ABSTRACT
Writers’ habits Many writers and other creatives deliberately introduce a ritualistic aspect to their
work, often before the writing begins. Going through the ritual ‘gets them in the
mood’ for the creative flow to begin. Such a mood (though that’s not the best word
for it) is as much to do with emotion as it is with an intellectual process. It usually
involves a feeling of excitement and anticipation, a sense of ‘raring to go’, a certain
inner knowing that ‘yes I can do this’. And when the flow begins it is just that, an
effortless streaming of ideas and words that seem just to spill out on the page,
frequently to the extent that the writer becomes immersed in his own imagined
world, lost in the adventure that is unfolding before him. The ease-of-doing is
deceptive. In such a mental state the pupil is not snatching at the first thought that
comes along or throwing any old words down on paper. He is more likely to be
performing at the current peak of his ability and the writing will probably be among
his best work (especially after it has been reviewed and refined – see Review notes
at the end of the book).
