For you wordsmiths out there, Mark Batterson lists his five rules for writing. If you prepare sermons, most of these apply. Here's a summary:

1. Start bright and early, well before your "official day" begins; for afternoons, grab a cat-nap.

2. Remember you're on "holy ground" when writing. Your words could lead a reader to a "God encounter."

3. Take days off between chapters to maintain perspective.

4. Hook your readers at the start of each chapter with a strong organizing metaphor.

5. Write for intrinsic reasons, "because you can't not write."

Good suggestions. Rule #2 struck me, especially since Batterson says he does this by taking off his shoes. I like the idea of using a physical discipline to focus a cerebral process like writing. It reminds me of C.S. Lewis's The Screwtape Letters, where the devil Screwtape comments on kneeling:

At the very least, [people] can be persuaded that the bodily position makes no difference to their prayers; for they constantly forget what you must always remember, ...