Finding Time to Write and Writing in Groups

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Whether you are Collegiate Gigster full time or part time, an aspect of what you do requires writing. Inherent in that process is time to think about what you want to write about. Whether the writing is a proposal for a client, a marketing plan, course prep, a blog, or an academic journal article, you need to set aside time to think before you put words down on paper. You use this time to ponder what you want to focus on, how you want to structure it, and finally how you want to deliver it.

As a Collegiate Gigster myself, I struggle with finding the time to write. Most often, I have the biggest amounts of time to write during the summer. This past summer I put together a writing group in my academic department. We met twice a month for three hours each time. I invited adjuncts, Ph.D. students, and master’s students to join because I find these groups often have the hardest time managing the unstructured nature of the summer as it relates to their writing. In the end, a solid group of six people joined me during the summer months to get our writing done.

It was a huge success. These are the writing projects we worked on together:

  • Conference proposals

  • Course outlines

  • Grant proposals

  • Client presentations

It didn’t matter that we had different things to finish. What mattered most was that we all committed to doing it during our time together. We cheered each other on and made ourselves available to read over each other’s work to provide different perspectives to the writers.

You can also set up such writing support groups in your small business environment. Whether you work in import/export, manufacturing, personal services, or marketing, writing is inevitably part of every business… whether you realize it or not. Collaborating with others in shared writing time, having someone read over the writing, and brainstorming new ideas, often yields some of the best and lasting results.

I know that there is plenty of advice out there on how to be productive with writing – I’ve read many of the suggestions. It usually involves setting up a regular time to write – morning or evenings, for anywhere from 15 to 60 minutes. The importance, the advice goes on to stress, is consistency. I completely agree, but working in groups to help each other along reinforces all of these efforts.

I don’t know about you, but for me having a family with young children makes it difficult to find a consistent time to do anything, let alone write. I’ve learned to write in sprints, and I usually do these in the evenings or early mornings. During these times, I get small sections done like prepping for class or working on a paragraph in a longer article I’m working on. Unfortunately, these are short blocks of time and it is difficult to keep them consistent. The most effective blocks of time I have are during the summer when I schedule them, reserve a room on campus, and invite others to join me.

Summers work best for me, but maybe your business has other “down times”, or other strategic times of the year where you must write to meet deadlines. The rhythms of your life may also impact how consistent you can be in your writing. My advice is to find what works and bring in others in similar situations as you to support the overall goal of completing everyone’s writing.

It can be frustrating to not be able to follow the advice on those popular writing columns. Part of this is that they don’t complete the picture by stressing the importance of peer-support. All of our situations are different. If writing is an important part of your professional identity, or an essential part of your work, you must find a solution that works for you. Sometimes writing alone is the only real option – and that’s OK too.

I do what I can, when I can, in the best way I can. This approach often works for me. Don’t get me wrong, I sometimes let the green-eyed monster get the best of me. When this happens, I let the feelings run their course, and refocus on expanding my expertise. Keep going, keep reaching, keep collaborating, and know that things are already better because you are writing.

This year, I was very fortunate to have one of my American Educational Research Association (AERA) proposals accepted… this was a first for me! Perhaps my professional achievements happen at a different pace because my professional conditions require it. You will find that even within your industry, achievements will be reached at different times. Be one another’s cheerleaders and soon enough, it will be your turn.

In the coming year I will be running another summer writing group and want to add a virtual component to it as well. Let me know if you are interested in joining by leaving a note in the comments below. Reach out and tell me what you’re doing and how you’re getting along with your own writing plans. I’d love to hear about them.