Writing, or Something that Resembles the Written Word

I have been engaged in writing, or something that resembles writing, over the last few weeks. I have been bogged down at times, not very productive. I am in one of those periods now and it is an inconvenient time as I want to polish off this section of the larger history project. I read several different blogs authored by historians and others from the humanities. Some of these individuals are also writing and I have found some of their recent entries helpful. In particular, Notorious PhD Girl's recent post on "Why We Write" is spot on. She has also discussed her recent efforts at writing and this has inspired me. There are numerous "how to write" books/guides out there, but it is nice to hear from someone who is actually doing it, successfully, to gain some insights into how she does it.

What I learn from reading such posts is that there is no one special trick or secret to writing. I know, I know, we hope there is a magic pill or formula that will make us Productive Writers, but what it comes down to is doing it. Block out the distractions (I know what mine are) and forge ahead, without getting bogged down in Perfection. (What, Rosebud PhD doesn't care about Perfection? I thought that was the point of this whole project?) That will come with editing and re-writes. Hard lesson which I always learn at the last minute and swear as deadline looms, next time, I will do better. And look, there is a deadline looming as I type.