Timed Writing: 3 Reasons You Should Try It (Outside of School)

You’ve probably done “timed writing” at some point. If you’re shuddering and remembering a time during high school or college where you studied all night and still flopped, I’m right there with you. 

I will be the first to admit that even as an English major, and someone who has done A LOT of writing, this version of timed writing still makes me cringe. I teach timed writing as a requirement of my class, and I am very up front about the fact that it’s a requirement and probably one of my least favorite things about college. 

So why do we feel this way? 

There are so many steps. Not only do you have to formulate a “correct” idea, but you then have to plan, organize, execute, and proofread it within the allotted amount of time. 

There’s a lot of pressure to get it right. You’re doing all of this for one person, usually the teacher/instructor, to read it and judge it with a grade. This grade will then be part of how you succeed (or not) in a class. When you’re paying hard earned money for a class, you want to do well! 

We have prior experience looming over us. Even if you’re a good test taker - congratulations! - there will almost always be at least one time when you fail miserably. Something unexpected comes along, you don’t understand the prompt, you have the flu on finals, anything. For most of us, that experience will be enough to convince us somewhere in the back of our mind that timed writing sucks. So many times this determines our outlook on future situations like this before they even arrive. 

After high school and college, or even grad school, timed writing can take a different form. It doesn’t have to be the long sigh as you get out a pen and notebook. We don’t talk about it much, but setting limits for yourself in your writing habits can be incredibly helpful! 

Here’s why. 

We run out of time. Being an adult with a job and adult commitments is hard, despite the fact that most of us try to rush to get here. Working at a job you may or may not like for most of your waking hours takes a lot out of you. You might not always want to come home and write about your day or work on a creative project. Sometimes your mind is just done.

We run out of inspiration. I don’t know about you, but on occasion we get into a rut. My husband and I have our weekly grocery store run, walk the dog in the evenings, go to bed and wake up at certain times… you have those routines, too, don’t you? Or some version of them. This doesn’t leave much room to be “inspired” to write. 

We don’t know what to write. Then there are other times when I am ready to go: maybe I just took a nap or someone left a really nice comment on my blog. Maybe I am just happy and want to express that. But how does that translate into something productive? I am an advocate for writing for its own sake, but a lot of people might see that as a waste of time if they don’t have plans for the writing. 

So, if I tried this timed writing thing (when no one was watching so they can’t “grade” it), how would that help me? 

Makes writing more manageable. Writing is hard. It takes a lot of work. It requires filtering through your own mind, which can be a challenge sometimes if you want the writing to make sense to other people. If you set a timer for yourself knowing that you will stop when the timer goes off, there’s not as much pressure to “finish” something.

Gets ideas onto the page. Sometimes the hardest part of writing is starting. At least that’s how my writing works. For whatever reason, I’m always nervous to start a new project or write down an idea that feels really out of my normal box. I assume it’s because I’ve always been a people pleaser.

But, if you have a timer there knowing that you are only going to spend 15 or 30 minutes with this idea, maybe that makes it less scary. It’s only a 15 minute idea, so even if it’s utter garbage (sometimes you’ll have that), you won’t have invested a lot into it before you realize how bad it really is.

Forces you to do something. If you’re a writer, aspiring or established, it’s important to work on your writing. You aren’t going to get better at it doing nothing, and you’ll probably feel guilty for loving something and never making time for it. I am 100% guilty of this, and have used any number of excuses to dictate why I don’t need to write. But, I do need to write. And if you love it, you need to write, too.

When you set that timer for 15 minutes, you are prioritizing yourself and something you’re passionate about for those few minutes. You will thank yourself later. (Don’t worry, your Netflix/Hulu/Other Streaming Service will still be there when you get done.)

Note on Timer Length

I’ve mentioned 15 minutes a lot, but you can set your timer however you feel best! The reasons I find 15 minutes works well are because 1) I can usually spare that amount of time, 2) it’s short enough to feel like just a few minutes, but long enough to get a whole thought onto the page, and 3) if I forget to set a timer, it’s pretty easy to see on the clock. 

I also think that 30 minutes would be a comfortable amount of “timed” time, if you know you will commit. The longer you set for yourself, the easier it will be to find a distraction during that time and lose focus, which won’t help you!

When I started writing this blog, I set myself a timer for 20 minutes.

I wanted to see how much I could get done by that time, as I haven’t really timed myself too many times when writing blog posts. I also wanted to use it as an example that this really works. I try very hard not to give advice I wouldn’t take, because I feel like that’s silly. It’s the “do as I say but not as I do,” ideal, which is not how I like to function. 

Anyway, I got from the beginning of the blog all the way down to right after the “It gets ideas onto the page” section - about 770 words. Very productive! I did start writing with a pen and notebook, but quickly realized (yet again) that I type much faster than I write. Unfortunately, my handwriting just can't keep up with my ideas in the same way as typing.

Even if your first timed writing, or any try at timed writing, isn’t very productive, you still did it! You created something with that sliver of time, even if that’s just a not-so-awesome paragraph. 

Here’s the thing: even if no one ever reads what you wrote, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t write it.

For many of us, writing is the way we best and most emotionally express ourselves. It helps us cope with things that are hard, delight in things that are joyful, and just connect with other humans in a way that a lot of other mediums don’t allow for. 

If you’re thinking this won’t work for you: do me a favor. Try it once or twice. Set your phone timer, the oven or microwave timer (the one that will drive you crazy if you don't get up and turn it off), whatever floats your boat. Try it and see what happens. 

I’d love to hear about it! Even if it was 15 minutes of wasted time (I don’t think it will be). If it was, email me at rachel@capturingyourconfidence.com and let's talk about it.