The Writer Files: Writing, Productivity, Creativity, and Neuroscience

How NY Times Bestselling Author Matt Haig Writes: Redux

Mar 7, 2025

In this engaging conversation, Matt Haig, bestselling author of 'The Midnight Library' and 'Reasons to Stay Alive', discusses his unexpected role as a mental health advocate. He shares insights about writing as a means of self-therapy, reflecting on the transformative power of storytelling during difficult times. The discussion touches on his journey from fiction to autobiography, the challenges of character development, and the significance of authenticity in the creative process. Haig emphasizes resilience and the bittersweet nature of success in writing.

41:05

Episode guests

Matt Haig

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Episode notes

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Quick takeaways

Matt Haig emphasizes that vulnerability in sharing personal experiences can lead to profound connections with readers facing similar challenges.

The Midnight Library serves as a metaphor for exploring life's choices, encouraging readers to find solace in the infinite possibilities of existence.

Deep dives

Matt Haig's Journey to Success

Matt Haig details his evolution as a writer, highlighting how he transitioned from a novelist to an accidental mental health expert after the success of his memoir, Reasons to Stay Alive. The initial hesitation he felt about sharing personal experiences transformed into unexpected recognition, as the book resonated with many readers facing similar struggles. Despite the acclaim, he experienced a bittersweet sense of exposure, having to confront the duality of wanting recognition while dealing with the vulnerability of discussing mental health. His journey reflects resilience, especially as he mentions the numerous rejections he faced before finally establishing a productive career, producing a diverse body of work.

Intro

6min

The Journey from Fiction to Personal Narrative

2min

From Fiction to Truth: A Writer's Journey

10min

Character Development and the Power of Naming

2min

Writing as Self-Therapy

11min

Navigating Writer's Indecision and Embracing Authenticity

4min

Exploring Possibilities Amidst Uncertainty

6min

Internationally bestselling author, Matt Haig, spoke with me about how the novelist became an accidental "mental health expert," why writers need resilience, and the process behind The Midnight Library.

"The only reader you're ever going to truly know ... is yourself." – Matt Haig

Matt is the author of 20 books, including the #1 bestselling memoir Reasons to Stay Alive, five novels, including How to Stop Time, and several award-winning children’s books. His work has been translated into over 40 languages.

His latest novel is The Midnight Library, a runaway, #1 bestseller and reader favorite of 2020. It was a Goodreads Choice Awards Best Fiction Book of 2020, a Best Book of the Year by The Washington Post, Amazon, the New York Public Library, among many others.

The New York Times said of the book, "An absorbing ... vision of limitless possibility, of new roads taken, of new lives lived, of a whole different world available to us somehow, somewhere, [perhaps] exactly what’s wanted in these troubled and troubling times.”

Stay calm and write on …

**Audio excerpted courtesy Penguin Random House Audio from The Midnight Library by Matt Haig, read by Carey Mulligan.

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In this file Matt Haig and I discussed:

His superhero origins and the blog post that became a book

How to write "like no one's watching"

Inconsistent routines and the power of deadlines

Why writers need to surprise themselves

How he got Carey Mulligan to record his audiobook

And more!

Show Notes: