Most of us are surrounded by screens all day. To get your writing done, take writer Shannon Liao's advice and unplug.

We recently ran a promotion for Ernest Hemingway's birthday, and we're excited to introduce the winner!

Video games journalist and editor Shannon Liao received her Hemingwrite absolutely free. And with the amount of writing she does, she needs it!

Not only does she work professionally as a write and editor, she also does freelance writing and works on her novel in her spare time.

We sat down to chat about her writing process and why Freewrite devices help her get all the writing done.

ANNIE COSBY: What do you write?

SHANNON LIAO: I'm a video games journalist and editor by day, aspiring novelist by night.

Some of my favorite writers include Min Jin Lee, Liu Cixin, Ken Liu, and F. Scott Fitzgerald. The novel I’m working on follows this sort of literary tradition.

AC: That's so cool. And you do such different types of writing. Is your writing process static and strict, or different with every kind of piece?

SL: My writing process involves temporarily surrendering any higher expectations for what the piece should be, or what quality it should reach, and then bluntly working towards a first draft.

Then, I polish the draft repeatedly until it reaches a more presentable state.

Sometimes, if I’m stuck, I try to tackle the story from different moments, until it’s closer to what I envisioned.

My writing process involves temporarily surrendering any higher expectations for what the piece should be, or what quality it should reach, and then bluntly working towards a first draft.

AC: Where do you like to write?

SL: I used to go to a local NYC cafe every weekend with a Freewrite Traveler and the barista/aspiring poet would stop by to ask how my work was going.

Now, I take Hemingwrite to an NYC library, and people slow down their leisurely strolls to catch a look at this almost-typewriter from another era. It seems to capture their imagination.

AC: That's so awesome. So what attracted you to Freewrite devices?

SL: In this digital age, I’m surrounded by screens, and my work requires them, so it’s hard to unplug.

When you’re surrounded by distractions, it’s so easy to put off writing, to say you just need to research one more thing, or look up a good self-motivating meme about making art, instead of just doing the work.

With a Freewrite device, there’s no surfing the web, and therefore, there are no cheap excuses.

With a Freewrite device, there’s no surfing the web, and therefore, there are no cheap excuses.

AC: Where can people find your work?

SL:  My favorite thing I've written so far, is my Washington Post report on Diablo 4 and the labor conditions that it was made under. We were able to commission custom art for it, and it was the culmination of months of investigative reporting.

On the fiction side of things, I wrote a short story for The Verge about a burgeoning young romance aided by technology.

AC: And where can people follow you?

SL:  My monthly newsletter at shannonliao.substack.com gives updates on my latest work.

My Bluesky handle is shannonliao.bsky.social and my Twitter handle is Shannon_Liao. On Instagram, I’m @shannon.liao.

Before you go, here's a motivating Hemingway meme about making art: