How did you become a writer?

First, I was a reader. I’m an only child; books were my best friends. I enjoyed writing but wanted to go to art school and be a painter until my parents said that this was a bad way to earn a living. In college, I studied history and applied for jobs at what felt like every media and media adjacent company in New York. ABC News hired me to work in production, then I started writing for the website. After eight years, I quit to attempt to write for the New York Times. I cold pitched an editor a dozen times before getting an assignment.

I thought I fell into writing, but in 2017, I opened a time capsule that I made as a part of a middle school project. It included a letter from my 13-year-old self that said, in part, “I’d hope to be in the profession of writing by the time I read this. I’d like to be a writer or reporter for the New York Times magazine or newspaper. It’s a creative enough job, and the New York Times is a world famous newspaper. I wonder how much it pays, though.”

Name your writing influences (writers, books, teachers, etc.).

My father, who was the most well read person I’ve ever known and my toughest critic. Mr. Leonard, my seventh grade (if memory serves) English teacher, who did not discourage my habit of writing long winded introductions that were unrelated to the assignment’s subject. Scores of writers, among them, J.D. Salinger, Haruki Murakami, Ruth Reichl, Tom Wolfe, Kevin Kwan, Jhumpa Lahiri, Sally Rooney, Ariel Levy, Dana Goodyear, and all of their books, plus many more. 

When and where do you write? 

Fiction: between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. (generally). Non fiction: all the other hours, depending on deadlines. Where: my office, on a desktop computer, a recent and welcome change from hunching over my laptop at the dining table.

What are you working on now? 

My first novel and a few journalism assignments. 

Have you ever suffered from writer’s block? 

No, but I’ve certainly suffered from procrastination and avoiding the daunting parts of the writing process. What helps: breaking down the daunting task into actionable bits, making a list, and crossing it off, one by one.

What’s the best writing advice you’ve ever received?

When I was struggling to write the first draft of my novel, Amy Chozick, author of the New York Times bestseller “Chasing Hillary,” told me to set a timer on my phone, put it another room, and write or work through whatever was preventing me from writing until the timer went off. I started with 30 minutes and worked up to two hours. I still do this when I can’t focus, although now I throw my phone across the room, which is cathartic.

What’s your advice to new writers?

Non-fiction/journalism: cold pitch, be persistent, and do not get deterred by rejections. Pitch another editor. Pitch another idea. Put time and energy into making your pitches sing. Do not write for free. Fiction: I’m new too, but do the timer trick, make it a routine, and keep chipping away.

Sheila Marikar is a Los Angeles based writer. Her work has appeared in the New Yorker, the New York Times, the New York Times Magazine, the Economist, Fortune, and other publications. She is currently at work on her first novel.