Writing an article takes ages? You’re picking the wrong ideas.

Here's a method to find "quicker" ideas but still have time to reflect.

Image generated by the author using Microsoft CoPilot

I recently had a conversation with a subscriber. Let’s call her Gloria.

She was trying to develop a consistent publishing rhythm. I asked: “How long does it take to you to write an article?”

She replied: “From 2 to 20 hours…”

She smiled, realizing where the problem was.

You know, even if you believe in slow productivity, “2 to 20 hours” is too unpredictable. You can never say when an article will be ready. You can’t do any planning. You never get into a publishing rhythm.

Withoug consistency, you don’t create engagement with your readers. Over time, you may even get discouraged and quit.

The identity problem

But even more importantly, you don’t take yourself seriously as a creator.

In his book ”Turning Pro”, Steven Pressfield invites creatives to turn pro. But he doesn’t necessarily mean “getting paid”. He means: “shift to a professional mindset”.

This includes practicing the habits of a professional.

Can you imagine a professional taking 2 to 20 hours to submit his work to an editor?

A whole in the process

Here’s how Gloria works:

1. she chooses an interesting idea,

2. starts writing,

3. keeps writing until the idea becomes clear, first in her head, then also for the reader.

But step 3 can take forever. It’s true that “writing is thinking”. But we can still think and ship our work on a predictable cadence.

The solution

Established, full-time authors have the luxury of spending entire days on a piece. They have the endorsement of powerful influencers. Their pieces appear on the most reputable publications. They can count on a minimum level of succes.

But writers with small audiences can’t.

And some writers have other commitments (like a business to run). They are permanently writing on the side. How do we speed up writing but still publish thoughtful content?

Here’s my suggestion to Gloria: separate raw ideas from ripe ideas.

In practice:

• take an idea that excites you,

• set a timer for 30 minutes,

• start outlining, mindmapping, freewriting, whatever you need to explore your idea,

• when the timer goes off, if the didn’t turn yet into the embryo of an article, file it back among the raw ideas,

• move to the next idea.

You’ve not wasted 30 minutes. You saved 19 hours and a half.

Over time, you’ll develop a sixth sense. It will show you which article ideas are ripe. Which ones need 2-3 hours of work, not 20, to produce something publishable.

The power-up

I’m guilty of leaving too many ideas to rot in my Notion database. Blinded by the commandment to be consistent, I use all of my creative time to work on content.

But I realized with a little more reflection, some of my ideas, and thus my articles, can be more original. They can build my personal brand, make me look like a thought leader.

So I started regularly taking time to think. Most days, for half an hour, I don’t work on content. I take an interesting idea and explore it freely, without expectations.

This was my suggestion to the subscriber. Keep working on those raw ideas for some time every day. Eventually, they’ll be ready to be published.

But when you need to publish, focus on the ideas that just need a short reflection. Or that are ready to become an article.

Committing to daily reflection but limiting its duration leaves you time to write about your ripe ideas. You find the balance between developing your original contributions, but also practice writing and build an audience.

Try it

If your writing time is unpredictable, try this technique for a few weeks. It will be slower in the short term. Many thinking session won’t lead to new insights.

But over the long term, this practice will improve the quantity and quality of your articles (and any kind of content).