Early in my career as a copywriter and grant writer, I realized that so much of writing is not about writing. In fact, I would say that about 20% of the writing process actually involves writing, while the rest (about 80%) is planning, researching, understanding, and editing. I often feel relieved when, on a writing project, I can finally get to the drafting stage. So, it is disheartening when elements beyond those included in the standard writing process come into play and keep me from “getting to the writing part.” Here are some of the pesky “writing project derailers” I’ve discovered, how they can interfere with a writing project, and what you can do about it:
Politics
Politics play a huge role in every business operation, and writing is no exception. There are myriad ways that politics could interrupt or even halt your writing project. For example, one person of influence may think a writing project needs to get done, while another does not. Or, there could be disagreement about how to present a particular service. You get the idea. People want different things, and writers, whether inside the company, or as a contractors, sometimes get caught in the middle. There’s no easy answer to this one. As a writer, you probably have an opinion about the best way the content should be presented, so put in your two cents, and then let your clients or constituents make up their minds.
Legal Issues
I once wrote a sell sheet for a large manufacturer in which the footnotes, i.e. the legal disclaimers, took up about one third of the space–and they were written in tiny print! This particular document also went through multiple revisions with numerous people, including the legal department, which corrected the way certain things were phrased. By the time the document was completed, it looked nothing like the one I had written. I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with companies being careful about how they talk about their products. But, legal issues can introduce challenges to a writing project. The keys here are knowing what to expect up front, and having patience with the process.
Slow SMEs
Subject matter experts (SMEs) can be your best friends when you are doing research for a writing project. But, if they are slow to get information to you, they are really no help at all, especially if you are working under a tight deadline. Writing projects can be stalled when you wait for them to respond to your e-mails, voice mails, or other communications. Granted, everyone is busy, but you can spend considerable time waiting for the information you need from a particular person. Try to set a timeline at the beginning of the project, so SMEs will know what you expect from them, and when.
Ethics
A recent project, a grant proposal I was working on, almost got canceled due to an ethical dilemma. I had written a grant proposal previously that contained information the recent client needed to prepare their proposal. However, according to the code of ethics for grant writers, I was not allowed to use information from the previous grant proposal for the recent one. I badly wanted to share the information with the recent client, but couldn’t in good conscience do so. Fortunately, they were able to obtain the earlier proposal from a public source, freeing me to use that information in their proposal. This is just one instance of how ethics can derail a writing project. As in this example, the best thing to do is be creative in finding ways to accomplish your task that don’t violate your ethical standards.
Scheduling
There are many different schedules that can come into play on a writing project, including fiscal years, budgeting cycles, product rollouts, grant cycles, vacation schedules, production schedules, annual conferences, annual fundraisers, and so on. Your writing project could be subject to any one of these schedules, or a combination of them. For example, for budgeting purposes, a client or boss may want a project completed before (or after) the end of a fiscal year. The best way I’ve found to deal with this type of situation is simply to remain flexible, and be willing to make adjustments to YOUR schedule.
How do you handle it when your writing project gets derailed? Let us know in the comments!
About the Author: Karen Marcus, M.A. is a Northern Colorado copywriter who has been helping clients in a wide range of industries to put their best word forward for 13 years. Click here for contact info.
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