This article represents a super-quick brain dump while testing out the features in WordPress 5.0. While I think it is useful, it isn’t the typical standard fare around here.
There is an interesting phenomenon among writers in that many of us feel we do our best “writing” when we aren’t anywhere near a keyboard or pen. That is, some of our best ideas, and ways of communicating those ideas occur AFK, as they say.
I know one fellow writer who carries around some sort of pen looking thing that is a digital recorder. I know a few others who use an app on their phone to do the same thing.
When an idea comes to them that they feel particularly good about, whether it’s a snippet of dialog, a blog post idea, or just some poetic thoughts, they break out the recorder and speak. The hope is that when you get near a keyboard, you can take those voice notes and use them to create magic.
I’ve tried that, and while I do get those few precious seconds of brain juice pouring out of the recorder, it is never the same.
Give Your Brain Time to Percolate
As it turns out, I am a better writer (sometimes) when I’m not trying to force something out through my fingers and onto the screen. The trick to being productive, while still letting the mind generate its best ideas is to sit at the keyboard, but instead of pounding the keys, lean back, take a sip of coffee, and let the mind do its thing. Then, when the goodness strikes, get those fingers moving.
The trick is timing. Get typing too soon and you can cut off the magic. Start typing too late, and you might miss the good stuff, or even worse, you’re just wasting time.
P.S. Can I seriously not change the color of just one word in the Gutenberg editor thing?