Top ten writers’ tips on writing

Travis Elborough and Helen Gordon are the anthologizers behind Being a Writer: Advice, Musings, Essays and Experiences From the World's Greatest Authors. One of their ten favorite writers' tips, as shared at the Guardian:

Leo Tolstoy and HP Lovecraft – pick the hours that work best for you

Tolstoy believed in starting first thing: “I always write in the morning. I was pleased to hear lately that Rousseau, too, after he got up in the morning, went for a short walk and sat down to work. In the morning one’s head is particularly fresh. The best thoughts most often come in the morning after waking while still in bed or during the walk.”

Or stay up late as HP Lovecraft did: “At night, when the objective world has slunk back into its cavern and left dreamers to their own, there come inspirations and capabilities impossible at any less magical and quiet hour. No one knows whether or not he is a writer unless he has tried writing at night.”

Read about the other entries on the list.

--Marshal Zeringue