---
title: Turn Off Your Cellphone
published_at: 2016-12-06T04:49:16Z
hook: On instant gratification, communication interrupts, and smartphones.
---

I've been having trouble writing lately. Even when I carve out some time to do
it, small distractions to start to creep in. Before I know it, I haven't
thought about writing in six hours and am well into my work day.

One thing I like to do when this happens is look to real authors for
inspiration. Recently I came across this interview of [Nathan Englander on the
Daily Beast][daily-beast] and found this gem:

> Turn off your cell phone. Honestly, if you want to get work done, you’ve got
> to learn to unplug. No texting, no email, no Facebook, no Instagram. Whatever
> it is you’re doing, it needs to stop while you write.

My extended periods of concentration tend to get killed by two things: (1) the
desire for instant gratification by finding a smaller/easier piece of work or
entertainment, and (2) communication interrupts. The smartphone acts as the
main delivery vector for both these things.

Now it's time to disable wi-fi and turn off my phone and
get some work done.

[daily-beast]: http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/03/27/how-i-write-nathan-englander.html

---
title: Turn Off Your Cellphone
published_at: 2016-12-06T04:49:16Z
hook: On instant gratification, communication interrupts, and smartphones.
---

I've been having trouble writing lately. Even when I carve
out some time to do it, small distractions to start to
creep in. Before I know it, I haven't thought about writing
in six hours and am well into my work day.

One thing I like to do when this happens is look to real
authors for inspiration. Recently I came across this
interview of [Nathan Englander on the Daily
Beast][dailybeast] and found this gem:

> Turn off your cell phone. Honestly, if you want to get
> work done, you’ve got to learn to unplug. No texting, no
> email, no Facebook, no Instagram. Whatever it is you’re
> doing, it needs to stop while you write.

My extended periods of concentration tend to get killed by
two things: (1) the desire for instant gratification by
finding a smaller/easier piece of work or entertainment,
and (2) communication interrupts. The smartphone acts as
the main delivery vector for both these things.

Now it's time to disable wi-fi and turn off my phone and
get some work done.

[dailybeast]: http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/03/27/how-i-write-nathan-englander.html

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