Who are you?
Clay Stafford: Bestselling writer, filmmaker, teacher, literary theorist, founder of Killer Nashville International Writers' Conference, and columnist for Writer's Digest. Based out of Nashville, Tennessee.
What do you write?
I've written and published in just about every medium: print, film, television, stage; and have published and produced fiction, nonfiction, screenplays, stage plays, poetry, essays, short stories, film/play/book reviews, interviews. You can find more information about my work at https://claystafford.com/.
I started writing at a very young age and had my first story published when I was ten (payment $20), thanks to the guidance of my music teacher/librarian Molly Miles at Spring Creek Elementary in East Ridge, Tennessee. Around that time I also joined the professional theatrical company, The Dance-Theatre Workshop, and soon became a professional child actor. My work has led me around the U.S. and I've since sold nearly four million copies of my books, have seen my work distributed in sixteen languages, and have spoken as a Master of Ceremony to over one million people. I've worked in story departments at numerous studios including Universal Studios, Ruddy-Morgan, Walt Disney, Warner Bros., Amblin Entertainment, Hollywood Pictures, and PBS. My most recent TV series was a nighttime drama for Sony Pictures.
Any subject or topic is open to me as long as I portray it fairly. You can address any subject as long as you do it in truth and sincerity. I don't write with an agenda. That's too much like preaching or politics. That's a different profession than writing.
I absolutely love what I do and can't think of doing anything else. Many career opportunities have presented themselves in my career trajectory (e.g., talent agent, entertainment attorney, veterinarian, studio executive, college professor), but I chose to stick to the creative side of coming up with stories on my own. It's my way of understanding myself and my world and then sharing what I see with others. Everything you write you hope will change someone's life. That's not why I do it. I write because it's the thing I know how to do and the thing that gives me joy first thing in the morning when I awake until the time that I go to bed. I love being around other writers; I love the discussions. I've been incredibly lucky and blessed.
Where do you write?
Because I am involved in so many other things behind the scenes and I travel a good deal, I write wherever I happen to be. I don't have to have a particular location, environment, or ambiance. All I need is something to either type on or handwrite on and I'm good to go. When traveling, I take advantage of every situation. I write in airports, I write on the plane, I write during those interesting layovers, I write in hotel rooms, I write in restaurants. When home, I write in what is essentially a living room at the back of my house. I also have a cabin that I go to at every opportunity where I write beside a lake on the front side of the cabin or a creek on the backside of the cabin. I've built a little boat cottage down from the cabin where I can be alone, think, and write while listening to the nature around me.
What apps I write with depends upon what I have in hand. I write in the Notes app on my phone. On my computer, I use Word, Scrivener, Excel, Finale (when I'm composing music and scores), and Final Draft (when I'm writing screenplays and plays). On my iPad, I use Goodnotes, Word, and Excel. When writing by hand with no electronic devices nearby, I'll use legal pads, napkins, or the back of a restaurant receipt. The important thing, no matter where you are or what you are doing, when an idea comes, you write it down, even if it is on the back of your hand.
When do you write?
I write every day. And I do mean every day. Since project creation is my job, there is no typical writing session. I write or rewrite or edit all day long in between answering texts, emails, phone calls that keep my entertainment company American Blackguard running, doing interviews, sharing on social media, and other things we have to do to keep the ball and employees rolling.
On a limited day, I set three hours per day to write. Just write. On a typical day, I write all day long barring the interruptions mentioned above.
Since all of my projects are self-generated, I tend to put the deadlines on myself. There are times, though, such as a hard publisher or network publishing or production date that means I get to work on something up to a certain point and, whether I am satisfied or not, I have to let it go.
Why do you write?
Sounds crazy, but I write because I have to. Always have.
How do you overcome writer's block?
I've been fortunate. I've never had writer's block. Never once. I sit down and start typing and the words come. I think that is the solution for those who do have writer's block, though. Don't stare at the screen. Put your fingers on the keys and start typing something really awful, enjoy typing something awful, type something awful as quickly as you can, and before you know it you'll find a nugget that's worth something and you can take off with it. Writer's block is best avoided simply by doing...even if it is awful. First drafts are not supposed to be good anyway. Don't judge yourself. Real writing is in the rewriting anyway.
Bonus: What do you enjoy doing when not writing?
When I'm not writing, I'm reading and watching films or plays. I don't know if this is time off because it's not all leisure. My mind is still in the writer mode: analyzing. I have a goal of reading or viewing for at least two hours every day. It's mandatory, just like the writing. You have to make time for it.
In terms of complete recreation, forgetting everything, I fix dinner every night for the family, we have family meals, we go for hikes in the woods and enjoy nature, I attend the kids' functions. Nothing makes me more serene and clears my mind than floating on a warm day with my eyes shut on our lake with no one or just my family around. I clear my head during those times and just feel myself suspended in time. It's as close to a feeling of nothingness that I can get, floating weightless in a world of peace.
My thanks to Clay Stafford for today's interview.