How I Write

This episode is presented by Wispr Flow, a tool that turns voice notes into clear writing. I use it every day and recommend it to every writer I know. Try it for free at ref.wisprflow.ai/howiwrite

David Sedaris has long been one of the funniest writers in the game, and he’s got a method for how he does it. It starts with observation, always looking for what’s surprising, ridiculous, or a little bit strange about the world. Then, every single day, he writes the best ideas down in a journal.

But there’s also a willingness to put himself in absurd situations, like working as a Christmas elf at Macy’s or cleaning up litter off English country roads for eight hours a day. He’s sold more than 16 million books, and he’s been writing for The New Yorker for more than 30 years. Today, he’s here to teach us how he does it.

About the host
Hey! I’m David Perell and I’m a writer, teacher, and podcaster. I believe writing online is one of the biggest opportunities in the world today. For the first time in human history, everybody can freely share their ideas with a global audience. I seek to help as many people publish their writing online as possible.

Follow me
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-i-write/id1700171470
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@DavidPerellChannel
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This episode is presented by Wispr Flow, a tool that turns voice notes into clear writing. I use it every day and recommend it to every writer I know. Try it for free at ref.wisprflow.ai/howiwrite

Andrew Stanton was the second animator at Pixar, and he has been working there for 30 years. If you want to know how Pixar runs, this is your guy. He has directed movies like Finding Nemo and WALL-E, and he's the director of Toy Story 5.

I had to ask him, "What have you done at Pixar to keep that quality bar so high? It's hit after hit, appealing to both kids and adults. How do you achieve this consistently?" That's what this episode is all about.

About the host
Hey! I’m David Perell and I’m a writer, teacher, and podcaster. I believe writing online is one of the biggest opportunities in the world today. For the first time in human history, everybody can freely share their ideas with a global audience. I seek to help as many people publish their writing online as possible.

Follow me
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-i-write/id1700171470
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@DavidPerellChannel
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2DjMSboniFAeGA8v9NpoPv
X: https://x.com/david_perell
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode is presented by Wispr Flow, a tool that turns voice notes into clear writing. I use it every day and recommend it to every writer I know. Try it for free at ref.wisprflow.ai/howiwrite

Michael Pollan is one of my all-time favorite nonfiction writers. He has been writing about food, nature, and consciousness for decades. For him, the writing process begins with a question. He finds something he's interested in and embarks on an adventure. He experiences things, talks to people, learns, and then compiles it all into a book. His writing style feels as if he's putting an arm around you, simply reporting back what he's learned and experienced, all in a very friendly way.

The adventure we discussed most in this conversation was when he bought a cow and followed it from birth to slaughter, illustrating the industrial food system's impact on meat production. Michael has taught nonfiction writing at Harvard and UC Berkeley. At the end of the interview, he said: "I just gave you an entire semester's worth of content in one hour."

About the host
Hey! I’m David Perell and I’m a writer, teacher, and podcaster. I believe writing online is one of the biggest opportunities in the world today. For the first time in human history, everybody can freely share their ideas with a global audience. I seek to help as many people publish their writing online as possible.

Follow me
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-i-write/id1700171470
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@DavidPerellChannel
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2DjMSboniFAeGA8v9NpoPv
X: https://x.com/david_perell
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode is presented by Wispr Flow, a tool that turns voice notes into clear writing. I use it every day and recommend it to every writer I know. Try it for free at ref.wisprflow.ai/howiwrite

Andrew Hunter Murray is a writer, a journalist, and a comedian. What stood out from this conversation is his love for literature, which shows up both in his three novels and in how he's studied people like Edith Wharton and Jane Austen.

We talked about what makes a good premise and how to make a character feel alive. This conversation was a lot of fun.

About the host
Hey! I’m David Perell and I’m a writer, teacher, and podcaster. I believe writing online is one of the biggest opportunities in the world today. For the first time in human history, everybody can freely share their ideas with a global audience. I seek to help as many people publish their writing online as possible.

Follow me
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-i-write/id1700171470
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@DavidPerellChannel
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2DjMSboniFAeGA8v9NpoPv
X: https://x.com/david_perell
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Noah Hawley has written books, movies, and TV shows like Alien Earth and Fargo. He's been successful not just because he's a talented writer, but also because he's a consummate professional. He's fluent not just in the world of stories and characters, but he also knows how to work inside the industry and how to get things done.

If you want to make it as a writer, whether on the page or the big screen, this interview is a roadmap for doing that.

About the host
Hey! I’m David Perell and I’m a writer, teacher, and podcaster. I believe writing online is one of the biggest opportunities in the world today. For the first time in human history, everybody can freely share their ideas with a global audience. I seek to help as many people publish their writing online as possible.

Follow me
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-i-write/id1700171470
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@DavidPerellChannel
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2DjMSboniFAeGA8v9NpoPv
X: https://x.com/david_perell
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices