Woody Allen (b. 1935)
When he’s not shooting a film, most of Allen’s creative energy goes toward mentally working out the problems of a new story. This is the hard part; once he’s satisfied with the story elements, the writing itself comes easy (and the filmmaking is mostly a chore). But to get the story right requires “obsessive thinking,” Allen has said. To keep from getting stuck in a rut, he’s developed a few reliable tricks.
I’ve found over the years that any momentary change stimulates a fresh burst of mental energy. So if I’m in this room and then I go into the other room, it helps me. If I go outside to the street, it’s a huge help. If I go up and take a shower it’s a big help. So I sometimes take extra showers. I’ll be down here [in the living room] and at an impasse and what will help me is to go upstairs and take a shower. It breaks up everything and relaxes me.
The shower is particularly good in cold weather. This sounds so silly, but I’ll be working dressed as I am and I’ll want to get into the shower for a creative stint. So I’ll take off some of my clothes and make myself an English muffin or something and try to give myself a little chill so I want to get in the shower. I’ll stand there with steaming hot water coming down for thirty minutes, forty-five minutes, just thinking out ideas and working on plot. Then I get out and dry myself and dress and then flop down on the bed and think there.
Going out for a walk works just as well, although Allen can no longer walk the streets without being recognized and approached, which ruins his concentration. He’ll often pace the terrace of his apartment as a substitute. And he uses any little free moments in the day to return to the story he’s working on. “I think in the cracks all the time,” he has said. “I never stop.”
* Source: Daily Rituals by Mason Currey