Proposal writing: why’s it so hard to get started?
Why is it so hard to get started when we're writing responses to proposals? Well, it depends. Your writing style is different from mine, and what you find tricky is going to be different to what I find tricky. So to overcome any kind of writing block, we're going to need approaches which suit our writing style. Let's look at a few scenarios.
Too much of a perfectionist?
Maybe you're an expert in your field and really like to plan your answers, but you're reluctant to start writing until you've got it all figured out. Maybe it's the curse of being a bit of a perfectionist. So instead of setting out to get everything in place, try starting with just the outline. Put together some headings, and then set yourself a budget for how much you want to write on each of them.
And then you can start writing.
Because sometimes we get lost in the details when we're writing, particularly if you're a subject matter expert, and just starting with the headings might help.
Just want to get writing?
And what if your style is more intuitive than preplanned? What if you like to just start writing and see what happens? Well, that's perfectly okay. But with a head full of wonderful ideas, it's very likely that your first draft is going to be rather long winded.
So here's what to do.
Write that first draft, but don't show it to anyone. Then, start again*. The next version will be much more coherent. And here's a really good tip: start your second draft where you finish the first one. That way you'll get to the key points much faster, and you'll probably find that a lot of what you wrote first time is really just setting the scene.
Not too confident in the topic?
Now, it can be a particular challenge writing a strong proposal response when you're not an expert in the field that's being asked about. But in any bid response, we're likely to have to deal with topics that aren't really in our sweet spot. And if your style is intuitive, you'll probably find that you're waffling quite a lot or talking in general terms and not saying a great deal.
So instead, try picking a couple of examples and building your narrative around those. Use any facts and figures that you can to really anchor your response in something concrete. Even if you're not an expert in the field, this will help you avoid talking in general terms and waffling too much.
Stumped by a blank screen?
Finally, maybe you need to produce an answer and you're not a subject matter expert, but your writing style demands a plan. Getting started can be a real problem, and you might be staring at a blank screen for a long time, waiting for inspiration to strike. So instead, try listing out the key points you want to cover in short bullets. Don't worry about the order at this stage.
Now go back to each bullet and expand it from a bullet into a nugget. If your bullet talks about "what", add something about "how". If your bullet talks about "why", add something about "what if" or "so what". And as you do this, you'll be finding themes and patterns and links between your bullets which will guide you to a robust structure and a stronger response.
So do you recognize yourself in any of these scenarios? Whether you're an expert in your field, or grappling with a new topic when you're writing your bid response, and whether you like to plan in detail first or dive straight in to create your first draft, there's going to be a strategy which will work for you to get you started. I'd love to hear what works for you so drop me a line or add a comment.
* I mean really start again: don’t be tempted to go back and still editing or tweaking the first draft. Treat it as your first pancake.
