Written: How to Keep Writing and Build a Habit That Lasts
Published on 4. January 2024
Book
Paperback/Softback
272 pages
978-1-78578-905-2 (ISBN)
Description
**With a Foreword by OLIVER BURKEMAN, bestselling author of the Sunday Times bestseller Four Thousand Weeks**
Written is a transformative guide that anyone can use to overcome their blocks and build a successful writing habit.
Writing is important to many of us - for our careers, studies, businesses or creative fulfilment - but sitting down and doing it can feel impossible. We often struggle to give it the attention it deserves. We can't find time. Our focus is torn. Distractions are everywhere. Our inner critic keeps telling us we're no good.
But what if you could find a highly effective writing habit that was perfect for you?
Bec Evans and Chris Smith have helped thousands of people stop procrastinating, overcome their blocks and reach their writing goals. Now, they've turned their successful approach into this life-changing book that anyone can use to write more productively and with less stress.
Packed full of tried and tested advice, stories you can relate to and the latest research from psychology and neuroscience, Written gives you the tools you need to start writing, keep going - and finish.
Written is a transformative guide that anyone can use to overcome their blocks and build a successful writing habit.
Writing is important to many of us - for our careers, studies, businesses or creative fulfilment - but sitting down and doing it can feel impossible. We often struggle to give it the attention it deserves. We can't find time. Our focus is torn. Distractions are everywhere. Our inner critic keeps telling us we're no good.
But what if you could find a highly effective writing habit that was perfect for you?
Bec Evans and Chris Smith have helped thousands of people stop procrastinating, overcome their blocks and reach their writing goals. Now, they've turned their successful approach into this life-changing book that anyone can use to write more productively and with less stress.
Packed full of tried and tested advice, stories you can relate to and the latest research from psychology and neuroscience, Written gives you the tools you need to start writing, keep going - and finish.
Reviews / Votes
This book collects some of the best advice I've ever encountered for constructing a writing habit that actually works. * Oliver Burkeman, author of Four Thousand Weeks * This is a fascinating and extremely useful book. I recommend it! * David Quantick, novelist and Emmy Award-winning scriptwriter of Veep, The Thick of It and Avenue 5 * An invaluable guidebook for writers at all stages. Evans and Smith understand that process is deeply personal, and they provide a wealth of wise, compassionate advice for breaking unhelpful patterns and creating a flexible, realistic plan for sustainable long-term productivity. * Mason Currey, author of Daily Rituals: How Artists Work * This well-written book on writing well is enormously valuable for anyone wishing to write productively. If you're a writer, first be a reader of this book. * Robert Cialdini, author of Influence and Pre-Suasion * A fun to read and highly informative guide to overcome the most difficult obstacles in writing. * Gabriele Oettingen, author of Rethinking Positive Thinking * What a lovely, friendly book. Made me feel cheerful, buoyant, less alone and keen to get on with my writing. Highly recommended. * Cathy Rentzenbrink, author of Write It All Down * Written lays out the challenges that almost every writer faces and provides real-world antidotes to many of the myths and stories we believe about ourselves and why we can't seem to get our projects finished. This book will help you structure your writing life and how you approach the craft of writing. * Rennie Saunders, founder and CEO of ShutUp&Write! * Two things that I love about this book. First, Bec and Chris don't assume that what works for one famous writer will work for you. Their emphasis is on discovering the best way for each writer to get their writing done. And secondly, this isn't just based on hunches - but on extensive study of how writers write. Highly recommended. * Nigel Warburton, author of A Little History of Philosophy * There's nothing scarier in my work than a blank page, yet nothing more satisfying and exciting than finishing and launching a book. Written holds your hand throughout that entire process. Bec and Chris keep things practical, with an admirable focus on the habit-changes needed to get your words "out there". If you want to go from "writing" to "written", then you need this book. * Graham Allcott, founder of Think Productive and author of How to be a Productivity Ninja * This isn't just another productivity book. Most writers have lots of those, but none of them speak to the real causes of why getting on with writing is so hard to do. Written is different: it's rooted not just in the authors' own experience but also in that of the thousands of writers they've worked with over the years. Whatever you write, whatever you struggle