I got to know Haldun Taner when I was still in middle school. With his strong characters, stories full of irony from his life
and tragedies that made me smile, he was again telling us
about the great despair that I and 60 million others (that was the population at that time) were in. Moreover, a few sentences were enough to recognize the mastery in these stories written years ago. Their characters were real people, far beyond fiction. The way they spoke and the way they reacted seemed too lifelike to be fiction. I wondered the reason for his mastery in those years, and thought it was pure talent. He would sit down at his writing desk and inspiration would rush into his mind.
However, I would realize that I was wrong with Ferhan Şensoy, whom I got to know years later. But before I go there, I have to confess that the first time I got to know an artist who devoted his life to keeping the theater alive was through a
movie. I was shocked when I saw that the funny man in the movie Pardon
wrote new plays and books every year. How could a person be on stage so much and produce such beautiful works ?
The secret was just a habit… The great master explains it like this…
“There is something I learned from Haldun Taner: ‘I write 20 pages every day, son,’ he told me. ‘How, teacher, 20 pages is very serious,’ I said.
‘I get up at 6 in the morning. I throw the typewriter on the balcony.‘ -He lived in Moda in Kadıköy- ‘I write 20 pages.’
‘So what do you do if nothing comes to mind? Isn’t that the case?’
‘No!’ he said. ‘I may not think of anything. I write what I see. The half past six ferry was five
minutes late. Seagulls flew by. I write down the view. The school minibus arrives to pick up the children. You don’t have to use all 20 pages. Maybe one day it will come in handy, you can take a paragraph out of it and throw it away. But just like a carpenter opens his shop and starts working in the morning, you, as a writer, will open your shop and work. You will write every day.'”
One of the pages Haldun Taner wrote from his balcony in the morning and said “I’ll throw it away” would later turn into Yalıda Sabah, one of the most valuable short stories of Turkish literature.
This disciplinary approach is the essence of a professional approach not only to writing but to any creative or analytical work. Calling inspiration through production instead of waiting for it.
To sit at the table every day, beyond excuses like “inspiration will come soon, it will be late today, it sent me an e-mail”. Because if that’s your job, you will write.
Today’s behavioral sciences define this approach as the keystone habit.
What is a Keystone Habit?
A keystone habit is a fundamental behavior that creates a multiplier effect in the life of an individual or an organization and shapes other
habits. Such habits are not limited to
themselves; they indirectly affect many areas such as time management, self-confidence, productivity, decision-making.
As Charles Duhigg exemplifies in his book The Power of Habits, regular exercise in the morning can contribute to healthier eating, better sleep, and even financial discipline throughout the day. This is because this habit strengthens one’s sense of self-control and responsibility.
Haldun Taner’s habit of sitting at the typewriter every morning was exactly one of these habits. His writing practice was a tool not only for production but also for focus, mental clarity and emotional well-being. And his apprentices took over this habit and built their own paths.
Infrastructure,
Not KeystoneHabit
Habits are about identity, not just time. When you repeat a behavior every day , you are no longer “doing something” but “becoming someone.”
Haldun Taner did not only produce more texts because he wrote every day; he reinforced his identity as a writer and made it authentic.
Not only artists but also many successful names in the business world have adopted this principle.
Maya Angelou would start writing early in the morning in her hotel room and work for hours.
Stephen King never left his desk without writing 2000 words every day.
Benjamin Franklin used to open his mornings with the question “What good can I do today?”.
Haruki Murakami, when he was writing novels, would get up at 4am every morning and go for a run after writing. To structure his day, to protect his mind.
The common point is simple but powerful: He who rules the day, rules life. He who establishes the morning habit
uses mental energy strategically. Discipline precedes inspiration.
Conclusion: Making Art with Carpentry Discipline
Haldun Taner’s getting to his writing desk every morning is not just a writing technique; it is part of a professional life design. This understanding, which Ferhan Şensoy inherited from him, overlaps with one of the most valuable
skills sought in creative processes and leadership today: the discipline of sustainable production.
If your job is to write, you will write.
If your job is to produce, you will sit down and produce. Like a carpenter
shop. Not so that inspiration will come, but so that inspiration will find you there.
And the question remains:
What is your “20 pages of writing in the morning”?
ŞÜKRÜ TOKYILMAZ
METİN YAZARI