The Best Time of Day to Write, According to 12 Wildly Successful Writers.
“Do the right work at the right time“ — Dan Pink
Daniel Pink, author of When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing, says our cognitive abilities aren’t static over the course of a day. They change and even more so, they change in ways that can be predictable — or extreme.
We need to learn do the right work at the right time, he says
Tick tock. So, what’s that mean for a writer, I wondered.
You know me, right? hello, rabbit hole, we meet again.
So I went digging. To see when famous writers do/did their writing. If you’re clever and you read their quotes, you’ll notice something interesting.
Ready?
1. Toni Morrison: Before Sunrise
Toni Morrison, Nobel Prize and Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist would rise before the sun. And wait. That magical moment when dark becomes light, that’s when her muse showed up.
“I always get up and make a cup of coffee while it is still dark — it must be dark — and then I drink the coffee and watch the light come…And I realized that for me this ritual comprises my preparation to enter a space that I can only call nonsecular…Writers all devise ways to approach that place where they expect to make the contact, where they become the conduit..” — Toni Morrison
2. Ernest Hemingway: Sunrise
One of the most misquoted writers ever, Hemingway won both the Pulitzer prize and the Nobel Prize for literature. An early bird, he preferred to get up with the sun and head straight to the paper before anyone disturbed him.
“I write every morning as soon after first light as possible. There is no one to disturb you.” — Ernest Hemingway
3. Barbara Kingsolver: 4 AM
Named one the most important writers of the 20th Century by Writers Digest, Kingsolver is a Winner of the National Humanities Medal for service through the arts, a Pulitzer finalist, and winner of the Dayton Literary Peace Prize for the body of her work. Another early riser.
“I tend to wake up very early. Too early. Four o’clock is standard. 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…” — Barbara Kingsolver
4. Daniel Gilbert: 4 AM (to 11 am)
Gilbert is the Edgar Pierce Professor of Psychology at Harvard University and known for his research on affective forecasting. His book, Stumbling on Happiness sold over a million copies, won Royal Society’s General Book Prize for best science book of the year and was a New York Times bestseller.
“A good writing day starts at 4 AM. By 11 AM the rest of the world is awake and the day goes downhill from there.” — Daniel Gilbert
5. Haruki Murakami: 4 AM (to 10 am)
Called one of the world’s greatest living novelists, Murakami has won numerous awards, including the World Fantasy Award, the Frank O’Connor International Short Story Award, the Franz Kafka Prize, the Jerusalem Prize and the Hans Christian Anderson Award, which J.K. Rowling also won. In 2015, he was named one of the TIME 100’s most influential people.
“When I’m in writing mode for a novel, I get up at 4:00 am and work for five to six hours. In the afternoon, I run for 10km or swim for 1500m, then I read a bit and listen to some music. I go to bed at 9:00 pm. I keep to this routine every day without variation.” — Haruki Murakami
6. Andrew Roberts: 4:30 AM
Roberts is an award winning historian, a multiple best-selling author and winner of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for biography as well as a finalist for the Plutarch Award. He goes straight from bed to writing. In jammies.
“Very early in the morning, usually around 4:30 am, dressed in my pajamas, dressing-gown and slippers. That way no-one interrupts you…” — Andrew Roberts
7. James Altucher: The earlier the better
Altucher has written over 20 books. His 12th book, Choose Yourself, finally struck gold and was listed as one of USA Today’s “Best Business Books of All Time.” His 19th title, Reinvent Yourself, made #1 overall on Amazon.com. Good enough incentive to never quit, he’s yet another early riser…
“The earlier the better. Nobody is up. I’m creative. I don’t have the worries of the day infecting my thoughts…” — James Altucher
8. Isaac Asimov: 5 AM
Asimov was a prolific writer who wrote or edited more than 500 books and an estimated 90,000 letters. President of the American Humanist Association, he won more than a dozen annual awards for science fiction and a half dozen lifetime awards, including the Hugo, Nebula and Locus. He also received 14 honorary doctorate degrees from universities and four literary awards are named in his honor. Yet another early riser…
“I wake at five in the morning. I get to work as early as I can. I work as long as I can. I do this every day of the week, including holidays.” — Isaac Asimov
9. Kurt Vonnegut: 5:30 AM (to 8 am)
In a career spanning over 50 years, Vonnegut won several literary awards, including the Hugo award for best novel, the Guggenheim Fellowship, Writers Guild of America and more. He published 14 novels, 3 short story collections, 5 plays, and 5 works of nonfiction, with further collections published after his death. And all of that by writing for just a few hours every morning.
“In an unmoored life like mine, sleep and hunger and work arrange themselves to suit themselves, without consulting me. I’m just as glad they haven’t consulted me about the tiresome details. What they have worked out is this: I awake at 5:30 — work until 8:00…” — Kurt Vonnegut
10. Honoré de Balzac: 1 AM (until 8 AM)
Author of eighty-five novels and one of the founders of realism in European literature, Honoré de Balzac, was a French literary artist who produced a vast number of novels and short stories collectively called La Comédie humaine (The Human Comedy). Considered to be one of the greatest novelists of all time, he preferred to write through the night — from 1 AM until 8 AM.
“I go to bed at six or seven in the evening, like the chickens; I’m waked at one o’clock in the morning, and I work until eight…” — Honoré de Balzac
11. Tim Ferriss : 1 AM (until 5 AM)
Ferriss has written five books, The 4-Hour Workweek (2007), The 4-Hour Body (2010), The 4-Hour Chef (2012), Tools of Titans (2016), and Tribe of Mentors (2017). He hit multiple bestseller lists with The 4-Hour Workweek, including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today. Unlike most of the purveyors of success, Tim prefers to write when the stars are out.
“It took me a long time to accept 1–5 am as my best hours, which was the only timing that provided consistent progress.” — Tim Ferriss
12. H.P. Lovecraft: at night
Lovecraft was an American writer of weird and horror fiction. Although his readership was limited during his life, he is now regarded as one of the most influential horror writers of the 20th Century. His racist views, however, are not so popular and the World Fantasy Awards discontinued the use of his image as their prize winning statue in 2015.
“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.” — H.P. Lovecraft
Do you see the pattern, dear reader?
Seems it’s not so much about the time on the clock, but finding the perfect pocket of time when your mind is active but your world is quiet. Free of distractions and interruptions. So you can hear…
