10 Quirky Habits of Famous Writers (That I Tried So You Don't Have To)

Dan Brown says hanging upside down cures writer's block. Currently, the only thing it’s curing is my desire to write.

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I have always treated writing like an RPG. I figured if I just found the right gear (a mechanical keyboard) and the right consumable buffs (an unhealthy amount of coffee), I would finally unlock the "Bestselling Author" achievement.

But when I looked at the stats of the famous writers I admire, I realized their "builds" were absolute chaos.

From Russian writers who doodled in the margins of masterpieces to famous Irish writers who wrote lying flat on their stomachs, the legends didn't follow a manual.

I decided to dig into the weirdest habits of my literary heroes, Stephen King, George R.R. Martin, and Dostoevsky, to see if there is a method to the madness, or if they were just glitching out.

Even the legends seem to have struggled. Mark Twain notoriously waited 7 yearsto finish Huckleberry Finn, while Victor Hugo had to lock himself in a room to get any work done.

Here are the 10 strangest writing habits I found, ranked by how likely they are to actually help you write (or just get you arrested).

Spoiler alert - I tried a few of them and the results were disastrous!

George R.R. Martin: The "Old School" Famous Author

• The Habit: Writing on an ancient DOS computer.

• Weirdness Level: 8/10 (For 2026)

• Why he does it: No spellcheck, no internet, no distractions.

My Take: As a gamer with a high-end PC, this hurts my soul. The author of A Song of Ice and Fire (Game of Thrones) still writes on a machine running WordStar 4.0, a program from the 1980s. He claims modern spellcheckers hate his fantasy names, and he hates the internet.

Does it work? Well, looking at the release date for The Winds of Winter... maybe don't try this one if you want to be fast. But if you want deep, complex world-building without Reddit distractions, he might be on to something

Stephen King: The Most Disciplined Writing Routine

• The Habit: Writing 2,000 words every day. No exceptions.

• Weirdness Level: 2/10 (It's just discipline)

• Why he does it: To stay in the flow state.

My Take: This is the "Grindset." King doesn't wait for a muse; he treats writing like farming XP in an MMO. Birthdays? Holidays? The apocalypse? Doesn't matter. He writes his 2,000 words before he does anything else.

The Result: He has published over 60 novels. This is the only habit on this list that I actually recommend trying (though maybe start with 500 words unless you want to burn out).

Victor Hugo: The Extreme French Writer

I told Stani to take my clothes and not give them back until I finish this article. It’s getting cold in here…

• The Habit: Locking himself in a room with no clothes.

• Weirdness Level: 10/10

• Why he does it: So he couldn't leave the house.

My Take: When Hugo was behind schedule on The Hunchback of Notre Dame, he ordered his servant to take all his clothes and lock them away until he finished a certain number of pages. He was literally held hostage by his own novel.

The Gamer Equivalent: This is like deleting all your save files until you beat the boss. Effective? Yes. A bit extreme? Definitely. Stani has threatened to try this on me if I don't finish my draft soon.

Fyodor Dostoevsky: The Doodling Russian Writer

• The Habit: Drawing faces and trees in the margins.

• Weirdness Level: 4/10

• Why he does it: To visualize characters (and procrastination).

My Take: One of the greatest Russian writers of all time was also a chronic doodler. Manuscripts of Crime and Punishment are covered in sketches of brooding faces, gothic architecture, and calligraphy.

Why I love this: It proves that even geniuses get bored or stuck. If Dostoevsky needed to draw a tree to figure out Raskolnikov's motivation, maybe my habit of checking Instagram isn't so bad? (Okay, the drawing is probably more productive).

Vladimir Nabokov: The Index Card Method

Trying the Nabokov method. I have already lost the card with the ending. Send help.

• The Habit: Writing entire novels on index cards.

• Weirdness Level: 7/10

• Why he does it: To write scenes out of order.

My Take: Nabokov didn't write from Chapter 1 to Chapter 20. He wrote scenes as they came to him on 3x5 index cards and then shuffled them around like a deck of Magic: The Gathering cards until the story made sense. He kept them under his pillow, in his pockets, everywhere.

