Writing can be an overwhelming experience, especially for those with attentional deficit issues. Here are some tricks I have learned to help reduce my cognitive overload when writing and editing:
Express yourself first, edit later
- Don’t expect the first expression of an idea to be elegant, well-formed, or to make any sense
- Through skillful editing, silk purses can be made from sow’s ears
- The writing/editing process is highly iterative; don’t be surprised if it takes time
Writing as a tool for thinking
- As you write you might start to think about things in a new way
- It may be difficult to predict where a document might lead before you actually write it
- This emergent aspect is what makes writing exciting
Mechanical editing
- A large part of editing is mechanical or technical and thus could, in theory, be automated (that is, any monkey could be trained to do it)
- Such editing need not be too difficult conceptually
Good content requires more than technique
- Even with perfect technical editing, there is no guarantee that the content of writing will have any value
Number of words
- If you can express the same thought in fewer words, then use fewer words
- However, don’t be too miserly with words; excessive density or compactness of writing should be avoided
Contiguity of similar ideas
- Put ideas that are similar, next to one another, using cut and paste
- If there is repetition, then get rid of something
- Don’t say the same thing in different parts of the same document, except occasionally for rhetorical effect
Order and flow
- Often, sufficient ideas are present in a document but are not in the proper order
- Put ideas in the proper order so that they flow well and unfold elegantly
Conclusions
- If you make a conclusion using words such as ‘therefore’ or ‘so’, you should support your conclusion with a progression of plausible assertions
- Don’t assume, as a given, what you are tying to prove
- Sometimes lines of reasoning lead to crazy conclusions; sometimes such conclusions turn out to be true
Avoid conclusions if necessary
- Often the available evidence is too sketchy or ambiguous to make firm conclusions
- Asking the right questions might be a worthwhile contribution
Back to front structure
- If you come to an interesting conclusion at the end of a document, it might be a good idea to put that idea at the beginning so people have some idea where you are headed
Hidden assumptions
- Hidden assumptions are things assumed to be true without their existence being acknowledged and with no evidence of their truthfulness provided
- Try to identity and examine hidden assumptions; this can often be an interesting and fruitful enquiry
Knowledge as ‘frozen ignorance’
- Often things that ‘everyone knows’ turn out not to be true
- Assume that your ignorance of the world is much greater than your knowledge
