TED Talks Daily — Sunday Pick: Sci-fi writer Andy Weir doesn’t love writing | from ReThinking with Adam Grant

Original Air Date: April 12, 2026
Host: Adam Grant (ReThinking)
Guest: Andy Weir (Author, “The Martian”, “Project Hail Mary”)

Episode Overview

This episode features a candid, humorous, and insightful conversation between organizational psychologist Adam Grant and bestselling science fiction author Andy Weir. Known for “sciencing the shit out of” his stories, Weir pulls back the curtain on his creative process, motivation (or lack thereof) for writing, how he deals with bad ideas, the nuts and bolts of world-building, and the honest truth that he doesn’t actually love the act of writing itself. The discussion delivers both practical writing advice and reflections on optimism in science fiction, originality, and creative perseverance.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. The Reality of Creativity: Bad Ideas Come First

• [04:43] Andy describes his creative process as coming up with “100 ideas a day, and usually 100 of them suck.”
• [05:01] Example of a bad idea: a man who’s lucky only because his cat is lucky.
  • “What are you talking about, man? This is a six book series. Felicitous Feline Volume One.” — Andy Weir [05:33]

2. Writing as Hard Labor, not Romance

• [06:04] Andy uses a sculptor and marble analogy to describe how writing feels — “The first draft for a writer is getting the chunk of marble into your workshop. Only then do you actually start ‘making the statue’.”
• [07:17] Project Hail Mary went through 18 drafts before publication.
• [08:33] On writing:
  • “Fuck you. I hate doing the work. If I enjoyed doing the work like you did, I would be so much more prolific.” — Andy Weir [08:33]

3. Motivation: End Product vs. Process

• [07:45] Writing is like gardening for Andy — the labor isn’t enjoyable, but the results are.
• [14:39] Andy admits, “I love coming up with the idea, and I love when I’m done writing the idea, and I love receiving praise.”

4. Assessing and Combining Ideas

• [17:11] Andy on identifying viable ideas:
  • “At any given time, any idea I have is probably bad. The hard thing for me is identifying a good idea… if an idea keeps resurfacing, it might be worth pursuing.”
• [18:06] “Project Hail Mary” was originally a patchwork of separate, unrelated ideas.

5. World-building: Science as Foundation

• [11:15] Andy’s favorite part of writing is research and conceptualizing worlds, especially using real scientific principles.
• [11:36-14:15] Detailed world-building example: designing an alien species (Iridians) and their planet using spreadsheets, astronomical data, and rigorous logic.
  • “Glorious. Spreadsheets, spreadsheets, spreadsheets everywhere.” — Andy Weir [11:21]
  • “Nobody wants to read a 40-page Wikipedia article on Iridian biology. So I came up with a bunch of cool stuff and now I don’t get to tell like 90% of it.” [13:56]

6. Discipline and Writing Habits

• [15:04] Andy forces himself to write 1,000 words a day with strict “to-don’t”s (no video entertainment, hobbies, etc) until he finishes.
  • “It’s just self-discipline. Every job everywhere has periods of hard work you don’t want to do.” — Andy Weir [15:57]

7. On Originality in Storytelling

• [09:18] Andy claims his stories aren’t original in plot, just in execution thanks to obsessive science:
  • “If you just write down the basic plot outline of my stories... they’re very well-trodden ground.”
• [10:58] Discussion of Joseph Campbell’s “seven basic plots”— originality lives in the details.

8. Optimism and Dystopian Sci-Fi

• [27:49] Andy expresses joy in being an “optimistic” sci-fi writer, favoring classic authors like Asimov, Clarke, and Heinlein.
• [28:43—30:29]
  • “I guess one way I differ from a lot of other sci-fi writers is that I have a very optimistic view of humanity... I think humanity is good. The default is that we’re good.”
  • Argues every technology does more good than harm in the aggregate, with thoughtful rebuttal to nuclear power criticism.

9. Advice for Aspiring Writers

• [30:51] Andy’s three key tips:
  1. You have to write: Daydreaming or world-building isn’t enough.
  2. Don’t tell your story out loud: Only let people read it—spoken validation can sap your will to write.
  3. Self-publish if you must: The era of self-publishing has removed barriers between writer and reader.

10. Personal Life and Big Perspective Shifts

• [33:16] Becoming a parent reoriented Andy’s care about the far future:
  • "I kind of care about what happens to Earth after I die now... I never really did before."
• [34:17] Andy balances caring for the future with the need for present happiness.

11. Career Pivot: From Software to Sci-Fi

• [37:43-41:19] Andy discusses starting as a software engineer and writing as a side hobby for decades.
• The surprise success of "The Martian" led to his writing career — but he didn't quit his job until his second book contract.

12. On Improvement and Motivation as a Writer

• [41:48] Andy admits he wasn’t a natural—his first million words “sucked,” and “The Martian” was his third full-length novel.
  • “You’ve got to suck for a long time at a skill before you start to not suck a little bit.”
• [44:12] His advice:
  • "Be proud of incremental progress. Say, 'I suck less today than yesterday.'"

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the writing process:

  • “It's not just like I sit down at my keyboard, type magic, and then walk away. It’s hard work.” — Andy [06:29]
  • “If I enjoyed doing the work like you did, I would be so much more prolific.” — Andy [08:33]

• World-building joy:

  • “Spreadsheets, spreadsheets, spreadsheets everywhere.” — Andy [11:21]

• On originality:

  • “I don’t think my stories are that original... I just have my own way of doing really, really well-trodden ideas.” — Andy [10:13]

• On optimism in humanity:

  • “We hyper-focus on it and notice it so much when humanity is bad. That should show you the default is that we’re good.” — Andy [28:55]

• Advice for new writers:

  • “It’s not enough to daydream. You have to write. World-building isn’t writing.” — Andy [31:04]
  • “If you tell your story to friends and family... it saps your will to actually write it.” — Andy [32:01]

• Finding joy:

  • "I love the ideating... I wish I had some secret silent partner who would do the writing for me and I'd just do the research." — Andy [12:00]

• Comic relief:

  • “My next book is about the queen of clubs with her lucky cat.” — Andy [45:29]
  • “I definitely think that's a terrible idea.” — Adam [45:34]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Bad ideas and creative process: [04:43–06:04]
• Writing as hard labor: [06:04–08:16]
• Andy’s intrinsic motivation (praise, ideas): [14:39–15:04]
• Combining multiple bad ideas: [17:11–19:09]
• Deep dive into Iridian world-building: [11:15–14:15]
• Tips for writing discipline: [15:04–16:01]
• Advice for aspiring writers: [30:51–33:10]
• Optimism and sci-fi: [27:49–30:29]
• Transition from software to bestseller: [37:43–41:19]
• Incremental progress and motivation: [44:12–44:54]
• Parenthood’s impact on worldview: [33:16–34:17]
• Lightning round fun (Mars prediction, aliens): [22:05–27:43]

Tone and Style

The conversation is witty, self-deprecating, and filled with Andy Weir’s blend of geeky enthusiasm and blunt honesty. Both host and guest swap jokes and honest admissions about motivation, creativity, and the grind behind “overnight successes.” Technical detail, dark humor, and hope in humanity make this a standout episode for both aspiring creatives and fans of science fiction.