Why is writing so difficult? Isn’t there an easier way to get writing done?
- Neil Mach
- 5 hours ago
- 5 min read
Do you remember the moment in your childhood when your classroom teacher provided a clean sheet of paper and told the class, ‘Today you’ll write an essay. The essay will be titled, ‘What I did over my summer.’ You should fill the sheet with your thoughts, and if you need more paper, put up your hand. You have approximately sixty minutes to get this assignment done. Any questions?’
You might have dared ask: Why is writing so difficult? Why does writing present such a challenge? Isn’t there an easier way to get writing done? But you didn’t have the nerve, so you knuckled down to your assignment. Did you have a good time writing? No, you did not!
Why is writing so difficult?
Writing acts as a window into a person’s inner self (introspection), and it might be a sharing activity that they may not be ready for.
Writing can bring up thoughts and feelings that a person might not be prepared to face or contemplate.
Writers might be concerned that their grammar, their spelling, and their punctuation will be evaluated and 'marked-down' by others, leading to embarrassment.
Articulating original ideas via speech or in writing requires an individual to tap into their skills and resources, (their memories, their feelings, their research) but a readiness or willingness to tap into these skills and resources can become a barrier to the free-flow of ideas.
While speaking, a communicator has the freedom to correct themselves as they go along, using slang, by incorporating gestures, by employing expressions and by using mannerisms, and gauging an audience’s reaction so they can quickly meet an audience's expectations. Creative writing demands a structured approach to ideas, with the expectation that a polished final piece of material will be met with little (or no) response from an audience until it is 'marked.'
Creative writing places the entirety of the burden of comprehension, or at least the interpretation of an original thought, on the writer. In conversation, a listener can ask for clarification, or ask for explanation as they go along, or they can ask for translation or for examples. But in a written piece, the writer must ‘lay out’ their entire subject without getting help from the audience (the reader) even though that valuable help might have 'signposted' the understanding of the audience.
The classroom scenario (outlined above) involved receiving a piece of paper and being set a time limit for the completion of the task. It’s challenging to write under such circumstances because it requires an individual to condense elaborate concepts and memories, possibly drawing from difficult personal experiences, into easily digestible formulations that are accurate and easily understood. The writer faces many pressures beyond just time and space; they must also craft content that is clear, purposeful, and stylish. And the content they come-up with must comply with the accepted ‘rules’ of punctuation and spelling.
During my childhood, my attempts at drawing still life objects, like fruit or flowers, revealed a disconnection between my hand and my eye. I found that my ‘hand didn’t match my eye’ and I noticed that my skill with a pencil or paintbrush didn’t match the expectations I had of myself when I started my project. In writing, this deficiency is described as the ‘thought-to-language gap’. Even with a compelling and imaginative idea, a writer may face several challenges due to insufficient language skills or a restricted vocabulary, and such inadequacies might hinder their expression of ‘thoughts-to-language.’
The expectation for writers to simultaneously manage structure, argument, sentence quality, vocabulary, and audience expectations can lead to cognitive overload and the consequent emotional distress that this overload brings... perhaps even before a project is started!
Self-criticism can stop thoughts from reaching a page. Self-criticism can sometimes prevent a project from beginning! The ‘internal editor syndrome', as it is sometimes described, may be linked to a writer’s anxiety about peer or teacher assessment and the possibility of receiving a poor grade once the paper has been delivered for 'marking'. Sometimes, progress is hampered (or completely stopped) by an ‘internal editor’.
Technology, or the use of technology, can sometimes hamper the free-flow of expressive thoughts onto paper. For example, a person might have a perfectly good idea to advance to an audience but when there’s a stipulation or precondition that the topic must be ‘typed out double-space with two-inch margins,’ the technology (this time a typewriter or word processor) or the efficient use of the technology, might hinder or prevent the progress or accomplishment of a task.
Writing demands patience, study, and reflection. Given our busy lives in this hurried world, most individuals cannot dedicate sufficient time to being patient (with themselves and their concepts), studying (their own writing and their external resources), or reflecting on their own performance and abilities. People today are "short on time", and writing is a practice that demands a considerable time investment. People don’t have time to write!
Couldn’t writing be made easier?
Isn’t there an easier way to get writing done? You can see why people are tempted to use artificial intelligence to complete their writing assignments when you go through the list above. But don't forget that the use of technology can sometimes hamper the free-flow of expressive thoughts. But it's not just that, there are other considerations:
Writing involves the study of a person’s inner self (introspection) while a.i. is not examining ‘self’ but, in truth, it's examining and revealing ‘somebody else's thoughts’ Artificial intelligence relies on external sources, while human writing should be a personal revelation, and ought to stem from a person’s true heart.
Through writing, individuals can process emotions and ideas that they might otherwise avoid or that lie in their subconscious. Hence, writing these thoughts out on sheets of paper offers therapeutic and restorative benefits: artificial intelligence does not offer health benefits!
Practicing grammar, spelling, and punctuation will help a writer improve their skills quickly. If they depend on artificial intelligence, their writing will not only fail to get better but they may also lose the ability to differentiate between proper and improper grammar, correct spelling, and acceptable punctuation.
Articulating original ideas via human writing requires an individual to tap into a range of skills and resources they might not otherwise use; but if they use artificial intelligence tools, they might lose their ability to conduct their own research (for example), or they might harm their conceptualisation skills, or they might erode their presentation skills, or they might damage their ability to think critically, or they might fail to examine evidence first-hand.
Failing to develop ‘thought-to-language’ skills could lead to an inability to think independently (without aids) or lead to an inability to explore a topic comprehensively without external assistance.
Couldn’t writing be made easier? Isn’t there an easier way to get writing done? Probably, yes! But when writing offers such enjoyment, such therapy, such benefits, and such effectiveness, why resort to artificial shortcuts?
What are your thoughts?
© Neil Mach April 2026
Neil Mach is a prolific English author known for his clean urban fantasy fiction (like his popular 'Moondog' series) and his historical fiction works. Neil is also a well-known public speaker, and a creativity advisor. Neil has a background as a rock journalist. He frequently shares his expertise on writing and the music business, particularly rock music history, and has written over 20 books, and he often addresses writing workshops. Since its launch in 2019, his extremely popular Myth & Magic podcast has provided enthusiasts of fantasy literature and fantasy art with over 125 hours of audio enjoyment.
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