The writing mantra

Writing is not easy (we know that too well). But you would think that the acclaimed writers have it easy, or do they? What are their writing rituals? What do they do when they write? You’d be surprised. The Week talked to a few writers about their writing process and the rituals they follow when they sit down to write.

Sarubhakta
In my early days as a writer, I remember that I was infamous for sleeping in late. I had a very simple reason. I used to stay up till late writing. In the day, I would be busy with my friends in various discussions, watching plays, attending different programs, and going to classes. The only time I had was the nighttime, when I could write in peace. But things changed once I finished college and went home, and started writing full time. It was then that I developed an addiction for tea. My mother would prepare tea for me early in the morning and keep it in a big thermos, as making a cup every hour was impossible. I used to drink 15-25 cups of tea everyday, much to the amusement of my friends and family. It’s nothing like that now. I’m allergic to milk tea and barely take black tea. Whenever I feel like writing, the words and the subjects come to me in the form of poems, essays, or novels, and the genre is already determined. If it’s a long work, I make points in English, even though I write in Nepali. I do improvise here and there, but that’s only sometimes.

Nayan Raj Pandey

Previously, I had a habit of writing with black dot pen, now I’ve shifted to writing on my laptop. I don’t write at night. I find the afternoon a lot more peaceful than any other time of the day. Whenever I’m writing, I have to have around five to seven books, which might be fiction or non-fiction. Because after an hour of writing, I’m inclined to flip through the pages of those books to break away from the monotony of writing. After every hour or two, I take a 15 minute break and randomly pick up a book and enjoy reading it. I find this custom of reading and writing refreshing. Also, every two hours, I sip a cup of milk tea without sugar. These are the practices that I developed ever since I took writing seriously as my profession.
I have a tendency of being in a trance like state whenever I’m writing. I’m usually thinking about the plot, the characters, and don’t pay much attention to anything that’s happening around me. If there are people around when I’m writing, I just nod or respond in monosyllables, without realizing what I’m responding to. I’ve got into trouble number of times because of that. This one time, I had the machine to pump water on for the entire day because I was too busy writing. I’m usually not like that, but while writing, it’s a different matter altogether.

Buddhisagar

Music is indispensable whenever I’m writing. I’m usually connected to the Internet so I open YouTube and play either Tibetan or African instrumental numbers. I wear headphones and play it in a mild volume so that it doesn’t disturb anyone, including my writing process. After writing a little bit, which could be around 300-400 words or even 1,000 words, I stop and read through it. I check what I’m writing and take small breaks.
During the breaks, I browse through books in my collection. I even watch movies, especially English, and I find great solace when I do that. I feel they give me the energy and the enthusiasm to go ahead and finish my work. I keep myself hydrated by drinking green tea time and again, but not all the time. But one thing that I absolutely don’t miss out on is taking a walk in the evenings. I walk for an hour or more than that and let the plot, characters, and storyline play in my head, so that when I’m writing at night, it comes easy. When that part is over, I commence my writing from 10 at night till the wee hours, usually 2 or 3 am. Then it’s all about catching the flash of ideas and turning them into stories, and a lot of improvisations.

Upendra Subba
Rather than following any particular ritual while writing, I have to make sure that there is no tension and pressure from any side. I just can’t write when the situation at home or wherever I’m writing is tense, or demands my participation. Hence I need a lot of time to write whenever I’m writing anything. If I say that I’m writing, then it’s the only thing I do. I need so much concentration then that even if someone asks me to eat, I lose my temper. I’ve found that only when I consider any writing as a project, with a deadline, especially, I can finish it. And even after I’ve written something, I get really scared. I worry about what I write.
I realized this about me only a long time after I started writing. Else, my family used to say that when I’m writing, I change and become a different man. I let them know about the metamorphosis I go through when I write. So these days, whenever I have work, I ask my wife what she can do to make a suitable environment for me, as well as the family. And only after managing the basics like, household expenses, I get into writing. Of late, I’ve even started going to places like Damak or Pokhara whenever I have to write. It helps reduce disturbances.

Rajan Mukarang
A smoke, a lighter, and a thermos full of milk tea – these are the few things that I keep besides me whenever I start to write. Usually, for the longest time, I think about the elements that might appear in my writing, like plot, characters, and all the little details. So by the time I start recording, I’m almost done building the story and the characters. But what happens is that out of nowhere, the possibility of a different plot starts enticing me.
I can write without a break for up to seven hours. But I also take little breaks in between. I find phone calls or any form of disturbance irritating, so I switch off my phone and avoid people. People who know me are aware of the fact that during Sundays, Mondays, and Tuesdays, I write. Hence, they don’t bother me much on those days. Writing hours are rather unpredictable, though I write early in the morning, before my family wakes up.
Once I know that I’m about to write, I hide all the new books I have with me. I resist the temptation of reading a book because I think it will hamper my writing. But it is a temptation after all, and I do everything in my power not to give into it.