Good Writing Is Not Written, It’s Assembled

By Author: VIREN
Total Articles: 3
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What do those successful writers have that I don’t?
The answer: a system.
You see, reading and writing “a lot” is just the foundation of a writing life.
Sure, you can read a lot and write a lot and perhaps eventually you’ll stumble on something that works for you. But are there ways of learning faster, short-cutting your progress so that you can become a good writer sooner?
Possibly.
I recently learned a couple very practical lessons from two established modern writers that were quite helpful to me — and hopefully to you.
The Notecard System
The first tip comes from author Ryan Holiday, who in turn learned and adapted this system from his mentor Robert Greene.
The way this works:
Read. A lot.
As you read, underline, dog-ear, sticky-note any quotes or ideas that you want to remember or use for your next writing project.
Transfer those thoughts onto note cards, and file them by category — you make up the categories. (Make sure you note where you found the quotes so you can attribute them properly).
If the quote/info fits multiple categories, make ...
... an extra card. You can also color code it.
The Notecard System: The Key For Remembering, Organizing And Using Everything You Read
After the response to this recent LifeHacker piece, I thought I would explain the system I use to take notes, research…
ryanholiday.net
I have to admit, I don’t completely follow Holiday’s system of organizing quotes with index cards. Rather, I digitize.
I usually read books on a screen, which allows me to highlight using different colors, and also type notes on the book itself.
Then, my method of “transferring” my notes is to write book notes, which I then highlight and add more notes to.

successful writers