The Strategy: This is actually brilliant for non-linear storytelling. If you ever feel stuck on the "middle" of a story, try this.

Terry Pratchett: The Tech-Savvy Fantasy Author

• The Habit: Using six monitors before it was cool.

• Weirdness Level: 1/10 (For us gamers), 10/10 (For 1990s writers)

• Why he did it: To see everything at once.

My Take: While George R.R. Martin is stuck in the 80s with his DOS machine, Sir Terry Pratchett was living in the year 3000.

He was an early adopter of technology and famously used a six-monitor setup to write his novels. He wanted his research, his draft, his notes, and his email all open at the same time.

The Gamer Equivalent: Finally, a writer who speaks my language! Pratchett treated his writing desk like a flight simulator cockpit.

It proves you don't need a quill and parchment to write fantasy; sometimes you just need a really good GPU. (Check out the results of his high-tech wizardry in our list of the Top 10 Best Discworld Books).

Agatha Christie: The Queen of Crime's Weird Habit

• The Habit: Eating apples in the bath while looking at crime scene photos.

• Weirdness Level: 11/10

• Why she does it: To get into the killer's mindset?

My Take: The Queen of Crime didn't have an office. She wrote on dining tables and spare bedroom shelves. But her brainstorming session involved soaking in a Victorian bathtub, munching on apples, and studying photos of real-life murder scenes.

Note to self: Do not try this one. It’s bad for the iPad, and Stani will definitely ask questions about the photos.

Dan Brown: Hanging Upside Down

• The Habit: Hanging upside down in gravity boots.

• Weirdness Level: 8/10

• Why he does it: To cure writer's block.

My Take: The author of The Da Vinci Code believes that hanging upside down shifts the blood to your brain and helps you see plot holes from a "new perspective."

Does it work? I tried hanging off the side of my sofa, as you can see by the first photo in this article. All I got was a headache and a very confused wife. I think I’ll stick to coffee.

Bram Stoker: The Nightmare of an Irish Writer

• The Habit: Eating too much crab before bed.

• Weirdness Level: 5/10

• Why he does it: Accidentally.

My Take: Another one of the famous Irish writers, Stoker claimed that the idea for Dracula came from a vivid nightmare he had after eating a generous helping of dressed crab at a late-night supper.

The Lesson: Sometimes, the best inspiration comes from indigestion. Next time you can't sleep, write down your dreams. You might accidentally invent the next great horror monster.

Stoker is one of the 8 Best Horror Authors of All Time, and knowing he got the idea for Dracula from a seafood nightmare makes him even more legendary to me.

James Joyce: The Eccentric Irish Author

• The Habit: Writing with giant crayons in a white coat.

• Weirdness Level: 6/10

• Why he does it: Poor eyesight.

My Take: This sounds eccentric, but it was practical. Joyce’s eyesight was failing, so he wore white coats to reflect more light onto the page and used large crayons so he could actually see what he was writing.

The takeaway: Use whatever accessibility tools you need. If you need to write your novel in Comic Sans font size 24 to get it done, do it. Nobody sees the first draft but you.

Did you enjoy our list for the top 10 quirky habits of famous writers? Have you tried any of them and care to share your experience?

Let us know in the comments below!

Frequently Asked Questions about Writing Habits

What is the most common habit of famous writers? Consistency. While their methods vary (from standing desks to lying in bed), almost all famous authors like Stephen King and Hemingway wrote every single day, regardless of inspiration.

Which famous writers wrote standing up?Ernest Hemingway, Charles Dickens, and Lewis Carroll were all known to use standing desks long before they became a modern office trend. They believed it kept them alert and energetic.

Did any famous writers have weird sleeping habits? Yes! Honoré de Balzac famously slept in the early evening and woke up at 1:00 AM to write through the night fueled by 50 cups of coffee. Franz Kafka also wrote late into the night due to his day job, often sacrificing sleep entirely.

Who is the fastest writing famous author?Stephen King is legendary for his speed, producing 2,000 words a day. However, Isaac Asimov is considered one of the most prolific writers in history, having written or edited over 500 books in his lifetime.