She spends long stretches of time working on her novels, often spending 20 to 30 hour periods on her typewriter.
(meta data) TITLE: Danielle Steel's Desk Is Unlike Anything You've Ever Seen | Vanity Fair (meta data) AUTHOR: Condé Nast (meta data) COPYRIGHT: Copyright (c) Condé Nast 2019 ## A Categorical Guide to Bianca Jagger's Favorite Stuff By Vanity FairFrom the Magazine ## A Very Close Look at Oscar-Winning Director Pedro Almodóvar's Desk By Vanity FairHWD ## Hobbs & Shaw Chases, but Can't Catch, the Fast & Furious Magic By Richard LawsonHWD ## Star Wars' Obi-Wan Spinoff May Live On As Disney+ Series With Ewan McGregor By Kevin Fitzpatrick Already a subscriber? Sign In No Articles left Sign In Already a subscriber?Sign InCreate An Account Danielle Steel's wildly popular novels have made her a household name, and as the founder of the Nick Traina Foundation—so called after her late son—the mother of nine is also an ardent advocate for mental-health awareness. Ahead of her new book, Fairytale, being published next month, take a look at where Steel's best-sellers are brought to life, at her desk in San Francisco. Photograph by Aubrie Pick. My beloved, partially handmade 1946 Olympia standard typewriter. I've written 163 books on this typewriter, and it's still going strong. I love these mementos that my children have given me for good luck. They touch my heart but do not help my creative process. The desktop is so crowded that, when I'm writing, I have to take them off the desk until I finish the book. This tall stack of papers is all pending projects. Photograph by Aubrie Pick. On the walls of my office are framed covers of my books and sayings that I love. One favorite, since I work very late: "What hath night to do with sleep?" Art done by my children when they were little. This magnet says, "#1 Mom," and was a Mother's Day gift. This nameplate belonged to my son Nick, with the name of his band, Link 80. I had my desk made by some artisans about 25 years ago. They chose the colors and book titles—I love it. ## An Inside Look at Jenna Lyons's Desk in the J. Crew Offices 1 / 10Photograph by Floto & Warner. Jenna works from this table in her New York City office. Christian Chaize photographed the beach scene that hangs behind her table. She also has a desk in the corner. ## Read More From the Magazine ### A Categorical Guide to Bianca Jagger's Favorite Stuff By Vanity FairFrom the Magazine ### A Very Close Look at Oscar-Winning Director Pedro Almodóvar's Desk By Vanity FairHWD ### Hobbs & Shaw Chases, but Can't Catch, the Fast & Furious Magic By Richard LawsonHWD ### Star Wars' Obi-Wan Spinoff May Live On As Disney+ Series With Ewan McGregor By Kevin Fitzpatrick
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Danielle Steel
Writing style.:Writing process.
Steel spends two to three years on each book, juggling multiple projects at once. According to Steel, once she has an idea for a story her first step is to make notes, which are mostly about the characters. She told the "New York Times" in 2018: "I make notes for a while before I start work on the outline. The notes are usually more about the characters. I need to know the characters really well before I start — who they are, how they think, how they feel, what has happened to them, how they grew up." Steel has written all of her novels on 1946 Olympia standard typewriters. She has two which she primarily writes on, one at her home in San Francisco and another at her home in Paris. Her typewriter at her home in San Francisco has been in her possession since she bought it while working on her first book. According to Steel, she bought it second hand for $20.