overlaylink

Cómo concentrarse, según autores prolíficos

Bryan Young
junio 13, 2024 | 3 lectura mínima

Ray Bradbury probablemente haya ofrecido el consejo más simple sobre cómo ser un escritor prolífico cuando dijo:

Simplemente escribe todos los días de tu vida. Lee con intensidad y observa qué sucede. La mayoría de mis amigos que siguen esa dieta tienen carreras muy agradables.

Pero ¿cómo hacen los escritores que producen montañas de trabajo como Ray Bradbury para mantener su concentración y su capacidad de producir tantas palabras?

La respuesta varía de un autor a otro.

Stephen King , probablemente el autor más prolífico del género de terror actual, aboga por una doble receta: hábito y eliminación de distracciones.

Escribo desde las 7:30 hasta el mediodía casi todos los días. Entro en una especie de trance. Es importante recordar que no es lo más importante en la vida. Lo importante es estar ahí si te necesitan para la familia o si hay una emergencia o algo así. Pero hay que cortar con la charla intrascendente. Eso significa nada de Twitter. Eso significa no ir al Huffington Post a ver qué está haciendo Kim Kardashian. Hay un momento para eso; para mí, normalmente es antes de acostarme. Me encuentro sentada, hipnotizada, viendo vídeos de perros graciosos, ese tipo de cosas.

“En lugar de atormentarte con el perfeccionismo”, dice James Patterson , autor de más de 140 novelas, sobre su rutina, “crea impulso mediante la escritura libre: escribe sin estructura y deja que los impulsos de tu mente te guíen”.

La autora best-seller Nora Roberts tiene una rutina estricta que le exige tratar la escritura como un trabajo diario, en lugar de un pasatiempo.

Hace su ejercicio matutino y luego, a las 9 de la mañana, va a su oficina y escribe de seis a ocho horas. A veces, incluso vuelve al trabajo para terminar después de cenar.

La rutina de Roberts es la que más se acerca a mi rutina personal últimamente. Me levanto a las 4:30 para ir al gimnasio. Llego a casa a las seis y escribo libremente en mi diario. Preparo a mi hijo menor para ir al colegio (o al campamento de verano, o simplemente a entretenerse) y me dedico a escribir hasta que llega la hora de recogerlo.

Sentado en la silla. Todos los días. Eso es todo para mí.

Para todos estos escritores prolíficos (yo incluido, no es que me considere uno de los grandes, pero soy prolífico y publico) el hilo conductor parece ser la aportación de mucha lectura y la capacidad de mantener una rutina.

Sin duda, hay escritores excelentes que trabajan mucho más despacio. Graham Greene contaba 500 palabras al día en su cuaderno (o 300 a medida que envejecía) y dejaba de escribir en ese instante, pasara lo que pasara. No produjo tanto como, por ejemplo, Stephen King, pero su método le funcionó y produjo algunos de los mejores libros jamás escritos.

Rápido o lento, todo se reduce a crear un hábito que se adapte a tus hábitos y a la química cerebral. ¿Cómo es esa rutina para ti?

Explora los secretos de otros grandes autores a través del tiempo

Regresar a "Trucos para mejorar la productividad al escribir"

julio 08, 2025 3 lectura mínima

How does a USA Today bestselling author use Freewrite? Chelsea Conradt takes us inside her writing process.

junio 19, 2025 4 lectura mínima

What's a romance author to do when a global pandemic hits?

For Carolina Flórez-Cerchiaro, the answer was to start writing horror.

Carolina was writing romance when she first signed with her literary agent six years ago. But, Carolina explains, when the pandemic hit, she pivoted to horror.

"There was something about being isolated at home, living through the literal nightmare that COVID-19 was, that made me want to dive into a haunted house book," she explains. And it's a good thing she did.

That horror novel, Bochica, sold to Simon & Schuster at auction. (Trust us, it's a big deal.)

In fact, switching genres changed her life in more ways than one. "Writing Bochica made me want to move to an old manor in the woods," Carolina says, "so I now live in a house that I’m pretty sure is haunted."

Read on to learn how this Freewriter uses her four-year-old Freewrite Traveler to draft.

ANNIE COSBY: What does your writing process look like?

CAROLINA FLÓREZ-CERCHIARO: My writing process varies depending on the project, but generally, I start with some brainstorming before drafting. I’m not a heavy outliner, but I do make a rough roadmap — usually marking where the character starts, the midpoint, and a general idea of the ending.

It’s often just a list of bullet points to give me some structure. I don’t always know how I’ll get from point A to point B, and the outline changes as I go. I usually re-outline after drafting to make better sense of the story. I don’t treat the outline as strict — I let myself get lost in the story once I’m in it.

It’s really important for me to get the words on the page, even if they’re messy. You can’t edit a blank page, and revising is actually my favorite part of the process. So I focus on finishing that first draft so I can dig into the part I enjoy most.

For projects like Bochica where the historical backdrop is essential, I research before drafting, and continue to do so while writing and revising.

"I don’t treat the outline as strict — I let myself get lost in the story once I’m in it."

AC: How long did it take you to write Bochica?

CFC: The first draft took me about three months to write, and I revised it for another six to eight months with my agent before we sold it to my editor.

AC: That's really fast! How did Freewrite factor into your writing process?

CFC: My Freewrite Traveler is an essential part of my writing process, for every project I work on. It helps me get the juices flowing when I’m stuck, but it also helps me get those words on the page faster. I call it my little magical device!

I not only use it when I draft, but also when I’m revising, and I need to rewrite or add new passages, chapters, or scenes. I use it ALL the time.

"I call [Traveler] my little magical device!"

AC: Why do you prefer to draft on a Freewrite?

CFC: There’s a literal freedom that I get from using it as I’m drafting, similar to when I write by hand, but way more convenient. It’s quick, it keeps me off the internet, and I can easily upload it to my computer!

AC: Let's dig into your publishing journey. How did Bochica get published?

CFC: Bochica isn’t the first book I ever wrote, and it’s also not the book that got me my agent. I was actually writing romance when I signed with my literary agent almost six years ago, and when the pandemic hit, I decided to pivot into writing horror which had always been my favorite genre to read.

When the book was ready for editors, my agent sent it out, and I got an initial offer within days, then we got more offers, and the book ended up selling at auction to Simon and Schuster.

"Writing Bochica made me want to move to an old manor in the woods, so I now live in a house that I’m pretty sure is haunted."

AC: How has the publishing process been so far?

CFC: It’s been quite an experience; you go from hitting the lowest point to feeling on cloud nine the next second.

To sum it up in one word: WILD.

I’m lucky to have an amazing team behind me, both with my literary agent, and with my publishing team at Atria/Primero Sueño Press, to help me navigate this road, to get through the good, and the bad.

"[Publishing] has been quite an experience; you go from hitting the lowest point to feeling on cloud nine the next second."

AC: And before we sign off, what is Bochica about?

CFC: After her father is accused of murder, a young woman returns to her haunted childhood home — turned luxury hotel — and is forced to face the sinister shadows of her past, and unearth the truth of her mother’s mysterious death.

Think Mexican Gothic meets The Shining.

AC: Wow. I'm in!

If Bochica sounds like a wild ride to you, too, check it out here

junio 10, 2025 14 lectura mínima

Descubre los mejores teclados mecánicos sin teclas numéricas de 2025. Compactos, duraderos y perfectos para cualquier configuración: consulta nuestras mejores opciones para juegos y productividad.