Many years ago, on a Sunday, I was home writing a new project and the work felt labored and forced. I was not having a good workday. The phone rang and it was Steve, who was in a similar state of mind with a project he was working on. We chatted for a while—always a treat—and then I hung up and decided to take a break. I went and turned on the TV

... See more

Sometimes, You Have To Say No To Your Friends To Say Yes To Your Work

When asked, Lin-Manuel Miranda says Wait For It is the best song he’s ever written. “I was on my way to my friend’s birthday party,” Miranda explains, “when that idea showed up in my head.” He was riding the New York City A Train when “the whole chorus showed up in my head, all at... See more

Here are some other techniques people use to access and maintain the zone:

• Introducing a long delay between when you do the work and when it is shown to the world. Annie Ernaux writes about this in A Simple Passion, a memoir about how she becomes obsessed in a banal way with a man who is having an affair with her—the thought that others will read

... See more