with, you'll find real-world solutions here. Warm, wise and practical, it deserves pride of place on your bookshelf. * Alison Jones, host of The Extraordinary Business Book Club podcast and author of Exploratory Writing * Engaging and authoritative - full of tried-and-tested advice for all writers, wherever they are in their writing careers. * Debbie Taylor, founder and editor of Mslexia * Bec and Chris' course on combatting procrastination is one of our most popular Reedsy Learning courses, so I'm delighted to see they've turned their practical and inspirational advice for writers into a book - it works. * Ricardo Fayet, co-founder of Reedsy * I've been looking through my library of self-help books for writers and there's nothing quite like this book out there. To me, it seems that it might mean the difference between a half-written manuscript abandoned in a drawer and a finished book on the shelf. I know so many writers who will benefit from it - me included. * Wyl Menmuir, Booker-nominated novelist, writing tutor and author of The Draw of the Sea * This book is an indispensable companion for anyone struggling to start and build a writing habit (most of us!). The writers' journey is a lot less lonely and much more doable with Bec and Chris by your side. We'll be sharing this one widely with our writing community for years to come. There's no magic potion to becoming a writer, but this book comes close. Pick it up to get started - then put it down and get to work. * Matthew Trinetti, co-founder of London Writers' Salon * Refreshingly human and immensely useful. It's so freeing to know there's not just one right way to write! I love the breadth and depth of this book - the curated insights into seasoned writers' heads and processes combined with the super practical tips and exercises on what to actually do next. This deserves to be a well-thumbed handbook on every writer's shelf. * Grace Marshall, author of Struggle and How to be Really Productive * Bec and Chris really helped me on my way to publication. Their insights and encyclopaedic knowledge about creative productivity gave me inspiration, support and practical tools to persevere and establish a more mindful writing practice. I'm excited about their book, as it will help so many writers. * Louise Bassett, author of The Hidden Girl * An invaluable guide to those looking to find new ways to approach their own academic writing and to help others. * London School of Economics Book Review * A refreshingly honest approach to writing- the authors' upbeat tone will cheer on readers. Writing pros and amateurs alike will be eager to start typing. * Publishers Weekly * The beauty of this book is that it guides you into finding the best writing process for you. * Forbes * This book is wise, sympathetic, encouraging and incredibly helpful. It will be a game-changer for so many writers. * Sophie Hannah, bestselling writer * An empowering guide to creating a writing habit that lasts. And a must-read for anyone fascinated by the psychology of performance and mastery. * Tanya Shadrick, author of The Cure for Sleep * The compassion for writers and our strangeness just bubbles off the page. * Leonie Ross, novelist, short story writer, teacher and editor * This is an indispensable addition to the creative bookshelf. It delves deep into blocks, miss-steps and confidence issues, and offers practical and effective coaching. I'll be recommending this to all my students. * Julia Bell * This 'how to' book is a joy and inspiration. Their advice is really friendly and encouraging, and draws on lots of writers' experiences of what works - and crucially - what doesn't work. There's no 'one size fits all' approach either. I'm a fan. * Katrina Naomi, Poet * Editor's Choice - Unsettling our tendencies to fall into fixed patterns of thinking of how we should write, the pair offer a variety of methods taken from the working lives of writers to shift us from unhelpful mindsets and empower us to find what might work. * The Bookseller *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Duxford
United Kingdom
Dimensions
Height: 196 mm
Width: 125 mm
Thickness: 25 mm
Weight
296 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-78578-905-2 (9781785789052)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Persons
Bec Evans and Chris Smith are the co-founders of Prolifiko, a coaching business that helps people build productive writing habits. They met while working together in a bookshop more than 20 years ago and have spent a lifetime writing and working with other writers. Prior to Prolifiko, Bec worked in publishing, led teams of writers and managed a writing centre for Arvon. She's also the award-winning author of How to Have a Happy Hustle. Chris has a background as a ghostwriter and content consultant to global business brands, charities and the public sector. He worked as an agency director before setting up his own communications consultancy and has written for national newspapers and magazines. He is also an award-winning comedy scriptwriter. The authors live in Yorkshire with their dog, Peggy.