One of the words that I use frequently about the writing process is "messy." Writing is messy process, more often than not. We do not get to have our ideas easily actualize themselves into an article. It is hard work, with progress and problems, delights and depressions- it is messy. One of the hardest things for those new to academic writing is the messiness, or at least a willingness to allow for it, to take chances, to let go of an easy and orderly path. In many ways, this is normal, as new authors do not have the track record needed in order to feel trust in themselves, faith in the process. Expect that the process will not be smooth, linear, or easy, and you will not set yourself up for too-high expectations.
Learn to become ok with the messiness of the process- it is inevitable.
I came back to this particular posting to say thank you. Thank you for writing about the messiness of the writing process and thank you for taking time to maintain this blog. I just finished an extended abstract so I can respond to a call for papers (something you recommended in another post!) and I completed the abstract two weeks early. So today, I sent it off to five colleagues for feedback. What a feeling! But, here is the real success story. I have been working on this two-page extended abstract for three months (30 to 60 minutes, 3 to 4 days per week). The writing was not organized and my thoughts were all over the place, but I wrote anyway. Then when I began to write today, everything became clear and in a burst I wrote the 500-word piece. Faith in the process.
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