Build Your Digital Writing Toolbox
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Writing useful and compelling digital copy is not an act of magic or divine intervention, and it's certainly not a feature of your word processor or content management system. Scott believes anyone can--and everyone should--develop a personal process to make writing easier, more enjoyable, and more successful. Scott's presentation breaks the unwieldy concept of "writing" down into four phases: thinking, composing, editing, and finishing. He'll demonstrate tools for managing each component and teach you when and how to use them. Add your favorite software and techniques to a personal toolbox and leave prepared to do great work on your next writing assignment. This presentation was delivered at Web 2013 at Penn State University. Additional annotations have been added for context.
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Build Your Digital Writing Toolbox
- 1. Scott Kubie - Web 2013 at Penn State Build Your Digital Writing Toolbox #writingtoolbox Hello! I’m a note added just for YOU,the web reader. I add in contextthat was provided verbally duringthe original presentation.
- 2. There’s more to writing than writing. Build Your Digital Writing Toolbox
- 3. “If you can talk, you can sing. - Dan Hays, the best choir teacher a kid could ever have @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox
- 4. “If you can think, you can write. - Me, the guy on the stage @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox
- 5. “ @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox People who think well, write well. Woolly minded people write woolly memos, woolly letters and woolly speeches. - David Ogilvy
- 6. add a bit in here (maybe a thought bubble type thing) that gets at the common objections to writing. not creative. i’m not a writer. not giving themselves time to think. Photo by Flickr user Lee Bennett http://flic.kr/p/92x4fk When the check engine light comes on, something’s wrong with the car, not you. Same goes for your writing.
- 7. applying tools and processes to accomplish your work @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox BASICALLY... WORKFLOW The problem might lie with your workflow.
- 8. applying tools and processes to accomplish your work @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox BASICALLY... WORKFLOW (strategic) The problem might lie with your workflow.
- 10. 1 3 2
- 11. 1 4 3 5 2 7 6 8
- 12. !Major Mistake: Lack of awareness @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox WORKFLOW
- 13. a pre-determined and rigid sequence of tasks @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox BASICALLY... PROCESS
- 14. a pre-determined and rigid sequence of tasks @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox BASICALLY... PROCESS (tactical)
- 15. 1 432 1 432 1 432 1 432 Processes don’t vary.
- 16. !Major Mistake: Undocumented @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox PROCESS Habits aren’t processes. You have to write it down.
- 17. @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox BASICALLY... TOOL a thing you use to make your work easier
- 19. ! TOOL Major Mistake: Not plugging them in @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox Translation: you have to really learn your software tools. Get into the preferences and power it up!
- 20. Let’s Build our Toolbox! Build Your Digital Writing Toolbox
- 29. Thinking Composing Editing Finishing How do you represent your thinking?
- 30. Thinking Composing Editing Finishing How do you represent your thinking? What tools and techniques do you use while writing?
- 31. Thinking Composing Editing Finishing How do you improve your writing and correct errors? How do you represent your thinking? What tools and techniques do you use while writing?
- 32. Thinking Composing Editing Finishing How do you improve your writing and correct errors? How do you represent your thinking? What tools and techniques do you use while writing? How do you go from a finished draft to a finished assignment?
- 33. Thinking Build Your Digital Writing Toolbox 1
- 34. having ideas and making plans @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox BASICALLY... THINKING
- 37. !Major Mistake: Starting with a Blank Page @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox THINKING
- 40. “ Data! Data! Data! I can’t make bricks without clay. - Sherlock Freaking Holmes @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox as written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
- 41. @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox Tools for Thinking
- 42. I’m not writing it down to remember it later. I’m writing it down to remember it now. - Field Notes Motto @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox Ubiquitous Capture
- 43. @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox Hipster PDA from the brain of Merlin Mann: http://bit.ly/11vM2qQ
- 48. Work Journal @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox
- 49. Work Journal @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox Attended status meeting
- 50. Work Journal @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox Attended status meeting Published draft to files3 directory: [url]
- 51. Work Journal @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox Attended status meeting Published draft to files3 directory: [url] Chat w/ John in hallway re: project status
- 52. Day One (OS X / iOS) @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox
- 53. Spark File @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox Aug 3 2011 Aug 5 2011 Dec 9 2011 Jan 4 2012
- 54. Card Jam @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox@scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox
- 55. Ubiquitous Capture @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox Image via http://www.flickr.com/photos/danielcornejo/ Think of your brain like a bingo spinner. Each ball is an idea. You have to pull them out one at a time until you get your Bingo.
