There are rules ascribed to all we do. Being a writer comes with a set of rules that, if followed, create the conditions for success. As a warning, I don’t often follow these rules. My career paints a colorful picture of the results. You should know these rules of engagement. From time to time I will share some.
Rule: Never write while lying down.
This is the swiftest trajectory to falling asleep. It should be avoided on that basis alone, but in particular because it puts the mind in relaxation mode, which is quite far from where you should be when hammering out deep thoughts.
Rule: Distractions are actually distractions
Many people work while listening to music. This is only okay when there are no words to the music. The words steal memory resources from your key function. You gotta strip away all that other stuff and retire to an uninteresting environment in order to retreat into the deep recesses of your own mind. That is where the good stuff lives. The problem is that it takes a lot to get to it. Consider the process of aging a fine wine. Your memories, experience, and writing style are the concoction that forms the wine. Time-aged, the wine will be bursting with flavor and originality. Only, the wine doesn’t want to come out of the bottle. You gotta coax it out and concentrate on every aspect of the retrieval. That don’t happen while boppin to Drake.