Timothy asked Ned Hayes:

Do you have any specific rules you follow regarding the process and discipline of writing -- favored places you write, routines you follow, and the like?

Ned Hayes Thanks for the question, Tim!

I found that when I tried to set up the "perfect environment" for writing, it never happened.

And I read about Stephen King writing his books in the laundry room, with the machines banging around washing laundry and his kids climbing all over him. And I thought, if he can do that, I should be able to write on my commuter train, on the bus, and in any room in my house.

So I started writing everywhere, and carrying a notebook with me everywhere. I found that if I just jotted down a few pages a day, I began to have the form of a solid book, and so I kept doing that. I currently have 3 notebooks with me, and I have 3 different projects going in these books.

I find that waiting for the optimal environment doesn't make it happen. The optimal environment for writing is inside your own head -- just do it. Start writing words down, in a notebook, on a laptop, on any napkin you can find, even by audio dictation while driving!

With all this said, my favorite places to write are on the Olympia > Seattle commuter train while the sun is rising over the misty meadows and forests outside the window (I'd love to win an Amtrack fellowship to duplicate this experience), and in my home office, again looking out at the misty forest in the acreage behind my house in Olympia.

The only routine I follow right now is Write Every Day.

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