"What do I want to cover in this chapter? I want the reader to understand (this
process/ theory/ idea/ method). I also want to include these five anecdotes. What do
the anecdotes show? The first one shows that..."
By talking to myself like this, I eliminate performance anxiety. Some writers
do the same thing by writing their chapters as letters: they can take it easy, as if
they're talking to a friend. The big benefit of using a method like this is that it does
away with formality and stiffness.3.^ When^ you're^ ready,^ write^
When you feel ready, start to write. As you're writing, just get the words out as
quickly as you can. It's useful to set a goal for the number of pages in an hour. I
usually aim for three pages an hour. However, if you feel that having a number of
pages that you "must" write an hour stresses you, then don't set a goal like this.
When you're writing:^
-^ Turn on the^ answering^ machine, and turn off^ your email program;^
-^ Close your office door;^
-^ Set yourself goal of either pages written, or words written;^
- Don’t reread your notes. If you need to look something up, just write "tk"
which is an old printer's mark meaning "to come", and keep on writing. If you
stop to look something up it may derail your train of thought. Plus you may
think: oh, I need to cover this, and this, and this must go in. Assure yourself
that you won’t be able to cover everything. Trust that your subconscious will
deliver the material which needs to go into the first chapter ; - Keep going even if you're sure that what you’re writing is less than your best
work. You can tidy it all up later. Just get the words down.
If you find that your writing goes slowly with this first chapter, that's normal. First
chapters are always slow to write, because you haven’t found the right tone and voice
in which to write your book. Once you find those, the writing will go much more
easily. Because first chapters are always slow, it's important that you don’t leave your
desk until you've written the number of words you set out to write.