The Writing Desk

Routines, rituals and the small habits that get a novel finished.

This is sample text. I write in the early morning, before the day has opinions. Tea first, then one hour with no internet.

Drafting by hand

The first draft of every chapter is longhand. The typewriter comes later, when the voice is already found.

A novel is finished one unglamorous page at a time. The only trick is showing up the next day.

What a bundle of faded letters taught me about the people behind the dates.

On returning to the places that shaped a story, and finding them changed.