People often believe that writing is all about inspiration, which is a sort of esoteric mambo jumbo. Some writers went as far as to develop strange habits, rituals almost, as if to persuade the muse.
Truman Capote
The author of Breakfast at Tiffany’s would never begin or end a piece of work on a Friday, would change hotel rooms if the room’s phone number included the number 13, and never left more than three cigarette butts in his ashtray, tucking the extra ones into his coat pocket. He would supposedly write supine, with a glass of sherry in one hand and a pencil in another. He explained his creative process in an interview:
“I am a completely horizontal author. I can’t think unless I’m lying down, either in bed or stretched on a couch and with a cigarette and coffee handy. I’ve got to be puffing and sipping. As the afternoon wears on, I shift from coffee to mint tea to sherry to martinis. No, I don’t use a typewriter. Not in the beginning. I write my first version in longhand (pencil). Then I do a complete revision, also in longhand.”
John Cheever
“To publish a definitive collection of short stories in one’s late 60s seems to me, as an American writer, a traditional and a dignified occasion, eclipsed in no way by the fact that a great many of the stories in my current collection were written in my underwear.”
This Pulitzer-Prize winner also walked around the room, talking loudly to himself. But isn’t something we all do? Right? Right?
Ernest Hemingway
Just like Graham Green, Hemingway used to write 500 words a day, mostly in the mornings, to avoid the heat. He also admitted to writing one page of masterpiece to ninety one pages of shit.
William Faulkner
He drank a lot of whiskey. Even by the standards of a writer.
Vladimir Nabokov
The author of Lolita wrote his novels on 3 x 5 inch cards, which would be paper-clipped and stored in slim boxes.
Isabel Allende
The Chilean author always begins writing her novels on the same date: January 8.
“At the beginning it was superstition, because the first book had been so lucky. Now it’s just discipline. My life is busy, so I need to save some months of the year to be in a retreat. I need time and silence, or I will never be able to write. Having a start date is good for me and everybody around me. They know that on January 8, I’m not available anymore.”
John Steinbeck
He used to keep exactly twelve perfectly sharpened pencils on his desk.
Victor Hugo
The French author set out to write The Hunchback of Notre Dame against what seemed as an impossible deadline. He bought an entire bottle of ink and pretty much put himself under house arrest, locking away his clothes to avoid being tempted into going outside. He did finish writing the book before the deadline, using up the entire bottle of ink.
Friedrich Schiller
He left apples to spoil in a drawer because he believed the aroma inspired him. Nothing strange at all with that.
Such a good post. Awesome!
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Thank you.
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Their comfort zone…
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And I thought I was weird!
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I write best in the early morning hours with a cup or two of coffee at my side. I usually write a first draft by hand in pen.
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Tried writing with pen and paper…somehow I feel weird. Hard to explain. I cannot properly grasp the length of my paragraphs or even sentences.
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I write mostly poetry so it fits me. Of course, I am quite comfortable in using technology with my writing–especially with other types of writing.
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Often my blog starts out as an idea I write on paper with pen in my journal up in my sanctuary before I come down to phones and technology.
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Hello Jan. Thanks for sharing a thought. I do a lot of drafts by pen and paper as it just seems easier to think and write. I was just checking our your blog.
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I’m sitting here trying to work out how its even possible to write supine for more than a few minutes…I’d get uncomfortable…fast. Great read!
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Reblogged this on John Barleycorn and commented:
An interesting post on some very creative writers, all so different in styles.
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Fun post. Thanks!
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These are great! I read one somewhere about Hunter S. Thompson’s pre-writing routine. It is… extravagant.
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Reblogged this on The Unheard-of Man.
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Seems like what all famous people end up doing. Tennis players also seem to be notorious for it too.
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This is awesome!
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Fascinating…. 🙂
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i wrote couple of pages few years ago and never wrote again .I am still learning English and can’t write a single page without mistakes 😂😂
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That’s what editing is for! 😉
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Good post
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Reblogged this on newauthoronline.
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I find it comforting to see these strange habits by famous authors. It reminds me we are all different, and one person’s way of writing doesn’t necessarily work for another writer. So my OWN way of writing is OK, as long as it works for me.
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These are interesting habits. Compared to my own peccadilloes, I think I might need to up my game. 😊
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So interesting! Thank you for sharing. Some made me giggle!
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Interesting. I wonder if I have to develop some writing rituals.
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Probably, yes. Good rituals allow habits, and habits truly make you productive.
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You write when you want/need to, no need for pretentious fripperies. But hey, I’m not Hemmingway, so what do I know? Anyway thanks, etc.
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Great post! I love reading about their little quirks. Super interesting, thanks for posting.
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What an interesting post! I loved reading about the various authoes’ idiosyncrasies. We all have them, don’t we? Don’t get me started!
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Mmm love the smell of rotten apples in the morning!
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Wow, makes me feel a bit better about my own writing habits. Loved this list!
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Oh nice! I never knew William Faulkner was the inventor of drunk texting! Just kidding. Great post. Did you write it drunk? lol
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What drugs are you on?
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Fascinating stuff, I would like to combine the lying down with the whisky, finishing by lunchtime – plus the being wildly successful.
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Fascinating!
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This is interesting, I loved it!
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Reblogged this on E. Denise Billups, Writer.
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This is fascinating!
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Having read a lot of these writers, I guess I’m not surprised at most of these haha
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Interesting…especially reference the drinking habits of some or most of these famed authors. But what about the women writers? Personally, I have no habits, I used to, in my early days, only write on hotel stationary…great post!
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There are a fair number of writers who have written in the nude.
https://killzoneblog.com/2017/08/do-you-write-in-nude.html
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I like Capote’s idea. I do a lot of writing lying down too, but because of ill health rather than affectation. I’m worried I’m not a real writer though, because I don’t drink coffee or alcohol!
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This was really interesting to read. Thanks for posting it!
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Interesting facts , cristian!!! thanks for the post
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