How to Start Writing Literature (Lessons from Great Writers) (Patreon)

Today we're talking about how our favourite writers approach the creative process because we can discover advice that will help our own writing.

We're talking about writing routines, composition, fast vs slow writing, filling the creative well, lessons from serial writers, how to find ideas, editing, sublimating pain, specific writing exercises, overcoming writer's block, and much more.

This show is available through iTunes and Spotify. And feel free to use the timestamps below to jump to any topics that most interest you.

Timestamps:

• 0:00 demystifying the writing process
• 2:00 on fiction vs non-fiction
• 3:00 can great writing be taught?
• 4:00 is it ever too late to be a writer?
• 11:00 how to get started writing
• 13:00 establishing a writing routine
• 15:00 deep work and flow states
• 16:00 when is the best time to write?
• 18:00 the power of consistent routines
• 20:00 forming the habit of writing
• 21:00 setting a quota for yourself
• 24:00 how to overcome writer’s block
• 26:00 on writing one true sentence
• 27:00 how to find your authentic voice
• 28:00 a writing prescription for you
• 29:00 why quantity leads to quality
• 31:00 lessons from the pulp writers
• 33:00 why poets need to be prolific
• 37:00 how discipline helps your muse
• 39:00 the importance of feedback
• 42:00 on perseverance in the arts
• 46:00 learning from serial novelists
• 48:00 should you write fast or slow?
• 49:00 how to refill the creative well
• 51:00 how to read like a writer
• 54:00 where do you find ideas?
• 55:00 specific writing exercises
• 57:00 what is your personal voice?
• 58:00 how to sublimate your pain
• 1:00:00 words as tools of the trade
• 1:02:00 on narrative and character
• 1:03:00 charing language with meaning
• 1:04:00 what kind of writer are you?
• 1:07:00 subverting generic expectations
• 1:09:00 engaging with your influences
• 1:10:00 how to edit your work
• 1:12:00 finding your personal motivation

Recommended Resources:

• Daily Rituals: Mason Currey's excellent compilation of the daily routines of great minds offers us a fascinating insight into the creative process. It's fascinating to learn the routines of likes of Hemingway, Einstein, Austen, Picasso, Mozart, Freud, Dickens, and many more.
• On Writing: Stephen King's memoir and meditations on the craft of writing is easily one of the most indispensable companions for any budding writer. I'm also a huge fan of his non-fiction writing in Danse Macabre.
• Zen in the Art of Writing: For a volume stuffed to bursting with inspiring stories from a life of writing, along with some superb writing exercises, I highly recommend Ray Bradbury's essays on creativity.
• Deep Work: Cal Newport's guide to deep work and focused creativity is a fantastic resource when it comes to thinking about establishing effective writing routines.
• Writing Tools: Roy Peter Clark's has compiled fifty-five essential strategies that every writer needs to know. The exercises in this book make a tremendous guide for improving one's writing craft.
• The Paris Review: For insight into the creative process, there is an enormous amount of wisdom packed into The Paris Review's interviews with great writers. I love the interviews with Alice Munro, Ernest Hemingway, and Haruki Murakami.

Questions for You:

1) Do you follow a writing or creative process?

2) What inspires you? Do you have a muse?

3) Do you have a story you would like to tell?

Happy reading, everybody!