I was recently interviewed by Dr. Steven Sonsino and featured on his podcast, The Authors Channel. We discussed the writing process as I see it, with the goal that to share insights on writing processes can be helpful to other authors as well as business leaders who may often have to write reports, white papers, presentations and articles, whether they are for publication or not. In today’s increasingly complex world, clear and structured written communications and general writing is ever important.
I have written, co-written, or edited some 20 books and more than 100 academic articles. Over the last two years, I also have written approximately 90 articles and book reviews that have been posted on the Lorange Network. The main reason I write is that I see writing as a learning process that forces me to think through the issues at hand in more depth. In most instances, this leads to clarification in my own mind.
For instance, I recently wrote a book to mark the 90th anniversary of my investment company (Lorange, 2019), and this helped me gain a better understanding of what value preservation means for a privately held company such as mine.
My books are, in general, based on research, although they typically do not report specific research findings in detail; I prefer to report such things in articles. Instead, I attempt to synthesize broader topics to shed an interrogative light on such phenomena.
My writing can perhaps be seen as anthropological in nature rather than sociological. In other words, I typically draw from my own experience. For instance, I have written extensively about shipping (Lorange, 2005, 2009, 2020). All my books are influenced by the fact that I used to own a shipping company, which I sold in 2007. Furthermore, I have written a great deal about business schools (Lorange, 2002, 2020). These readings reflect my own experience as president and CEO of the Norwegian School of Management (BI) from 1989 to 1993, president and CEO of IMD for the following 15 years, and founder and president of the Lorange Insitute from 2009 to 2014.
What can be said about taking an anthropological point of view rather than a sociological one? Please consider the following analogy from the world of animals. An anthropological perspective could be analogous to “being with the animal inside the cage,” whereas a sociological perspective could be to “observing the animal from outside the cage.” My own relatively deep experience with several topics separates me from most academics, who tend to discuss such topics from a distance.
Who are my target audiences? Who reads my books? They are clearly not textbooks, so they are typically not read by students, at least not at the entry level. Rather, they are meant for fellow academics and open-minded practitioners. Each book represents a learning journey and should be of interest to all who have an open mind—in other words, those who like to learn!
What are some additional specifics about my writing process?
I typically go through several iterations before arriving at something I feel confident enough about to send to a publisher. The iteration process is indeed another manifestation of learning!
I only contact publishers when I have a complete manuscript draft to show them. I never sign a contract with a publisher based only on a preliminary outline I take this approach because I do not want prior commitments to impact my own learning journey. After all, I simply do not know at the outset where things will end up, so I do not want any pressure from publishers.
I use two editors whom I have worked with for many years. They seem to have a good feel for what I am trying to say, which might have come about through many years of experience working with me. In any case, both add significant value to the books.
My writing process has five distinctive phases: first, I write a chapter in longhand; second, my PA types this into the computer; third, I revise a given piece. There may indeed be several iterations at this stage. Fourth, my editor goes to work, and fifth, I perform a final review. Many people have asked me why I write the first version in longhand. This allows me to work on each sentence, word, and argument. However, this is perhaps a matter of taste, and my old age is clearly a factor! I find it helpful to see my own handwriting on paper. Also, neuroscientists have often written that gestures (handwriting in this case, versus typing) restore memory as well as provide other cognitive benefits such as prompting us to think about our learning. They make a claim that handwriting or note taking integrates the three brain processes of visual, motor and cognitive.
Finally, I try to finish the full manuscript relatively quickly and cover all chapters before restarting on the first chapter. Many manuscripts are never be finished because writers “get stuck with chapter one.” Iterations and revisions are key, but they must be based on a full manuscript. After all, how can one revise without having completed what one intends to improve?
In an increasingly volatile and complex world, getting more information is not a panacea in itself. How often have we had to fish for relevant insights within cluttered piles of data? In that sense, we are all authors, and our responsibility is to communicate clearly to ensure the effectiveness of our message.
REFERENCES
Lorange, P. (2002). New Vision for Management Education, Emerald.
Lorange, P. (2005). Shipping Company Strategies, Emerald.
Lorange, P. (2009). Shipping Strategy: Innovating for Success, Cambridge University Press.
Lorange, P. (2019). Adaption and Flexibility in the Family Firm: A Brief History of S. Ugelstad Invest, Smøyg Forlag.
Lorange, P. (2020). Innovations in Shipping, Cambridge University Press.
Lorange, P. (2020). The Business School of the Future, Cambridge University Press.
Comments