Writers don't always think about practicing their craft. Sure, we might feel like our skill grows over time as we tackle new projects, and we improve our work through revision.

But when was the last time you wrote something JUST for practice?

If you're an athlete, you train, attend team practices, do strength training and physical conditioning to improve your performance. If you're a musician, you sit down with your instrument to run through scales, rehearse a piece without an audience, do exercises that strengthen your lips or fingers. Performing artists run lines, repeat steps over and over, practice each piece of a performance until it comes easily. So why can it be so hard for writers to think about writing in this way?

My guests on the two most recent episodes of Drafting the Past each addressed the question of practice in their work.

• Nuclear historian Alex Wellerstein is adamant that writing is a craft that can be learned. He believes in the power of practice. His most intriguing technique? He likes to haunt Reddit and answer questions about history, to practice answering in different ways. I love it. Listen to our whole conversation here; it's chock full of practical advice.

• In my conversation with Amy Erdman Farrell about her new book on the history of the Girl Scouts, Amy advocates for starting to write early in a project, even if you know you won't use those early words (practice!). She mentioned that she scrapped entire chapters of her previous book, and some people asked if she saw that writing as a waste. Of course not, she says: "I needed to write that." Would we ever ask an actor if their rehearsals were a waste of time? Here's my whole conversation with Amy; it's a gem.

Wherever you are and however you celebrate the holiday season, I hope you have some time to recharge and hug loved ones this week. I'll be back next week with the year-end roundup of some of the best books YOU read this year!