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Thinking on Paper

V.a. Howard, J.H. Barton · 3 HN comments
HN Books has aggregated all Hacker News stories and comments that mention "Thinking on Paper" by V.a. Howard, J.H. Barton.
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Amazon Summary
Thinking on Paper shows how writer's block as well as many other writing problems are engendered by the tendency, supported by traditional approaches, to separate thinking from writing. Drawing on the developing field of symbol theory, V.A. Howard and J.H. Barton explain why this separation is unsound and demonstrate how to improve dramatically our ability to generate and express ideas. Most books on writing assume that the sole purpose of writing is communication. These manuals seldom go beyond teaching how to avoid the problems of punctuation, grammar, and style that at one time or another ensnare the best of writers. Few, if any, of these books explore writing as a way of shaping thought.Howard and Barton, two Harvard researchers in education, take a radically different approach. While they agree with their predecessors that an important function of writing is the clear, direct expression of thought, they point out that many of our thoughts first come into being only when put to paper. By failing to recognize the link between thinking and writing, we fall into the deadlock inappropriately named writer's block.For everyone who writes, this is a readable, accessible manual of immense educational and practical value.
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Hacker News Stories and Comments

All the comments and stories posted to Hacker News that reference this book.
Writing is used for understanding and for communication. These are two different activities. Ie, the prototype is not the product. Highly recommend the book Thinking on Paper, https://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Paper-V-Howard/dp/0688077587
To those like me who are more interested in thinking clearly and use writing as a thinking tool may find this book more helpful https://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Paper-V-Howard/dp/0688077587
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Oct 23, 2020 · tacon on Writing Is Thinking (2014)
A classic book on using writing to come up with new ideas is "Thinking on Paper"[0]:

"Thinking on Paper shows how writer's block as well as many other writing problems are engendered by the tendency, supported by traditional approaches, to separate thinking from writing. Drawing on the developing field of symbol theory, V.A. Howard and J.H. Barton explain why this separation is unsound and demonstrate how to improve dramatically our ability to generate and express ideas."

[0] https://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Paper-V-Howard/dp/0688077587

⬐ grammarisking
Interesting. Thanks for the recommendation! Do you know of any books that also account for drawing or diagramming alongside writing? I wonder if those can particularly help for programming or general problem solving.
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