A good deal of my work -- for example, Rational Review News Digest -- is, to a large degree, an "autopilot" kind of thing. It's repetitive enough, and I've been doing it for long enough, that I can do it reasonably well e.g. at 4:30am before I've even finished my first cup of coffee.
A second line of work is writing for/as myself. I managed to get a Garrison Center column together yesterday. I buried the lede because the news hook (the prospect of nuclear holocaust) didn't really have that much worm on it, but I think it came out OK (and it's already enjoyed at least one media pickup).
But, as I'm sure I've mentioned before, I also do some ghost writer work for political candidates. That's touchier. I have a client to please. I need to be able to "voice" that client convincingly, and properly understand that candidate's issues stands and priorities.
When I'm writing under my own name, I can largely rely on 55 years of personal experience, decades of belief, bazillions of words of reading, and my own opinions. Having to "be someone else" requires me to engage more strongly, more quickly, and with less built-in history, with the world outside my head.
I just submitted a rough draft op-ed to a candidate. If I got it right, I'm mentally "back." If not, I guess I'll have to reassess.
Update: Client liked the piece. So ...
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