The Martian

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When it came out in theaters, they did like a company wide trip. The whole company went like rented out an entire theater to watch the Martian. And of course I went. So you're the guy who no longer works there but still shows up at the office party. Yeah. You've got to suck for a long time at a skill before you kind of start to not suck a little bit. Like for 20 years, he was just writing stuff nobody's ever seen or heard of because it sucked.

Andy Weir is the bestselling author of The Martian and Project Hail Mary. He’s known for weaving deep, carefully researched science into his novels, building intricate sci-fi worlds that have captivated millions of readers. But here’s a plot twist: Andy doesn’t actually love the act of writing itself – so how does he motivate himself to do it anyway? Adam talks with Andy about the creative process, the skills involved in discarding bad ideas, finding joy in worldbuilding and research, and why you should never be writing with a sequel in mind. Transcripts for ReThinking are available at go.ted.com/RWAGscripts