Karen Thompson Walker Quotes

There's something to be said for writing in the morning. At other points in the day, you're a bit more defensive.

When I am working on a book or a story, I write every morning as soon after first light as possible. There is no one to disturb you, and it is cool or cold, and you come to your work and warm as you write.

I don't listen to music when I write. I need silence so I can hear the sound of the words.

The morning is always my best time of the day for writing because that's when my head is best.

For that reason you can't write with music playing, and anyone who says he can is either writing badly, or not listening to the music, or lying. You need to hear what you're writing, and for that you need silence.

Sometimes I write with music on, and if I'm in a good flow, I don't even hear it.

I wake up in the morning and my mind starts making sentences, and I have to get rid of them fast - talk them or write them down.

Ah, typical writing day? Well, I tend to do e-mail and the business stuff of writing more in the morning while my brain wakes up and then write more in the afternoon, sometimes from about 11 until 5, or 12 until 5. If a story is driving me nuts, I'll work more in the evenings, but usually I try not to do that. That's family time.

I rarely listen to music while writing. I wish I could, but it distracts me.

I don't listen to music when I write. I need silence.

I never, ever drink while writing. Never have from the start, and I'm happy that I never have to. A lot of my stuff is plot-driven and mathematical, and I think you need a clean and sober mind to pin down the logistics of that.

I never listen to music when I write. It's too much of a distraction.

I write much better in the nonconfines of the early morning than I do the clutter of the day.

My writing regimen is not very regimented. I tend to be a binge writer, working sometimes in the morning and sometimes all night. When I get going I like to hunch over the keyboard until I feel totally played out.

Not intending to be funny: I sit at the keyboard, put my fingers on the keys and go. To me, it's the real secret of writing. Put yourself in front of the screen or the blank sheet of paper and get to work.

I prefer to write first drafts as soon as possible after waking, so that the oneiric inscape is still present to me.

Writing sessions can last an hour or sixteen hours, depending on how it's going.

I don't want anything to get in the way of me and my singing. I want my mind as clear as possible.

One of the big breakthroughs I had as a writer was when I stopped agonising over every word.

I write every day. I don't have a writing schedule. I write when I feel like it. Fortunately, I feel like it all the time. I am writing for hours. I do like to write in the morning. I start after breakfast, like 9 o'clock, and I'll write till lunch, about 1. And after lunch, I just have fun.

I'm not a believer that you have to write every day. If I felt industrious, I'd spend ten hours a week writing. The writing is going on all the time in my head; the trick is to capture it. Showers are great. Traffic jams are great.

My morning begins with trying not to get up before the sun rises. But when I do, it's because my head is too full of words, and I just need to get to my desk and start dumping them into a file. I always wake with sentences pouring into my head.

You can write any time people will leave you alone and not interrupt you. Or, rather, you can if you will be ruthless enough about it. But the best writing is certainly when you are in love.

Very first thing in the morning, I spew some rough genius directly on to the laptop. Then I have coffee and rewrite for three hours.

I'm not one of those writers I learned about who get up in the morning, put a piece of paper in their typewriter machine and start writing. That I've never understood.