I decided to write about the article Cory Doctorow: Writing in the Age of Distraction by Cory Doctorow. In this article, the author talks about how to avoid distraction, as well as describing some of the techniques he has personally used to overcome some of the difficulties surrounding staying focused while writing. Some of his tips for more productive work include writing for short amounts of time, setting a word goal that he desires to reach in each writing session, and stopping once the goal is met (2009). He also lists waiting until he has reached the end of what is being written to do research, among the things that has helped him. In today’s modern busy society, many students will experience distractions while writing assignments for school. Cory Doctorow: Writing in the Age of Distraction by Cory Doctorow discusses these distractions, as well as multiple techniques which can be used to overcome them; however these tips are not likely to work for everyone. I found it interesting that Mr. Doctorow said “When you hit your daily word-goal, stop” (2009). I am certain the he did not mean this literally, since it is unlikely that most people have the ability to simply stop midsentence and pick up where they left off. Speaking for myself, I find it very difficult to come back to something that I had been previously working on, and …show more content…
I am a single mother to a three year old, who is with me wherever I go. As I write this paper, my daughter is watching Disney’s “Moana” in my room while I am sitting next to her writing this assignment. As I have gotten older, I have learned to deal more effectively with the distractions. The only thing I find more distractive than a movie, my phone or even my daughter, is sitting in a quiet room. I find absolute silence to be extremely distracting and in fact, feel I need background noise in order to function more effectively and get my work
This is a massive one in today’s era of modern technology: emails, instant messaging, status updates, sms etc. When you are in the middle of an important task and you get interrupted or distracted, it can take you up to 20 minutes to get back into the zone. If this happens 3 times in a day, that’s 1 hour of lost productivity. In a fortnight, that’s 10 hours or more than one whole day of lost productivity, just from being interrupted. Imagine what you could do if you had a whole extra day every fortnight. Now you know how.
I turned off my television and it was completely silent in my house. This seemed to help me stay more focused on my reading. However, I then began to pay attention to noise outside my home. I could hear too much of another type of distraction.
When you hit your daily word-goal, stop. Stop even if you’re in the middle of a sentence. Especially if you’re in the middle of a sentence. That way, when you sit down at the keyboard the next day, your first five or ten words are already ordained, so that you get a little push before you begin your work. (Doctorow) He then says that when you are actually sitting down to work, you need to stop researching. One of the easiest ways to get sidetracked while working is by getting distracted by information that isn’t important for your assignment, but seem relevant at the time. Set aside specific time for research so you don’t end up procrastinating when you should be working. Another tip Doctorow gives is to remember not to get distracted using your word processor. Doing things like playing with the font or debating over which color your words should be in will only kill valuable time. Turning off your cell phone and ignoring social media notifications is also a great way of making sure you don’t end up wasting your own time.
We all have a choice when writing to not complete the task. But is it really going to kill us? We build up this wall and have all of these excuses because we are scared of failing. I believe it’s the end of the world when I’m writing. My palms become sweaty; I look for all types of excuses to procrastinate. After reading this article, I have learned that I’m not by alone. Feeling this way is normal and I can learn to be a better writer. I will take some of Anne’s suggestions and try to quiet the voices in my head. I will begin to write down my ideas as they pop into my head because no one will see all of my rough drafts. This will allow me to take the time to review my work with a clear
It’s exactly 2:17 a.m., I am working very hard on a paper that is due the next day. Snacks, coffee, and music is the only thing keeping me motivated at this point in the game. It has to be five paragraphs in length with a proper introduction and conclusion. I’ve never worked so hard in my life, for my life had depended on this paper. Constantly thinking of what to type next, my hands and mind both work in a simotaniohus fasion to be able to get the work done.
Walking into the college writing room for the first time, I was hopeful of learning new skills and more about myself as a writer. Not only did I learn new skills, but overall a better understanding of how I write and how I edit. I still have my disorganizing writing style of a chunk writer, but now I know that having a simple outline can cut out hours of trying to paste the paper back together, trying to make sure it flows correctly. Instead of the old way of writing, I found a better way that still works for me. It’s much more efficient, especially of the deadlines that come faster than they seem. Writing in a classroom never worked well for me, but College Writing allowed me to experiment with what environment worked the best. I found out writing in low-lit library early in the morning with my headphones playing Cello Concerto No. 1 in A Minor op. 33 by Saint-Saëns kept me focused on my goals..
Stephen King also argues that you should be cleared of distraction so that you writing process isn’t interrupted or altered in any shape or form. Another tip would be to read more as reading and writing go hand and hand, therefore, King advises students to read more so that they can understand and spot mistakes in their writing.
