Rob Hart
Who are you, and what did you write?
My name is Rob Hart, and I wrote The Warehouse, which imagines what would happen if a massive online retail company—completely fictional, not based on any real company—essentially took over the US economy, then introduced a live-work model. With the way COVID went, with so many people working at home and relying on online retail to get stuff, I was something like three-quarters right in predicting a lot of stuff? Which… does not feel good!
What hardware and software do you write with?
I tend to work in Google Docs in the beginning stages—I have a file for each project I’m working on, because I usually have a couple of ideas bouncing around at a time. That’s where I drop notes, ideas, research, stuff like that. Then when I’m ready I move on to Microsoft Word. I appreciate Scrivener but could never wrap my head around it—too many bells and whistles. Word is the standard so I like to stick to that.
When and where do you write?
It used to be, I liked to do a lot of my writing while I was traveling, or at the Writer’s Room, which is a writing co-op in Manhattan. But these days, since travel and offices haven’t been an option, I work at home. I write full time, which I’m very lucky to do, but I also have a six-year-old daughter, so a lot of my writing time revolves around her. Being a dad has taught me to get the work in when I can.
What's your dream writing setup?
I’m not sure that I have one. I’ve always been happy to do the work where I need to do it. As long as I have some caffeine and something to type on and something to listen to, I’m pretty good to go.