Neil Gaiman's Creativity Hacks
Some of us got into PKM because of writing. They're intertwined more than we'd like to admit. If creating a longer, finished body of work is your goal, Neil Gaiman has a few tricks up his sleeve.
Many people explore Personal Knowledge Management because of writing. I sure represent this slice of the pie. It’s not uncommon for someone who accidentally falls into the PKM rabbit hole to become so absorbed with nurturing the notes vault that they forget why they got into this in the first place: to produce a finished piece of writing.
This week, I felt compelled to dedicate this issue to creating something outward-facing. PKM, after all, is but the means to an end.
The Man
I've been following Neil Gaiman, the prolific American author, for a while now. Surprisingly, I’ve never read a single one of his books. It’s just not the kind of literature I consume. This could change at some point, but not now.
Some musicians become interested in other artists not because they like their music but because they want to recreate a particular sound or scenic persona. These people will be mostly interested in their idols’ gear and how they use it.
Neil Gaiman is one of these idol figures for me. His half-analogue, half-digital workflow resonates with me, and his advice, which I’ve collected from several sources, helps me combat writer’s block, procrastination, and analysis paralysis.
I know many of you often find yourselves in the shoes of a professional writer, even if you think you aren’t one. Everybody writes. We write letters, reports, emails, social posts, manuals, and pitch decks. And, as unrelated as these writing spikes might feel, they’re all plagued with the same roadblocks a “classic” writer faces daily. Therefore, I thought it’d be useful to all of us to use a few of …
Neil Gaiman’s Silver Bullets
Here’s what I’ve collected thus far. Do you know of any other of his tricks?
Work in Boring, Uncomfortable Places
Check into a place you'd like to leave as soon as possible. If it’s a hotel, it shouldn't be in a neighbourhood where you'd like to wander. The room shouldn't be too comfy for you to enjoy the luxury. It should promote writing to get it done and get out of there.
He “stole” this trick from Ian Fleming, whom it took two weeks to write one of James Bonds. He talked about it in an interview, which made it clear that he did not enjoy the process of writing. So, he found this trick.
Write by Hand and Slow Down
Neil writes his first drafts with a fountain pen in a premium paper notebook. He enjoys writing by hand with high-quality writing instruments. He uses multiple pens with different ink colours. He rotates them daily, allowing him to compare his productivity levels visually. A pen forces you to slow down and think deeper.
There’s also an undeniable element of fetish, which we’ve discussed in the previous issue on raising stakes to trigger creativity.
The first draft is for your eyes only. You’re telling the story to yourself, and nobody needs to know what it looked like in the beginning.
When the first paper draft has been completed, he starts typing the second draft. This is not a replica of what was written by hand. The first content-vetting happens at this stage, and much thought goes into it.
He's not a fan of the 0-cost of typing on a computer, so he artificially recreates the pressure of typing on paper with a typewriter. On the computer, the work is removing or thinking about what should be trimmed after the fact. With analogue tools, you need to think before committing. Removing less text makes him feel like he saves valuable effort.
Allow Yourself Not to Write
Allow yourself not to write during a writing session at all*.
Here comes the fine print, though:
*You're allowed to do only two things: a) absolutely nothing and b) writing.
It's liberating initially, but writing starts looking much more appealing after a while. You simply can’t help but start writing.
To be able to refrain from distractions, it’s important to remain somewhere where you have control over the sources of distractions. If other people are around, you might be unable to say no to their dopamine cravings.
Change the Decor
Put yourself in a setting that is different from your home. There should be enough people around to feel like you're not alone on the planet but not too crowded to be distracted. Order a tea and keep writing. Cafés and libraries are often writers' choices.
“When in doubt, go to the library.”
—RON WEASLEY (HARRY POTTER)
Lower the Stakes
Trivialise what you're doing. It's liberating. Write books nobody expects, is waiting for or anticipates. Otherwise, it'll be much more stressful. Try writing about things nobody initially cares about.
Neil sometimes writes things his publishers deem unsellable. Some of his writing, for example, is exclusively for his kids.
Eat the Elephant One Bite at a Time
If you're short on time, write 5 to 6 lines or 50 words every night before bed instead of reading before sleep. This way, you'll make slow but steady progress regardless of your busyness. Some progress is better than no progress, and it compounds over time.
Multitask
Work on multiple books simultaneously if it doesn't hinder your focus or productivity.
The famous German sociologist and prolific writer Niklas Luhmann was also known for this.
“When I am stuck for one moment, I leave it and do something else … I always work on different manuscripts at the same time. With this method, to work on different things simultaneously, I never encounter any mental blockages.”
—NIKLAS LUHMANN
Neil admits that, with time, he became more of a unitasker and switching between manuscripts is no longer as necessary to combat writer’s block. On the contrary, context-switching seems to slow him down as every change requires ramping up the speed again.
Get Into the Groove
Establish a routine, get into the groove, and go through the same motions day in and day out. The closer you can get to Groundhog Day, the better.
This one seems like standard advice among creatives and productivity peeps. Another productive writer, Haruki Murakami, whose advice I also tend to follow, lists stamina for the repetitive grind as the first attribute of any successful creative person.
The common gym bro’s wisdom is that it takes you the same time to get back in shape as the time spent away from the gym. So, you lose twice as much time by temporarily falling off the wagon.
This is also how I feel about writing. Picking up the pen after several days of procrastination feels like an insurmountable roadblock.
Other Interesting Facts
Neil writes a blog. Perhaps you should, too?
Neil says that writers can be divided into architects and gardeners, and he would prefer to be the latter, as this allows for happy accidents when ideas grow.
Sometimes, he postpones ideas for a very long time, letting them accumulate. This is one of the biggest reasons writers get into PKM and digital gardening.
If you want to hear most of the above from the author's mouth, here’s the video you might like.
Wow, I didn't know about the multi-tasking of either Gaiman and Luhmann. As someone who is deeply intrigued by both of their processes, I find this very insightful. I hadn't seen that Luhmann quote yet. So far, I've been using PKM to help me work on different projects at a time and it's helped me write a master's thesis and a few proposals. Even though it still feels unorganized to me, it seems to be working, about a year and a half in.
Glad to have read this today, thanks for sharing!