How to Get Rid of Distractions While You Write

Word processors are no good for writing. The more sophisticated they become, the worse they are. And I'll admit it could be my fault.

I have the attention span of a gnat. My teachers at school used to say I was too easily distracted. They were right.

A word processor such as Microsoft Word doesn't help. I don't need fancy fonts, formatting, mail merges, coloured text, diagrams or any of that stuff. I especially don't want software to question my grammar or spelling as I type.

It's easy enough for me to lose my train of thought without squiggly lines appearing under my text. By the time I've corrected it I've forgotten what I was going to say and usually end up deleting the whole sentence.

The one thing I want is a word count especially when I'm churning out screeds of advertorial copy as I have been over the last couple of weeks. That, by the way, is why it's so long since my last blog posting.

My first word processor was LocoScript. It ran on my Amstrad CPC6128 and, as I recall, it showed my text in green on a black screen with a word count in the top right-hand corner.

For the last 25 years I've wanted to get back to having a word count continuously on display without my having to do anything. It may not sound much, but how many thousands of times have I had to take my hand off the keyboard, pick up a mouse, click on a pull-down menu and scroll down to the word count? It really breaks my writing rhythm.

I know I'm not alone. Over the last year or so a number of programs have appeared that allow writers to go back to basics. I'm using one to write this. It's called Writemonkey and you can download it free from writemonkey.com.

There are a number of these distraction-free word processors around including WriteRoom for Mac which was one of the first. It costs $25, but you can try it for free.

Another is JDarkroom which is for Mac, Linux or Windows and is free.

The quickest way of seeing what I'm talking about is to go to writer.bighugelabs.com and there's a simplified word processor which runs entirely online. (Do press your F11 key to get the full effect.)

Most of these programs display green text on a black background (a colour scheme that gives me grim flashbacks of subbing at Kinning Park at 3am). But there's a scientific reason for the choice.

When you look at a screen you're seeing light projected at you. It's much the same as staring into a torch. A white background shines more and therefore more tiring for your eyes. Apparently, green on black is supposed to be better. Anyway, most of these programs allow you to change the colours to suit your taste.

Perhaps you have no problem staying focused with an ordinary word processor. Otherwise, one of these distraction-free programs is worth a shot.

Let me know what you think.

Nick Clayton lives in Ibiza from where he still writes about technology both as a corporate copywriter and as a journalist (watch for exciting developments on the latter front in the New Year). He is currently selling his house in Ibiza which you can see if you visit ibizavilla4sale.moonfruit.com No, this doesn’t mean he's leaving the island, just planning to be a little less rural. A man can only take so much peace and quiet.