Overwriting: how and why to avoid it

Overwriting - producing a draft that exceeds your word (or page) limit - is an extremely common problem amongst writers in science, research, and professional areas. In this episode, Engy Moussa interviews Anthony Haynes. They examine why this problem arises, what harm it does, and, crucially, how to overcome the problem. The discussion outlines practical solutions, with an emphasis on how to prevent the problem from arising. Topics include the psychology of writing and techniques for planning, reviewing, and editing.Further listeningWe hope you enjoyed listening to this episode. You might also enjoy:Wasted words: our antidote to verbosityGrey literature workflows: the surprising role of pen & paperDon't fall in love with your work: Sabuhi Essa on creative processesCreditsSound production: Bart HallmarkMusic: from Handel's Water Music, courtesy of the United States Marine Band and Marine Chamber OrchestraSupport the showAbout the publisherThis episode is published by Frontinus Ltd. We're a communications consultancy that helps organisations and individuals to communicate scientific, professional, and technical content to non-specialist audiences. We provide consultancy mentoringediting and writingtrainingand work on presentations, bids and proposals, and publications (for example, reports and papers).To learn more about services or explore ways of working together, please contact us via our website, http://frontinus.org.uk/.