Keeping track of snacks in Jimmy Coates: Blackout

Sometimes you have a habit of doing something and you assume everybody else does it as well.

Here's something I never really thought much about, but I think I always assumed every writer did it. Turns out they don't.

When I'm working on a draft of a book in one of my notebooks, I start by writing the title of the book I'm working on and the date. So far, pretty normal. Then I write where I am, something about the general conditions (my mood, the weather etc.), then what I'm listening to and what I'm snacking on.

This is obviously the most important thing about writing and the one tip I would give to anybody who wants to write a novel: always make a note of what you're snacking on.

Here are a couple of pages from my first draft of Jimmy Coates: Blackout. To me these headings are completely sane and essential.

Jimmy Coates: Blackout comes out in the UK on June 6th.