- 56. Rhetorical Map @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox
- 57. Sketching @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox@scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox
- 58. Freewriting @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox@scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox
- 59. Mindmapping @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox@scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox
- 60. Mindmapping @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox Analog Digital • Whiteboards! • Sketchpads • Corkboards • Mindnode • Mindmeister • Freemind @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox
- 61. ?What about brainstorming? @scottrocketship | #writingtoolboxWriting by committee is worse than designby committee. Writing is an individual activity. You cangenerate ideas in a group, sure, but oneperson still has to write it.
- 62. Thinking Composing Editing Finishing Diagrams Work Journal Day One Mindmaps Hipster PDA CAPTURE!!!
- 63. 2Composing Build Your Digital Writing Toolbox
- 64. transcribing your thoughts in prose @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox BASICALLY... COMPOSING
- 65. ! @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox COMPOSING Major Mistake: Not Knowing Your Tools
- 66. http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg21228400.400-google- usability-chief-ideas-have-to-be-discoverable.html %9 out of 10 internet search users don’t know to use CTRL+F to search text within a page. @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox According to a 2011 Google Study Dear God.
- 67. + @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox COMPOSING Value: Speed and flexibility
- 68. @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox Tools for Composing
- 69. KEY COMMANDS @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox ⌘+← or ⌘+➝ - Move one word (CTRL + arrow in Windows) ⌥+← or ⌥+➝ - Beginning or end of line ⌘+A - Select all text ⌘+C - Copy selected text ⌘+V - Paste selected text
- 70. THE DOTTED LINE @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox
- 71. TK (to come) Reports are coming in of a massive zoo- break. Over TK elephants and TK monkeys have escaped their enclosures. Zookeeper Roscoe TK-last-name-TK described the scene as “completely bananas”. @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox Fill in the facts later. Don’t lose momentum!
- 72. Clipboard Managers @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox
- 73. Text Expansion @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox
- 74. Type a short thing and get a long thing!
- 75. Wolfram|Alpha Type a short thing and get a long thing!
- 76. Type a short thing and get a long thing!
- 77. -- Scott Kubie Content strategy, UX design. My email address is scott@scottkubie.com. Dial 515-XXX-XXXX to reach me anytime. Type a short thing and get a long thing!
- 78. Text Expansion @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox OS X TextExpander Windows Breevy PhraseExpress Syncing Dropbox
- 79. Plain Text @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox
- 81. Photo by Flickr user Amanda Woodward http://flic.kr/p/9Dhs7 Plain text is like a typewriter. Just you and the keyboard.
- 82. Markdown @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox This... Gives you this... And so on...
- 83. Markdown @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox This... # Main Headline Gives you this... <h1>Main Headline</h1> And so on...
- 84. Markdown @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox This... # Main Headline Gives you this... <h1>Main Headline</h1> ## Subhead <h2>Subhead</h2> And so on...
- 85. Markdown @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox This... # Main Headline Gives you this... <h1>Main Headline</h1> ## Subhead <h2>Subhead</h2> **Strong text** <strong>Strong text </strong> And so on...
- 86. Markdown @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox This... # Main Headline Gives you this... <h1>Main Headline</h1> ## Subhead <h2>Subhead</h2> **Strong text** <strong>Strong text </strong> <http://kubie.co> <a href=“http:// kubie.com”> http://kubie.com</a> And so on...
- 87. iA WriterTextMate Squarespace TextEdit Wordpress Drupal Byword Nocs Nebulous Notes Notepad Markdown can be used all over the place, often natively.
- 88. PDF Plain Text Print Rich Text Markdown Email HTML It easily converts into popular formats with many tools.
- 89. Thinking Composing Editing Finishing Fuzzy Diagrams Work Journal Day One Mindmaps Hipster PDA TK Dotted Line PLAIN TEXT!! ClipMenu TextExpanderCAPTURE!!!
- 90. Thinking Composing Editing Finishing One-way trip Fuzzy Diagrams Work Journal Day One Mindmaps Hipster PDA TK Dotted Line PLAIN TEXT!! ClipMenu TextExpanderCAPTURE!!!
