In
history and in life we often learn to admire famous people who excelled
in their fields and somehow changed the world in their own
way. We often forget that these people were human too, and that they
had their own ways of getting shit done.
The
legendary playback singer, actor and director, had a reputation of
talking to trees in his backyard as he considered these his only
close friends in this "cruel world."
The
Spanish surrealist painter developed his own alarm clock where he
placed a spoon in his mouth and a large metal pan at his feet
when he dozed off on his armchair for a nap. When the spoon dropped
onto the pan with a clatter after he had fallen asleep, he would
instantly wake up. He claimed this routine refreshed him.
Other
than stalking policemen patrolling the streets of Victorian London,
Charles Dickens insisted on sleeping towards a northern direction
as he believed it aligned him better to the electrical currents of the
Earth.
Known
for his simple outlook, the late author indulged in expensive
stationery that was imported from abroad. But we aren't frowning
at his taste for conspicuous consumption. Instead, we're admiring his
ability to write with a notebook on his lap or knees for hours on end.
He would rest his legs on a drawer of his office table in a relaxed
posture while still rigidly sticking to his deadlines.
According
to the legendary musician's secretary, he would compose music while
bathing, and if he was not, he would pace up and down
his room while pouring jugs of water on his hands, humming tunes and
day dreaming into space.
The
eminent Urdu writer kept a pack of old playing cards on her desk while
writing. She believed its greasy smell tickled her nostrils
and in turn got her to write inspiring prose. She was also
ambidextrous, so she would write with her right hand and play cards with
her left.
The Nobel prize winning
physicist would often carry his violin with him while going on
bird-watching treks. The soulful music he played often made him weep
with tears streaming down his cheeks.
Heralded
as the queen of crime in the golden of age of murder mystery writers,
Christie is remembered for her very disoriented style
of writing. She never had her own office nor did she take out time to
write. She would jot her ideas down whenever the mood struck
irrespective of where she was. For this she carried around several
notebooks with her. Her treatment for the story-line of her
novels were also disorganised where she started with the murder scene
before the actual plot of the story.
Ashok
Chopra recalls the celebrity writer's habit of being generous with her
handwriting, filling up a single page with less than 6
sentences. "Her handwriting reminds me of a cockroach which, after a
dip in a bottle of ink, is let loose on a sheet of paper."
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