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Anyone who writes (and that’s all of us) has faced the terror of the blank page and empty screen. There it is: a virgin canvas you must paint with words. So much potential. So much room for failure. So many possibilities. Too many possibilities. Where to begin? What to write? How to write it?

The author Gene Fowler nailed it when he said, “Writing is easy; all you do is sit staring at the blank sheet of paper until the drops of blood form on your forehead.”

There’s a way to avoid the blood, sweat and tears of the blank page/empty screen syndrome, however. It’s a process, and I describe it fully in the manual, The Magic of Pre-Writing. But for now, here are a few quick tips:

1. Clearly identify the purpose of the piece you are writing. What are you trying to accomplish? Are you attempting to persuade someone to do something? What? Are you giving someone information? What information?
2. Visualize the person who will read what you are writing (your “audience.”) Think of what you know about that person. Climb into his or her skin. If you’re writing for more than one person, imagine someone who would is representative of that group.
3. Now, from inside the skin of that reader, ask yourself what you would want to read (or need to read) to ensure that the purpose of the written piece becomes a reality.

Let’s say you’re writing an e-mail to members of your business team to tell them to come to a meeting prepared to give their individual progress reports on the Omega Project. So your purpose is clear and simple: get them to come to the meeting – and to come prepared.

Now think about your readers, your audience. You know them well. Visualize a representative member of your team and step into his shoes. Imagine getting the e-mail. What messages will it have to convey to get you to the meeting prepared?

Obviously, you need to know the date, time and place. You also want to know how long the meeting will last. Plus, you need to know exactly what information you are expected to present in your progress report. It would be nice to know who will be in attendance. Although no one needs to persuade you to attend the meeting (it’s part of your job, after all) you would be more enthusiastic about going if you knew what positive outcomes the meeting is expected to produce. Finally, you want to know if you should confirm your receipt of the e-mail and your attendance.

Jot down those “wants” and “needs”….

1. Day and time
2. Place
3. Meeting duration
4. Exactly what information they should bring for their progress reports
5. Those who will be in attendance
6. Positive outcomes
7. Confirmation of attendance

Now all you need to do is provide that information. It could be as simple as:

There’s a meeting this Thursday at 10 a.m. in the board room. It should last an hour. Please bring your sector’s Omega Project stats for October’s sales and marketing activities. All members of our team should be in attendance, as well as Bill Smith, VP of operations. This meeting will bring us all up to date on each sector’s performance with the project and allow us to shift resources to any sectors that are struggling. Please e-mail me by 5 p.m. today to confirm your plans to attend.

That wasn’t so bad, was it? You simply identified your purpose and audience, put yourself in the skin of a member of that audience and identified what that reader would want and need to read in your e-mail in order to achieve your purpose. From there on, it’s like filling in the blanks.

No drops of blood on your forehead.

That sort of approach to a writing project is an effective deterrent to the blank screen syndrome. Granted, it doesn’t apply to all forms of writing. If you’re a poet or a novelist, for example, conquering the blank page can’t be approached with such a clear-cut step-by-step process. But then, if you’re a poet or a novelist, sweating blood comes with the territory.

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