First, staying focused as a writer can sometimes be a challenge. Writing is one of those things that usually takes time, especially when it comes down to a big assignment. However, a writer has to be able to overcome and persevere to stay focused through the process and finish it. Welty writes, “Still illiterate, I was ready for them, committed to all the reading I could give them” (Welty 6). As long as a writer can stay focused and key in on the subject, they will be able to compose a great piece work no matter what it is.
The first step to being successful, no matter what you’re trying to succeed, is to recognize your weak points, your strengths, and your limits. I myself know that I have several, and when I say several, I mean several, weak points when it comes to writing papers. The first and most lethal to a student who wishes to be well, is procrastination. I will always put writing a paper off till the last minute. In fact, I’m doing it right now as I’m writing this. I’m already doing what I say I’m not supposed to be doing. You can probably tell that I’m off to a great start. The next on the list of things that will brutally murder a student who wishes to do well in a class are distractions. Of course there is a multitude of things that can distract
Creative writing papers are a struggle for everyone. The distractions from others, surroundings, or even oneself can affect how creative your paper is. Mary Oliver the writer of “Of Power and Time” has proven to people the true distractions from writing. The distractions pop up from thoughts, other people, or surroundings. The thoughts that pop up happen to everyone not even just when writing a paper. Different thoughts pop up all the time and it seems almost impossible to keep a clear mind. Distractions from other people is also a big thing that happens when someone is trying to write. Trying to zone all the surrounding people in the room is a very hard task to handle. Commotion is a key to distraction. Different surroundings can also be a distraction. Distractions come from all surroundings. It does not matter these will affect one's mind and distract a person. Oliver has used her knowledge, persuasion, and emotion to tell students what to look out for when trying to write a paper.
Reading this now you may think “he’s going to bore me”: wrong. Having taken all my past writing into consideration, I’m going to change things up. Being a boring writer isn’t what I wanted to be, but looking back, I can see how this came about. I never used to consider English to be a strong subject, I never enjoyed reading or writing. Since I tend to wait until the last second like most other people, I rush through the assignment. Even though every teacher always explains you shouldn’t wait to cram everything in, procrastination plays a key role with most students. Now while reading this paper you may think I waited until the last second to write it, but ironically I didn’t. I attempted a new strategy in order to see if I could change the content of my writing. Depending on the reviews of others and
The tolerance of quiet I have while working is little to none, which is strange for such a quiet person. When I’m by myself, music is a must, whether it is instrumental or someone hardcore screaming lyrics at me, or even watching Netflix. Some sort of noise has to be happening, but it absolutely can’t be kids. Kids are a huge distraction for me. My mother runs a daycare, so there is constantly children day and night. If I’m sitting downstairs, the little monsters immediately swarm me for attention. Let’s just say my focus ends up tickling the poor child till they cry. Multiple people around me draws my focus away from what I’m doing too, so I like just having one person around whilst writing to bounce ideas. One person keeps me focused and
You can also turn your phone on silent, and play music without loud bass or lyrics to aid your writing efficiency. Declutter your work space, as a clean desk can lead to a less busy mind. Working with less trash and junk around you helps with your mental state and can lead to better writing inspiration. Find a time of the day when you’re most energetic and schedule to write then.
When I'm actually writing, I write as fast as a turtle can crawl. A 2 page essay usually takes me around 6 hours to finish. My teacher once told me to use a process called brainstorming which I tried but found it not very helpful. It's no brain buster for me to start an essay. I just sit down, roll up my sleeve and start jotting down that first sentence. But what comes next is an arduous journey. I usually have thoughts going on in my head and while I'm pondering on which thought to put down on paper, I would forget what they were and I have to start thinking all over again. It is extremely taxing on me mentally. Once I'm stuck, which occurs almost after every sentence, I would reread the whole essay again. Worst yet, I have a fond habit of procrastinating. I can only write in peace and quiet, and that's only possible after everyone's in bed. Then surrounded by the infinity darkness of my room, I would merge with my paper and pen under the dim table lamp voided from the consciousness of space and time. Only when dawn glimpse through my window, would this timeless eternity be shattered. I would wait until night to start my writing trek, and "night" means the night before the assignment is due. This way I can finish the essay in one attempt instead of having to span over
My seven-year-old sister makes her presence known, as she walks the halls, passing my bedroom, humming the same monotone note that always proceeds to lack any tune or melody. Growing up in such a lively atmosphere, I have grown to be tolerant of constant background noise that it has become engraved in my lifestyle. Being isolated in silence for long periods of time is unaccustomed to me that I began to feel a sense of abnormality when I am in quiet households. Hence, being comfortable around noise has become a part of who I am.