Freewriting Challenges

Writing can be a challenge sometimes when you are first starting an assignment. Every writer can benefit from discovering more about their topic. Writers use a plethora of technique to discover more information about their topic.

The first way that writers explore their topic is a journal; it is used to record your ideas. “It gives you a place to record your responses, thoughts, and observations about what you read, see, or experience” (Aaron 10). It gives you the ability to visualize and work out your ideas. This will help you focus your thoughts. A journal can help you do other things as well disclose your feelings about other sources. That can prove useful when discovering misconceptions, you might have. A journal can also make you more comfortable with writing.

Sometimes your surroundings can serve as a breeding ground for ideas.

In order to find theses good ideas around you; you must pay attention with all of your five senses. A notebook will help you keep track of all of your thoughts. These notes will keep a record if you are interested in examining more thoroughly. Freewriting is another great way to find subjects and ideas. You can start anywhere with freewriting and end anywhere. “The goal of freewriting is to generate ideas and information from within yourself by going around the part of your mind that doesn’t want or can’t think of anything to write” (Aaron 11). You just have to write. The words written will give your ideas, even if they are misspelled or off track. Typing with white invisible text or turning off your monitor can help you focus on your ideas if you struggle ignoring spelling, grammar, and punctuation. Aaron advises, “If you choose to write with the monitor on, concentrate on what you want to say, not how you’re saying it” (12). Focused freewriting is similar to freewriting, but instead you focus on a subject. It will help you expand on your specific subject without focusing on everything

else.
Brainstorming is similar to freewriting as it can help writers discover ideas without focusing on editing. The book describes brainstorming like this, “brainstorming- focusing intently on a subject for a fixed period of time (say, fifteen minutes), pushing yourself to list every idea and detail that comes to mind” (Aaron 12). This technique can help combat writers block. A technique that I find most useful is drawing. It involves drawing a map of your thoughts. Most people start with a main subject, then branch from that idea. It should be unedited and unfiltered like all of the techniques above. This will help you define a relationship between the ideas. It can also help you find ideas that you never considered. Another way to explore your subject matter would be to ask questions. You should ask any question relevant to your subject, whether you know the answer or not. One example would be asking the cause and effects. When you have a list of questions, you should answer them appropriately. When asking questions, you should look for a pattern; Aaron advises, “Asking questions based on the patterns can help you view your subject from many angles” (14). Patterns such as compare and contrast, narration, and sequential patterns appear in many types of writing. Find one pattern may help you unfold a whole essay.
All of the techniques above can improve a subject greatly. They will help you discover new thing about your subject that you never took into consideration. Some of the technique fit writers better than the next. The technique you choose is a personal choice, but it is encouraged that you write down your ideas. The techniques listed above can encourage easy, quick writing without much effort.