Kelton ReidThe New York Times bestselling author of The Martian dropped by to chat with me about his writing process and the upcoming movie adaptation of his hit book, directed by Ridley Scott and starring Matt Damon (release date October 2nd, 2015).
The author’s journey to #1 on the NY Times Best Sellers list began as a humble series of blog posts that grew enough interest to demand self-publishing to Amazon. When The Martian’s popularity sky-rocketed, traditional publisher Random House called, and the rest is history.
From software engineer to sci-fi phenom, Andy is a down-to-earth writer and self-described “space nerd,” who still answers all of his fan mail.
Join us for this two-part interview.
In Part One of the file Andy Weir and I discuss:
- How a Science Geek Became a Bestselling Author
- The Power of Setting Word Counts
- One Great Trick for Improving Your Dialogue
- Why Your Writer’s Block May Just Be Laziness
- How Your Enthusiasm Doesn’t Always Determine the Quality of Your Writing
- The Creative Power of a Walk and a Hot Shower
Listen to The Writer Files: Writing, Productivity, Creativity, and Neuroscience below ...
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The Show Notes
- How Andy Weir (Bestselling Author of ‘The Martian’) Writes: Part Two
- The Martian: A Novel
- andyweirauthor.com
- Notes from Hugh Howey’s Editor
- “The surprising story of how Andy Weir’s self-published book ‘The Martian’ topped best seller lists and got a movie deal”
- Andy Weir on Twitter
- Kelton Reid on Twitter
Enjoyed the interview with Andy Weir (part 1).
Have interacted with Hugh Howey in the past couple years on FB and LinkedIn, and received his first trilogy. Exciting that Amazon and Ridley Scott picked them both up! Looking forward to the movies!
Thanks for tuning in! Be sure to check out The Writer Files interview with Hugh Howey, if you haven’t already. His newest serial Beacon 23 is being optioned for TV.
Looking forward to Part II! I think it’s possible that the quote Mr. Weir referenced for motivation was from Michael Cunningham. In Off the Page: Writers Talk about Beginnings, Endings, and Everything in Between (Edited by Carole Burns, 2008 ed.), Cunningham is quoted as saying: “What I do is this: I get up every morning and go straight to work, and on the good days I write with pleasure. On the bad days, I just sit there, waiting to see if something will come. On the bad days, if I’m lucky, I’ll come up with a lame sentence or two, thinking, I’ll delete this later. It’s terrible, but it’s all I’ve got today. I’ve found, though, that when I look back six months later at what I’ve written, I can’t distinguish the parts I wrote on the good days from the parts I wrote on the bad. I’ve come to believe that the inspiration is always there, like an electric current, and what varies is our access to it. And I’ve found that the best way to cope with that is with diligence, with a kind of daily determination” (159-160).
I don’t know if Cunningham has said it elsewhere as well, but I, like Mr. Weir, have found that thought to be motivating. It doesn’t matter if you think it’s bad right now–your main job is to get through it. Revision comes later.
Thanks for sharing that here, it’s definitely a thought-provoking metaphor on inspiration. Now I want to find Off the Page for more writing quotes 🙂 Great stuff!