topic and the material that you then dictate will be really good material.
Another hint for this type of writing…if you have trouble starting, try to visualize a friend, or better yet, a customer or client who needs the information you are going to share. Think about the questions they may ask, and you may even pose those questions out loud into the dictation. By keeping your end target, your audience, in mind while you dictate, you will stay focused, and you will be able to write an article or chapter in your book with the greatest speed ever.
This is my favorite tip for getting words down on paper fast. Write the way you talk. People are more inclined to read what sounds like friendly suggestions or advice. Try it. You may even discover that you have a knack for speaking that you never knew you had! Regardless, this is one way to make the task of writing faster and easier than ever before.