May 25, 2026 · 51 min · 14 segments
Do you love historical fiction? I have to admit to being a sucker for a different time and place – and both are on offer in Mary-Lou Stephens’ latest novel, *The Hobart Hotel*. In this episode…
What I was actually doing was, you know, walking around the harbor for about three hours.
And the great thing was that I solved a structural problem in a piece that I have been editing for about four weeks.
You know, they tell me they've been stuck on a particular scene or a particular plot point, sometimes for weeks, and they've been at their desk every day trying to force it.
And I always ask, "Have you gone for a walk? Or have you taken a shower [laughs] and thought about it?" And they look at me like it's the most ridiculous suggestion that they've ever heard.
How on earth does walking help, or taking a shower? Well, here's what I've come to believe.
And these are two completely different jobs, and trying to do them both in the same chair at the same time, if you've got a problem, that is, is how you end up staring at a blinking cursor, you know, at 4:00 in the afternoon with nothing to show for it.
So walking, or that kind of mundane activity, and you can say, like I said, uh, taking a shower or doing the dishes or whatever, lets your brain work sideways, and you're not forcing the problem.
You're not, like, hanging onto it just going, "Oh, what, what's, how, how am I gonna solve this?" You're just letting your legs move.
[laughs] And, and somewhere behind all that, the part of your brain that actually solves plot problems is, is ticking over.
The plot solution that lands on the walk to the coffee shop, or the character breakthrough on ...
What I was actually doing was, you know, walking around the harbor for about three hours.
And the great thing was that I solved a structural problem in a piece that I have been editing for about four weeks.
You know, they tell me they've been stuck on a particular scene or a particular plot point, sometimes for weeks, and they've been at their desk every day trying to force it.
And I always ask, "Have you gone for a walk? Or have you taken a shower [laughs] and thought about it?" And they look at me like it's the most ridiculous suggestion that they've ever heard.
How on earth does walking help, or taking a shower? Well, here's what I've come to believe.
And these are two completely different jobs, and trying to do them both in the same chair at the same time, if you've got a problem, that is, is how you end up staring at a blinking cursor, you know, at 4:00 in the afternoon with nothing to show for it.
So walking, or that kind of mundane activity, and you can say, like I said, uh, taking a shower or doing the dishes or whatever, lets your brain work sideways, and you're not forcing the problem.
You're not, like, hanging onto it just going, "Oh, what, what's, how, how am I gonna solve this?" You're just letting your legs move.
[laughs] And, and somewhere behind all that, the part of your brain that actually solves plot problems is, is ticking over.
The plot solution that lands on the walk to the coffee shop, or the character breakthrough on ...
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