What came first the chicken or the egg? Well, I guess that all depends on your frame of mind or belief structure. To me it's obvious; the chicken came first so that it could produce the egg. Similarly, the question could be asked, "What came first the adult or the baby?" The obvious answer is the adult so that the baby could be created in form.
How does the chicken or egg analogy apply to writing? Again, the answer is simple logic, without first creating the page...there's nothing to edit. Many writers cause themselves a lot of undue stress by attempting to change the natural progression of an article, book, movie or other media creation in the middle of the creation process. You must first start with the writing or you will never get anything completed in a timely manner.
Consider following this format...or not, it's up to you:
1. Visualize what you want to say in your minds eye. Just close your eyes and let the vision appear right in front of you. Now, choose a few key words that best describe the vision. Next, write a quick outline of the points you want to cover by using the keywords you that just popped into your mind. Make these short simple one word or one line bursts of energy.
2. Now, start writing, based upon the words in the outline. These are typically the key words you want to use throughout that particular page of the writing. Only write for short bursts of time, five minutes is a good start. The intent is to fill one page at a time, based upon your vision. DO NOT edit yourself as you write. Complete the entire page before even thinking about making a change in flow or correcting spelling errors. The best approach is to actually write with eyes closed. If you do this it will be impossible for your thoughts to distract from the writing phase.
3. Time is of the essence for each page of your creation. During the creative process, keep track of the time spent on the creation. In fact, it may be worthwhile to purchase a timing device, which is quiet or has a peaceful tone at the end of the set timing period. Write as fast as you possibly can during the five minute period of writing. Forget about all the errors; they will still be there waiting for you when you complete the five minute process. Now, stop, do not add anything to the page...you have completed the writing phase of the project.
4. The next step is to go back to the page created to do the editing; this does not mean adding additional writing to the page, only edit what was written. This applies only to one page articles, press releases, email messages, etc. If you are writing a multi-page creation such as a magazine article, short story or book do not edit until you have completed the entire writing process. Books have multiple pages that need to be created based upon a blueprint, not an outline; I'll get into this in detail later. The main point for now is to focus on one page at a time. Do the editing only after you have completed the total five minute creative process.
Most authors, using a computer, make the mistake of watching the screen as they type. This will only confuses the mind as you see the words appear on the screen, and it will definitely take away from your creative self. Writing should be created without thought; it's much easier to feel what you want to say then to think about it. By staying focused in the moment and allowing your higher self to produce the words to communicate the visual message, prior to editing, your writing will take on new life and vitality.