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Writers, You’ll Never Find a Distraction Free Environment

3 min readDec 14, 2023

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A friend in a writer’s group once said, “Charles Dickens was so lucky! He didn’t have the Internet to distract him.”

I looked around, waiting for anyone to point out that the Victorian age was full of distractions. If Charles Dickens wasn’t busy hanging out with his mistress, he was trying not to catch one of the many diseases caused by miasma during the period. However, everyone took these earnest words in stride and agreed. Ah, if only we could live in a time without distractions.

Now, I can’t go back in time. Otherwise, my attempts at historical fiction would be easier. However, I would not want to go back in time to be a writer because while I don’t mind using a nom de plume, I would balk at being forced to write by very expensive candlelight. Also, anyone who doesn’t see that Dickens and his contemporaries would envy us is insane. What do I mean?

Do you have indoor heating, or do you rely on a single fireplace?

Do your words magically appear on a screen or with the aid of a cheaply acquired pen? As romantic as the notion of writing an entire book in scratchy ink may seem, it makes editing a pain.

New Writers Welcome
New Writers Welcome
Anne Hammersmith
Anne Hammersmith

Written by Anne Hammersmith

Interested in humor, life lessons, and great essays. A sucker for a well-written listicle as well.

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