Tuesday, December 26, 2023

Countdown to 2024 - Nine Writing Tips Before Christmas - #6 - Bang It Right The First Time!

Countdown + Writing

Use a (real) keyboard.

Don't write on your phone. Instead, use a real keyboard (and a real screen). A tablet (with an external BT keyboard) will work, but nothing beats that big piece of screen real estate in front of you.

If you can afford it, go big. 27", or even 2x 27" or some ultrawide thingy. And don't forget you'll be editing as well! If you use an editor (as in: a person, not the software 😏) it can be nice to show the editor's and your own version side by side.


Blind Typing

This might also be a great time to teach yourself how to type blind. You want to.

Why? If you use two fingers, you'll hit about 100 to 150 characters per minute, that's about 20 to 30 words.

If you use 10 fingers and type blind, then you'll hit 350 to 400 characters, or 70 to 80 words per minute. More importantly, you'll have a much lower mistake rate which saves on editing.

That gives you more time to think about the story. Or -- once you're an accomplished blind typist -- the writing will be fully automatic, translating your thoughts into words. There's nothing better than that 😇


Tablet Typing

On a tablet you'll be a bit slower when compared to a real keyboard. More experienced typists hit up to 50 words per minute on a tablet, and will reach about 70 to 80 words on a real keyboard.

Then, there are people like me who just can't type on a tablet, and who do need a physical device. I use a Logitech K380 with my tablet when on the road (or hiding in the kitchen).


Different Keyboards

Try different keyboards. Most people will be faster using full sized, full travel keyboards. If you type a lot and your wrists  become disagreeable, then consider an ergonomic keyboard.




There's (NOT) always the edit...

Obviously, there's always the edit.

But... as we're talking about 'banging it right the first time' (on a keyboard, obviously) then I should bring up punctuation, grammar, and what not. Yes, I know the edit is a required evil, and that nobody can write perfect prose the first time, but by paying some attention to your early drafts you'll reduce the time you have to work on any eventual edits. And once all this grammar and punctuation and text formatting nonsense becomes automatic you won't even notice... until you discover during your next edit that editing is taking you way less time.

Win / win, and nothing but!


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