It is well known that Charles Dickens often got a bad case of writer's block, spending days and sometimes weeks mulling over half-formed ideas or second-guessing himself on names, plot points, and the like. On many such occasions he would often go to his local pub and sit at the bar, lost in thought. On one such evening his bartender asked him what the source of his anxiety was. Dickens replied, "I can't think of a name for my next novel. It's about a poor orphan in a workhouse."
"Well," said the bartender, "Perhaps a nice stiff drink will help you focus, sir - or at least get your mind off it for a bit. How about this - chilled gin and vermouth? It's called a martini."
"That sounds marvelous!" said Dickens, as the bartender poured the drink and stirred it over ice. "It's a bit plain, though, isn't it? Anything you could add?"
"Certainly, sir," said the bartender. "Olive or twist?"