Publish blog on Write No Matter What book

Author: nghtctrl

src/content/blog/2025-01-20-write-no-matter-what.mdx

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+---
+title: 'Write No Matter What'
+pubDate: 2026-03-14
+author: 'Jiho Kim'
+draft: false
+---
+
+import Link from '../../components/Link.astro';
+
+If writing is "thinking on paper" (quoted from William Zinsser's _On Writing Well_) then it does not need to begin perfectly. Our thinking is messy and recursive. In fact, writing is often described as a _tool_ or even a _technology_ that enables us to externalize, develop, and polish our thinking over time.
+
+However, as academics, most of our writing happens in an environment that is not writing-friendly. We are constantly pressured to "publish or perish," and expected to display competence even when we are struggling. This culture can create anxiety, resistance, and resentment toward writing. These feelings can fuel writer's block, which in turn deepens our anxiety about writing, creating a self-reinforcing cycle.
+
+In <Link url='https://www.jolijensen.com/write-no-matter-what'>_Write No Matter What_</Link>, Joli Jensen offers two practical advice for breaking out of this cycle:
+
+1. Adopt a _craftsman_ attitude toward writing, rather than a _poseur/performative_ one.
+2. Create or join a weekly writing _process_ support group (rather than a product-focused one), where members hold each other accountable for their commitment to adopting a craftsman attitude toward writing and share techniques that make writing more sustainable.
+
+The distinction between a process support group and a product-focused one lies in what members share and discuss. In a process support group, writing is not shared for feedback on its content. Feedback on content is often better provided by advisors, collaborators, lab members, anonymous reviewers, or even large language models.
+
+Instead, the members share their writing to reflect on what enabled or prevented them from meeting the writing goals they set the previous week, discuss writing strategies and techniques that were helpful/unhelpful for sustaining writing practices, and then set new writing goals for the coming week.
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+Adopting a craftsman attitude means recognizing that writing is a _process_. Drafts do not need to be perfect; they are there to help you develop your thoughts (and also to open it up for others to contribute to your thinking). It also means treating writing as an _apprenticeship_; a skill that can always be improved, regardless of your experience. Furthermore, it acknowledges that writing requires regular _practice_. Like any craft, productivity in writing is achieved through repetition, consistency, and sustained engagement.
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+Jensen emphasizes that productive writing grows out of a "low-stress and high-reward" relationship with writing. For this reason, it is important to structure your writing habit/practices in ways that prevent writing from becoming a fruitless or grueling activity. I recommend you to check out her book for details.