A routine for aspiring writers
1. Wake up half an hour before you want to get out of bed, open your window and read a chapter or two from a beloved classic rather than to go straight to work.
2. Take your time for your morning routine and focus on what you’re doing now rather than what you want to do next or you’ll forgot things that will bother you later during the day.
3. Go on a walk and live what you want to write; keep a notebook with you to write down your ideas and impressions of the scenes you see and the strangers you pass.
4. Don’t be afraid to romanticise life, both your own and life in general; try to describe how your characters see what you do and what they make of this.
5. Before you begin writing, whether it is in the morning or after a day of work, first prepare a cup of tea of coffee and put on music that transports you to the world you want to create.
6. Try to write one page a day, whether you feel inspired or not; the inspiration might still come, and if not, you can always try again tomorrow and won’t have a reason to procrastinate.
7. When writing, imagine you’re narrating the story to a captivated audience who are sitting on the edge of their seats to find out what happens next.
8. Remember the principle of the iceberg; remain a stranger to your own characters, or, as Anton Chekhov said, ‘be sure not to discuss your hero’s state of mind. Make it clear from his action.’
9. Distance yourself from your work every now and then; take a few days off from writing to not lose yourself in your story.
10. Two tips from Hemingway I follow religiously; The first, don’t stop writing when you’re done, but when you’re still full of inspiration, that way you’ll be eager to continue where you stopped the day before, and secondly, remember that the first draft never reads well and is to your novel what a sketch is to a painting
