How to Start Writing

(even if you don’t know what to say yet)

This post was inspired both by a question that fellow substacker Sophie posed recently, as well as by a fair bit of personal reflection after having kept up with a weekly-ish schedule writing habit for the past few months.

Most people (myself included) think they need a fully formed idea before they can start writing. But the truth is: writing is how you form the idea.

If you wait until you feel clear, you’ll wait forever.

So where do you start?

You start by choosing why you’re writing.

Here are five powerful ways to begin: five modes of writing that help you discover, connect, and create something that lasts.

1. Write to Make Sense of Things

You don’t need to start with a point. You just need to start.

This is private writing. Messy, nonlinear, uncool. It’s the kind of writing that happens in the margins of your notebook, in half-sentences, in half-truths you’re still working through.

But this is where your best thinking gets born. This is where vague ideas turn into sharp ones. Where loops close and new ones open.

Start here when you’re stuck. When you’re unsure. When you’re not even sure what you’re unsure about.

2. Write for Clarity

Once the ideas begin to take shape, clarity is the next step. It’s the practice of distilling something complex into something simple. Not simplistic — just clean enough to be understood.

Writing for clarity forces you to answer: What am I really saying? What matters most here?

At work, this is kind of writing helps others move faster. It’s the secret to great documentation, smart emails, tight decks, good copy. It’s the kind of writing that gets things done.

On the creative side, this is the kind of writing that keeps the reader reading.

It’s also where your self-confidence starts to grow — because clear writing is clear thinking.

3. Write for Attention

If you want your writing to be read, you have to earn it.

This isn’t about clickbait. It’s about understanding what your audience cares about and giving them a reason to lean in.

A sharp hook. A surprising detail. A question they’ve never quite been able to name.

In a noisy world, attention is a gift. Use it well.

4. Write for Trust

You don’t build trust by sounding smart. You build trust by sounding human.

Writing for trust means consistency, transparency, and tone. It means writing in a way that feels like you, even when you’re wrong, uncertain, or in-progress.

Over time, people start to listen — not just to the words, but to the person behind them. They believe what you write, because they believe in you.

5. Write for Impact

Finally, the most ambitious kind of writing: writing to move someone.

This is where writing becomes art.

To write for impact is to change the reader; to spark something in them, shift their perspective, make them feel seen, or set them on a new path.

It requires risk. It often takes the longest. But it’s also the most powerful.

You can’t always predict impact. But you can write with intention. You can ask yourself: What do I want the reader to feel? And write from there.

So if you’re waiting to feel ready, don’t.

Start with one of these:

• To figure something out.

• To explain something clearly.

• To catch someone’s attention.

• To build trust.

• To leave a mark.

And remember: you don’t have to write perfectly.

You just have to write honestly. And, honestly, you just have to write.

That’s where it all begins.

P.S. If this resonated, share it with someone who needs that little nudge (or with the world). Can’t wait to read your words! ✏️