Whether you’re an author, journalist, playwright, screenwriter or copywriter – every professional scribe has a different set of rituals that help them put pen to paper. Hemingway would write from first light until midday, Didion used one solitary hour before dinner to go over everything she'd worked on that day and Maya Angelou kept a hotel room in her hometown just for writing. Our new Writing Rituals series shines a light on some of our favourite writers and the private ceremonies they engage in each and every day.

Writing is a process that every writer approaches in a different way – how would you describe your own process? 

I work full-time as an archivist for the Eames Office, which often involves researching, writing, and creating videos about mid-century history and two of its most well-known designers. In my free time, I enjoy freelance writing and researching for historical societies, design companies, and preservation organizations. I’ve (very slowly) been researching in hopes of writing a book about modern architecture sometime within the next few years. Because the purpose and amount I write fluctuates from week to week, I don’t seem to have a set schedule or routine in place for it. Although my personality is pretty upbeat and outgoing, I enjoy escaping to a quiet place to read and write. It helps that I work remotely. Sometimes, if the weather permits, I’ll bring a notebook to the waterfront near my apartment in Seattle and write in the grass.

Do you listen to music while writing? 

Oh gosh, music listening, and writing can’t coexist with me, and I wish that weren’t the case! I’ve tried listening to all sorts of different artists and genres of music while writing, but my mind can’t handle the distraction of sounds and words while I’m trying to formulate ideas.

Are there set times of day in which writing or even editing feels more natural? 

I function at my best in the afternoon and early evening, so that’s when writing is the easiest for me.

Name a handful of vices you use to get going each day…

I start my day by drinking a massive jar of water in as few seconds as possible.

Many writers find it hard to sit in a chair and stare at a screen all day. Do your writing rituals include anything physical to help discover or build ideas? 

My day job requires me to stare at a computer screen all day, so I try my best to keep the computer out of the early stages of researching and writing as much as I can. For me, the physical act of sifting through books helps clear my mind and build new thoughts for writing.

What’s the first thing you do when you see a blank page?

I always welcome blank pages in notebooks because they offer a clean slate and the feeling of freshness, but a blank page on a computer feels so daunting to me! I can’t jump into writing the first sentence of a piece right away. First, I need to read a ton, make outlines, fill notebooks with quotes and ideas, and then tackle the actual writing assignment.

I try to use books to gather most of my preliminary research and then fill in the gaps with research from the internet. In the research stage, I usually find myself already beginning to form fragments or complete sentences. I immediately have to write these ideas down to avoid permanently losing the arrangement of words. Sometimes these phrases will come to me in the shower or in the middle of a drive, so I find myself chanting them over and over in my mind until I’m able to scribble them down onto paper. Once, halfway through researching a writing assignment, an introduction sentence popped into my thoughts at 3am after I had randomly woken up from sleep. A reminder of how cool our minds are! After I’ve read as many resources as possible on the subject, I gather the notes from my notebook and begin to piece them together in the Notes application on my computer. The phrases and ideas are arranged into an outline, and then I start writing. I usually tend to edit line by line as I’m writing, and then do two rounds of obsessive editing at the end when everything has been written.

Does your writing routine or the rituals you perform remain the same each day or does it vary from time to time? 

I appreciate variety!

Are there obstacles you face each day when you sit down to write? How do you try to overcome them or avoid distraction? 

I am prone to becoming visually distracted, so working in front of my window can sometimes cause me to zone out at the trees. Thankfully, staring at greenery is good for us.

Finish this sentence: When I get stuck or feel frustrated writing, I…

Take a small break, sometimes a quick drive around the neighborhood to the nearby waterfront.

Do you have a writing quote you live by or that inspires you each day?

It isn’t specifically about writing, but it’s a quote that guides me through my days in general. I have a photograph that lives on my desktop: a note that Ray Eames scribbled down for herself as a reminder. It’s an extremely endearing comment Charles made to her in his later years, after decades of working together and loving each other: “Any indication of not knowing how consistently great you are is merely a lapse into insanity.”

  Thank you to Alana at TONE Agency for this feature!