walls o' text

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I can write a wall of text easily but I think that can be counterproductive to making points on the internet. I aim for brevity and accuracy.

I write walls of text because that's often the only way I can express my thoughts. My thought processes tend to branch out in numerous directions at once. I'm having trouble finding the right words to express exactly how my thought processes work. Suffice it to say, my mind makes all sorts of odd connections, and my every idea seems tangled in a multitude of other ideas, tied together with knots so intricate, I can't for the life of me separate them out.

In other words, I'm frequently unable to write about one idea/ issue without also explaining various other ideas/ issues that relate to it, at least in my head. If I could express my thoughts and ideas effectively in a briefer format, I would. The trouble is, I don't have the ability to do that most of the time.

I honestly don't write these too quickly. I don't spend time researching or revising, though I do have trouble finding the right words to express the thoughts in my head in a manner that makes sense to other people. I tend to struggle a bit with organizing my thoughts into a semi-coherent format.

Additionally, I type pathologically slowly, due to abysmal motor skills.

I seem to take far longer to complete a task than most people, to the frustration of my co-workers. I've been working on this post for ten minutes already.

That said, even though these posts take me a long time to write, I just can't express my thoughts on a matter, without using a ridiculous number of words. That's why my post count is so low relative to the length of time I've been a member here. Writing these posts takes a lot of time and mental energy.

My point being: at least in my case, walls of text are not the result of a talent, they are the result of an impairment.
Okay, thirteen minutes after I started this post, I am done.

Let me put it to you this way: it takes much more effort for me to make a short post than to make a really long one. I talk a lot in real life as well; in school my nickname was "Chatterbox" and my Nana says I talk more than anyone she's ever met before.

My thoughts come to me in chunks, so I often have to go through and re-order sentences or word them differently so it fits or makes sense.

Since I'm good at memorizing things, I can easily access all the information on a topic from my mind. Sometimes I'm not even aware of how much I actually know about a topic until I start typing/talking about it.

Interesting replies, folks. My query had little do to with the merits of long vs short posts but with the ability to produce them. I guess one way of asking is if you can think in whole paragraphs. I can't and I admire anyone who can hold and access information so easily. And for those who can't and manage to produce cogent, well written posts anyway-I admire you even more. I have a hard time reading long posts but it is not the fault of the poster. I think I need to have every sentence separated to understand it better. Maybe that's part of the problem. I read in blocks and peripheral input from surrounding sentences intrude and disrupt the flow of thought. Maybe as hyperlexic thing?

I can and can't write walls of text. Sometimes my words don't form properly in my brain even if I only write a few sentences and then the opposite can happen. I can control it though. Actually I think since posting on an ADHD forum I had to learn to tone it down. My blog posts are now 'ADHD friendly' too. I just go crazy when writing articles though.

I can understand people like Anubend and Verdandi not being able to edit posts or make them shorter. It's taken me years to summarize most of what I write and say mainly because teachers pushed me so much to summarize because 3 pages was too long for a conclusion.

Btw, I've skipped a lot of the posts in this thread.

I think it's fairly normal to feel daunted when presented with a long block of text with no paragraphs. Paragraphs allow the reader to take the info on board in bite-sized chunks. I don't usually even try to read very long posts, especially if there are no paragraphs, unless the subject is very interesting to me. It's just too much of an investment. I have the same problem with books.

Tony Buzan recommends using a pencil to point at the bit you're reading, so that your eyes are less likely to drift onto the other bits.

True about the no paragraphs.

I meant being able to read only one sentence at a time.

I'll look up Tony Buzan.

^ like this

Yes! One of the reasons I blog is so that I am able to speak my thoughts later.. If people ask me what is wrong, or my opinion on something I often cannot answer due to not knowing exactly what I am thinking or feeling, but after writing about it... I can verbalise about it.



Me too.. Sometimes I can edit afterwards but often I can't figure out what should be changed or removed because it all seems relevant to me...

I occasionally reference to ensure I have the correct meaning or spelling of a term or word I don't use often but not usually.



I can relate to this also I've tried to explain the tangle in my head to people and they don't seem to get it.. But writing helps me organise my thoughts.. All those tangents, the thoughts just shoot off in all sorts of directions.. I find if I am writing I can pick one and follow it and let it flow from my fingers then move to the next one, but if I'm trying to sort them out in my head... It just doesn't work!
For example I recently wrote 10 (handwritten) A4 pages over 3 days or so in order to try and sort out the incredible tangle of often contradicting thoughts and feelings about something that happened with a friend one evening.. If it wasn't a matter which could cause problems for that friend, all that would have ended up on my blog, and I really wouldn't have blamed anyone for complaining about the wall of text it would have appeared as!!

And I totally agree with the paragraphs.. I try to break up my text for readability purposes, when possible, because I also have trouble reading a cramped body of text. Although I find increased line spacing helps with this somehow.

Buzan got a bit wacky IMHO when he started claiming that "spiritual intelligence" was real, but his hints and tips for studying made a lot of sense to me.

I think of this as my Word-Fu. It's like martial artists learning new blocks and counters against specific moves. By writing down some of them I'm able to build up an arsenal of them in my head, learning them in my mental dojo so to speak. Then it just becomes a matter of using the right Word-Fu move against a question in conversation.

Oooh I like that That concept is now going to be stuck in my head making me chuckle randomly during difficult social interactions for weeks, confusing people

`

This is an excellent explanation.

Since I've worked this out, that I need to write to be able to speak, I've started journaling stuff privately. It's been illuminating.

I've been writing for this purpose since I was 14 or so.. I have no idea how or why I started but its great to know I'm not the only one with that issue lol.. I've tried to explain it to people before and they never could get it!

Due to painful, poor handwriting I never seriously wrote anything until I had regular access to computers, which was 19+.