英语原文

Finding the ideal working habits that will allow me to write as consistently as possible is always something I’m exploring as a writer.

As I’ve said before, I try to make it a habit to write first thing in the morning. It helps me to focus and ensure that I’m getting my writing done.

I love reading about my favorite writers and what writing habits led to their success. Below, I share with you some of my favorite writers’ work habits … and it’s obvious that there’s no single way to success. Some like to write a certain number of words or pages every day, others were happy to write a page or a sentence. Some liked to write long-hand, others did it on index cards. Some wrote standing up, others lying down.

There’s no one way that works. Do what works for you (and share it in the comments!). But maybe you’ll get some inspiration from these greats, as I have.

1. Stephen King.

In his book On Writing, King says that he writes 10 pages a day without fail, even on holidays. That’s a lot of writing each day, and it has led to some incredible results: King is one of the most prolific writers of our time.

2. Ernest Hemingway.

By contrast with King, “Papa” Hemingway wrote 500 words a day. That’s not bad, though. Hemingway, like me, woke early to write to avoid the heat and to write in peace and quiet. Interestingly, though Hemingway is famous for his alcoholism, he said he never wrote while drunk.

3. Vladimir Nabokov.

The author of such great novels as Lolita, Pale Fire and Ada did his writing standing up, and all on index cards. This allowed him to write scenes non-sequentially, as he could re-arrange the cards as he wished. His novel Ada took up more than 2,000 cards.

4. Truman Capote.

The author of “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” and “In Cold Blood” claimed to be a “completely horizontal author.” He said he had to write lying down, in bed or on a couch, with a cigarette and coffee. The coffee would switch to tea, then sherry, then martinis, as the day wore on. He wrote his first and second drafts in longhand, in pencil. And even his third draft, done on a typewriter, would be done in bed — with the typewriter balanced on his knees.

5. Philip Roth.

One of the greatest living American writers, Roth works standing up, pacing around as he thinks. He claimed to walk half a mile for every page he writes. He separates his work life from personal life, and doesn’t write where he lives — he has a studio built away from his house. He works at a lectern that doesn’t face the view of his studio window, to avoid distraction.

6. James Joyce.

In the pantheon of great writers of the last century, Joyce looms large. And while more prolific writers set themselves a word or page limit, Joyce prided himself in taking his time with each sentence. A famous story has a friend asking Joyce in the street if he’d had a good day writing. Yes, Joyce replied happily. How much had he written? Three sentences, Joyce told him.

7. Joyce Carol Oates.

This extremely prolific writer (see her bibliography on her Wikipedia page!) has won numerous awards, including the National Book Award. She writes in longhand, and while she doesn’t have a formal schedule, she says she prefers to write in the morning, before breakfast. She’s a creative writing professor, and on the days she teaches, she says she writes for an hour or 45 minutes before leaving for her first class. On other days, when the writing is going well, she can work for hours without a break — and has breakfast at 2 or 3 in the afternoon!

What are your writing habits? Share in the comments!

中文翻译

寻找一种理想的工作习惯，让我能够尽可能始终如一地坚持写作，是我作为一个作家始终不断探索的领域。

就像我以前说过的，我试图把“早晨第一件事用来写作 write first thing in the morning ”当成了一种习惯，它帮我强迫自己确保完成写作任务。

我 喜爱读一些关于我最喜欢的作者们的事迹，看看是什么样的写作习惯能够让他们成为一个成功的作家。下面，我将和你分享一下几个我最喜欢的作家的工作习惯…… 显而易见的是，没有一条单纯的道路可以把你引向成功。我所介绍的这些作家们有些喜欢每天写上一定数量的字数或者页数，有一些只乐意写一页甚至一句。有些喜欢像平常那样手写，有些则喜欢写在索引卡片上，有些人站着写，还有不少喜欢躺着写的。

并不是每种方法都管用，哪种方法适合你呢？（最好在评论中分享一下），不过，或许你可以从他们的伟大中获取一些灵感也说不定。

1. 史蒂芬.金（Stephen King）：在他的《写作》一书中，他说他能从不间断的每天写下十页，即便是在节假日也一样。这是一个不小的工作量，当然也导致了一个不可思议的结果：史蒂芬.金是我们这个时代最多产的作家之一。

2. 海明威（Ernest Hemingway）：和史蒂芬.金相反，“老爹”海明威每天只写500字，不过还不错啦。他跟我似的，喜欢早早起床写东西，这样可以避免炎热的天气的影响，在平和安静的环境里写作。有趣的是，尽管海明威向来有酗酒的名声，不过他说他从来不在喝醉的时候写作。

3. 弗拉基米尔·纳博科夫（Vladimir Nabokov）：这个写出了《洛丽塔》（ Lolita）、《苍白的火焰》（ Pale Fire）和《艾达》（Ada）这样的牛叉小说的作者是站着写作的，而且都是写在索引卡片上，这种方法可以让他不在乎连续性地写下各种场景，然后他可以按照自己的意愿重新组织整理这些卡片。他的小说《Ada》使用了2000多张这样的卡片。

4. 杜鲁门.凯波特（Truman Capote）：这位《第 凡内早餐》和《冷血》的作者声称自己是一个“完全的横向作者”，他说他必须得躺着才能写作，在床上或者沙发上，叼着烟拿着咖啡才行。咖啡稍后会换成茶，然 后是雪利酒，在一天要结束的时候，已经变成了马提尼。他先用铅笔写下第一、第二甚至第三稿，最后用打字机完稿。当然，肯定是在床上打完的--把打字机平衡 的放在他的膝盖上！

5. 菲利普.罗斯（Philip Roth）：现在还活着的最伟大的美国作家之一，他也是站着工作的，一边走圈一边思考。他声称自己每写上一页都得走上半英里。他把他的工作和个人生活分离开来，生活中从不写作--他有一个离他家很远的工作室，他的工作台背对着他工作室的窗口，以免被分心。

6. 詹姆斯.乔伊斯（James Joyce）：在上个世纪的作家神殿中，乔伊斯显得非常突出。当多数高产作家给自己限定几个字或者几页的目标时，乔伊斯骄傲得把他所有的时间都花在了每一个句子上，有个著名的故事是这么说的，乔伊斯的一个朋友在街上问他今天写得怎么。很好，乔伊斯高兴的回答他。那他那天写了多少呢？乔伊斯告诉他的朋友：三句。

7. 乔伊斯.卡罗.欧茨（Joyce Carol Oates）：这个极端高产的作家（看看 Wikipedia 上她的页面中的著作列表 ）获得了无数个奖项，其中包括美国国家图书奖（National Book Award）。她喜欢跟我们一样平常的手写。她说，在没有正式安排的日子里，她更喜欢在早晨，特别是早餐之前写东西。她是一个极具创造性的写作教授。当她有课的时候，她说她写上 45 分钟至一个小时之后才去上她的第一节课，其他的没课的日子里，当她写得渐入佳境时，她可以不带休息地连续写上几个小时 -- 在下午两三点才开始吃早餐。

你是不是也有自己的写作习惯，在评论中分享一下吧。