Jillian Fox - Novelist

I suppose everything thing I do that enables me to output a clump of words could be considered a part of my "writing process," although I do not really consider it a process so much as a random assortment of requirements that, in whatever order they are met, lead me to the point I'm at right now: typing on my laptop.
My requirements for writing success:
1) Cleanliness. I must be squeaky clean. I always work best when I know there's nothing else I need to do between writing and bed, except perhaps brush and floss, and squeeze in a little reading. If I am not squeaky clean...say, for example, it's the middle of the day and I decide to go write at a coffee shop, the cleanliness necessity is overridden by the presence of a soy latte.
2) Tea. I feel best when I've had a cup of tea, herbal or otherwise. If I've had a cup of tea, while writing or before, I know I've had a moment to relax and breathe, and the writing is more pleasant. If I haven't had a chance for tea, it means I've been flying by the seat of my pants all day, and will be too agitated to get into my story in a productive way.
3) Sleep. If I get to the end of the day, the only time I ever have to write, and my eyes are sore from sleeplessness and I feel haggard from mothering 120 students all day, writing doesn't happen. Yet, it always seems to be the writing that keeps me up late...catch 22.
4) Sleepy dog. If Bailey is wound up, NO ONE gets ANYTHING done. She is so insistent on play time, she sticks her toys on my keyboard and proceeds to press buttons until I'm so afraid she'll lose my documents, I give up and play. Cheeky, but effective, strategy. She must be dead to the world on the couch beside me, or writing is a no-go.

More strategies to come!