Who: Emily Esfahani Smith

Claim To Fame: Emily Esfahani Smith is the author of The Power of Meaning, an international bestseller that has been translated into 16 different languages. She is the former managing editor of The New Criterion, and her articles and essays have appeared in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, and other publications. Her TED Talk “There’s More to Life Than Being Happy”  has been viewed over 9 million times.

Where To Find Emily: Her Website, Amazon, Twitter

Praise For Emily: “A riveting read on the quest for the one thing that matters more than happiness. Emily Esfahani Smith reveals why we lose meaning in our lives and how to find it. Beautifully written, evidence-based, and inspiring, this is a book I’ve been awaiting for a very long time.” — Adam Grant

When do you like to write? Are you regimented about your routine?

I like to write in the morning. It’s quiet, my head is clearest, and I have the most energy. With that said, I’m not extremely regimented about my routine. If my schedule makes working in the morning impossible one day, I try to roll with it and find other times to write. But in general, the morning is when I like best.

Where do you like to write? What does your ideal writing environment look like?

I have a little home “office” in my apartment, which is a desk wedged in the corner of two walls that are lined with windows. I have beautiful views outside of my building’s gardens and courtyards, and also lots of wonderful natural light. I love it. It’s a very pleasant place to work. But probably my absolutely ideal writing environment is in a library—some quiet, cozy wood-paneled room. In college, I worked in a room like that, called “the tower room,” at a desk facing the wall. It was wonderful. The wall was key: It meant I wouldn’t get distracted by people walking by. I like to feel enclosed when I’m writing, as if I’m being hugged by my environment, and surrounded by as little stimulation as possible. My environment right now is open and bright—so very different from the tower room. But I’m learning to love and appreciate it too.

Do you have any rituals or superstitions before you sit down to write that help you get into the zone?

I put on my noise cancelling headphones. It allows me to get that enclosed feeling I like so much. But that’s pretty much it.

Is there anything you do when the writing isn’t coming easy?

I go back and do more research. Usually if I’m stuck, it’s because I haven’t done enough research and reporting. Beyond gathering more material, doing more research usually always leads to inspiration and allows me to connect more dots between ideas. By research I mean reading books and studies, interviewing people, etc.

The Power Of Meaning was your first book. Even after your years of writing professionally, what were you surprised to learn in that process that you wish you knew at the start?

That writing a book is really, really hard. When I decided to become a writer professionally, my dream was to write books. And I feel fortunate that I was able to write one. But I had no idea how hard it would be, how it would push me to the limits of my capacities—but also help me to grow. I have my agents and editors to thank for that, who taught me so much about writing during the process.

All of your work is very research intensive. What is your method for researching and organizing material you might want to use for your future writing?

For researching, I usually begin with searches in Google Scholar. There is so much incredible material to mine there, from studies to academic books to white papers. That gets me started. Then, as I read through that research, I begin to notice that certain scholars / books / ideas come up again and again in the papers—so my next step is to read and research them. That process repeats itself until I feel like I have some mastery over the topic. At the same time, I’m keeping my eyes and ears open for stories that will help illustrate the research. This is usually more of a passive process. I might meet or hear about someone whose story inspires or I might watch a movie or read an article that speaks to my topic—and I’ll try to weave those stories into the article/book.

In terms of organization, it’s all such a mess. I definitely have room to grow here. I try to keep all my notes in a few different places: in a master document; in the footnotes of the article/book I’m working on; and in e-mails to myself that get filed away into a folder about the project. I’m constantly going through the notes to make sure I’m not forgetting an important piece of research! It’s not very efficient… but there is one benefit: As I go over and over the research at different stages of the writing process, I begin to see it in a new light and make new connections.

You also contribute regularly to places including the Wall Street Journal and New York Times. Does your writing routine change at all when writing a book vs. writing an article? Is there any change in routine depending on what publication you’re writing an article for?

It’s a pretty similar routine, except it’s a shorter and easier process with an article because there’s less material to research.

Writers have to be master prioritizers — juggling all sorts of projects and deadlines at the same time. That’s certainly the case for you. Do you have any methods for managing tasks and time so to not let overwhelm sneak in?

I am not good at multi-tasking writing projects. I try to file one thing away before turning my attention over to the next. Right now, for example, I’m working on a book proposal. When I’m working on that proposal, I’m not working on any other writing at the same time. I may decide to pause my work on the proposal for a week to write an article, but then I’ll return to the proposal. When I send a new draft of the proposal to my agent for comments—i.e. when it’s out of my hands for a week or two—that’s when I turn in earnest to other writing projects.

What are the best pieces of writing advice that you’ve ever received, read, or heard?

That it’s ok to write a shitty first draft! Also, to stick to your vision. If you stick to your vision for an article or book, then it’s really an expression of a piece of your soul—and, in that way, genuine and unique.

What would you say to aspiring writers? If you were to teach a writing class, what would be the first assignment?

My advice is to serve the work. Give it the respect that the ideas and your audience deserve. That means approaching the work as a craftsmen or artisan who is trying to produce the most perfect thing he is capable of producing. My first assignment would be to read the classic, “The Elements of Style.”

What writers and/or books do you consider the gold standard?

Gold standards are writers like Shakespeare, Milton, George Eliot, Edith Wharton W.B. Yeats, T.S. Eliot, Elizabeth Bishop, and others—the greats! the giants! I bow down before them. These were the writers who inspired me when I was in high school and college—and to this day. When I think about books that I’ve read in the last couple of years that have moved me most, I think about The Examined Life by Stephen Grosz, Stoner by John Williams, The Course of Love by Alain de Botton, Walking on Water by Madeleine L’Engle, and You’re It! by Alan Watts. But there are so many others, too … !

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