Length of writing has been measured to identify development, and task and genre effects in second language (L2) writing. Moving beyond a singular focus on assessing writing outcomes (i.e., the length of writing), this study investigates L2 learners' writing fluency-related behaviors and the cognitive processes behind them by exploring the effects of genre, time constraints, and proficiency. Drawing on Kellogg's model of writing (1996), this study adopts a mixed-methods design and uses (1) keystroke logging to capture writing behaviors, such as fluency, pausing, and revision, (2) syntactic complexity analyzer and Coh-metrix to investigate linguistic complexity, and (3) stimulated recalls to reveal cognitive processes used by L2 learners.Participants included 123 English L2 learners studying at a university, with high-intermediate (60 participants) or advanced (63 participants) proficiency according to standardized tests and a cloze test. Their writing behaviors were recorded by Inputlog 7.0, a keystroke logging program. The participants were assigned at random to the long-timed (60 minutes) or short-timed group (30 minutes). Furthermore, each participant was randomly assigned to either the narrative or the argumentative essay on the first day, and the other genre on the second day. Sixteen participants were randomly selected for stimulated recall sessions, and they were required to recall their writing processes as prompted by the screen recordings. For triangulating the data, this study used the stimulated recall comments and the keystroke logs. Additionally, the participants completed an exit survey which captured their perception on genres and time allotment. Repeated measures MANOVAs revealed that the L2 learners' writing behaviors such as fluency and linguistic outcomes were affected by differences in time constraints, genre, and proficiency. The time constraints affected writing fluency behaviors in that learners in the short-timed group produced higher writing fluency behaviors, such as longer P-burst length than those in the long-timed group. The argumentative genre led the participants to respond with more complex language and less fluent writing behaviors than the narrative genre. The advanced learners showed more syntactically complex language and more fluent writing behaviors than the high intermediate learners. The stimulated recall data showed that L2 learners' writing processes, such as planning and translation, differed across time constraints, genre, and proficiency. In addition, a two-way ANOVA showed that the effect of proficiency on writing quality was significant whereas the different time constraints did not affect writing quality. Writing fluency measures were correlated with linguistic measures and writing quality. A linear regression analysis showed that some writing fluency behavior measures predicted writing quality. Further, depending on proficiency and time allotment, the participants' perception on writing tasks differed. Taken together, the findings regarding theoretical, methodological, and pedagogical implications are discussed.
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