Write of Passage Weekly

Hello writers,

Welcome back to Write of Passage Weekly, home to the best writing advice on the Internet. Last week, we talked about finding your path as a creator and answered this question: “Do you need a niche?” (Hint: You don’t.)

Today, we’re talking about an important habit that will help you beat the blank page: ambient research.

Also, this Friday, June 23, you can join us for Writing Sprints. These one-day, all-day workshops are like workout classes for your mind. You’ll write, edit, and publish a piece of writing — all in one day. Check out the video below to learn exactly what you can expect from Writing Spirits, and for more information, visit the FAQ.

Beat the Blank Page

The blank page is a menace to creativity. There it sits, vast and full of potential. Yet that freedom can also be debilitating. You try to start writing, but your hands freeze above the keyboard. You’re not sure where to start. Pretty soon, you’re cursing that blinking cursor.

But what if there was a simple method to beat the blank page? What if, when you sit down to write, you could start from something rather than from nothing?

In school, we learned active research. You’d get an assignment, choose a topic, and then spend hours searching for evidence that supports your idea. You’d go all hermit-mode in the library for a Sunday, drowning in peer-reviewed papers, and emerge just before midnight with a finished essay. 

Active research interrupts life and bottlenecks your writing. It’s neither enjoyable nor sustainable. But there is another way. Instead of resigning to a dark corner of a stuffy library from dawn until dusk, you can start doing ambient research.

Ambient research means following your curiosity and making notes as you go — every day. You’re always on, looking for golden nuggets to pluck from little pockets of your daily experience. Capture your fleeting epiphanies, the clever quips you make in conversation, and the best insights from what you watch and read.

Active research interrupts life, but ambient research enhances life. You start to become more aware of what ideas are interesting, surprising, or important, and you start to make connections between them.

If you develop this habit of capturing your ideas, you’ll gradually build up a galaxy of notes. Then, when you sit down to write, most of your research is already complete. You won’t have to hold a seance to summon the muse. Instead, ideas will emerge from your notes like constellations in the night sky.

So, start noticing and capturing your thoughts as they come. Start doing ambient research and beat the blank page.

From Our Team

Tips for your writer's toolkit

"Practice the Capture Habit”

David dives deeper into the concept of ambient research and shares his strategies and systems for keeping up a capture habit.

“Who Should Write Online?”

Will outlines ten archetypes for the type of people who should write online, and how it can accelerate their careers. Are you one of them?

How to Publish Consistently

Matt celebrates the 200th issue of his newsletter by sharing what he’s learned about consistency from a nearly four-year publishing streak.

Thank you for reading Write of Passage Weekly. We’ll be back next Wednesday with more of the best writing advice on the Internet.

Happy writing,

The Write of Passage Team