In The News – How To Write Better Without Becoming A Better Writer

In The News – Articles Of Interest For Authors

Good writing also means being a good author. Check out the HuffPo post on how taking care of himself, made Matt Hearnden a better writer.

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How To Write Better Without Becoming A Better Writer

Updated Jun 29, 2016

Matt Hearnden Human being who writes

(this story first appeared here: The Writing Cooperative)

Andre Iguodala, the 2015 NBA Finals MVP, likes to sleep.

It didn’t always used to be that way though. He used to have terrible sleeping habits. He used to stay up until 4am, watching the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and only then would he fall into a restless sleep for just a few hours. Then he’d sleep for a few more hours before playing a game in the evening. This was considered a “supplement” to the few hours he’d sleep at night.

Unsurprisingly, he’d end up exhausted during the game. More exhausted than a professional athlete should be.

It was only when he decided that enough was enough – the thing that happens before every big change in our lives – that he sought out a sleep therapist.

It worked. Iguodala experienced a 29% improvement in points per minute, and a 37% decrease in turnovers per game when he slept for 8 hours. Meaning 8 hours in row – not some split of a few hours here and a few hours there.

Another quick stat: players shoot 9.2% better from the 3 point line when they get 10 hours of sleep. For context: a player shooting 35% from the three-point line is an average three-point shooter. A player shooting 44% from the three-point line is an elite three-point shooter. More context: for this NBA season, shooting 44% would’ve made you the 5th most accurate three-point shooter in the NBA. Shooting 35% would’ve made you the 90th most accurate.

More sleep is the difference between average and elite.