- 91. 3Editing Build Your Digital Writing Toolbox
- 92. revising your composition for quality and correctness @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox BASICALLY... EDITING
- 93. ! @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox EDITING Major Mistake: Reading without seeing
- 95. @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox Tools for Editing
- 96. THE 10% SOLUTION @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox
- 97. THE 10% SOLUTION 1. Finish a draft. @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox
- 98. THE 10% SOLUTION 1. Finish a draft. 2. Reduce by 10%. @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox
- 99. THE 10% SOLUTION 1. Finish a draft. 2. Reduce by 10%. 3. Repeat until failure. @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox
- 100. ACB’s @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox As described in “The 10% Solution” by Ken Rand
- 101. ACB’s @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox ACCURACY (get it right) As described in “The 10% Solution” by Ken Rand
- 102. ACB’s @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox ACCURACY CLARITY (get it right) (get it clear) As described in “The 10% Solution” by Ken Rand
- 103. ACB’s @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox ACCURACY CLARITY BREVITY (get it right) (get it clear) (get to the point) As described in “The 10% Solution” by Ken Rand
- 104. Use words and word- parts as a lens with which to evaluate your draft... @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox As described in “The 10% Solution” by Ken Rand Editing List
- 105. @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox As described in “The 10% Solution” by Ken Rand Editing List Words Word Parts of that But And very because then -ing -ly
- 106. READING OUT LOUD @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox Reading Aloud Did you read it out loud? Did you? Diiiid you? Did you really? DID YOU? I thought not. Go read it out loud.
- 107. INVERSION @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox A B C A B C Flip it around, upside-down. With first drafts, important stuff often lands at the end of sentences, paragraphs, and sections.
- 108. Thinking Composing Editing Finishing One-way trip Fuzzy Diagrams Work Journal Day One Mindmaps Hipster PDA TK Dotted Line PLAIN TEXT!! ClipMenu TextExpanderCAPTURE!!! Read it Out Loud 10% Solution Editing Checklist ACB Inversion
- 109. 4Finishing Build Your Digital Writing Toolbox
- 110. “I’m on to the next one, on to the next...” @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox BASICALLY... FINISHING
- 111. ! @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox FINISHING Major Mistake: The Final Final Draft Patience, young Jedi. Don’t try to be done until you’re done. Or else you’ll end up with Draft3FinalFinal-ReallyFinal- Copy-Version4-Final.txt
- 112. + @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox FINISHING Value: Procedure Ritualize it. Make checklists. Going from final draft to finished assignment should be as quick and mechanical as possible.
- 113. @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox Tools for Finishing
- 114. “Can you look at this quick?” @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox Hallway Testing
- 115. @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox SearchLink (OS X) Automatically generate Markdown links from multiple sources. brettterpstra.com
- 116. @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox MD Service Tools (OS X) 1 2 3
- 117. Headphones @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox Protecting your time is key to finishing any writing assignment.
- 118. HALP! How do you protect your time, set boundaries, and do some of that writing they hired you to do? @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox Yours?
- 119. Thinking Composing Editing Finishing One-way trip Fuzzy Diagrams Work Journal Day One Mindmaps Hipster PDA TK Dotted Line PLAIN TEXT!! ClipMenu TextExpanderCAPTURE!!! Read it Out Loud 10% Solution Editing Checklist ACB Inversion Markdown Service Tools Marked Headphones
- 120. Final thoughts... Build Your Digital Writing Toolbox
- 121. Brainstorming is Broken // @scottrocketship “Creativity is not a talent. It’s a way of operating. - John Cleese
- 122. add a bit in here (maybe a thought bubble type thing) that gets at the common objections to writing. not creative. i’m not a writer. not giving themselves time to think. Photo by Flickr user Lee Bennett http://flic.kr/p/92x4fk Be aware of your workflow.
- 125. In case of emergency, use index cards.
- 126. :) @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox That’s all. Thank you.
- 127. ? @scottrocketship | #writingtoolbox Questions? http://kubie.co Tools icon by Shane Miller, from The Noun Project Notepad icon by Ema Dimitrova, from The Noun Project Search Icon: Gianni Clifford, from The Noun Project