Dolly Parton fasts before writing songs.

The 68-year-old singer likes to set aside time to get into a ''spiritual place'' by herself as she thinks it helps her creative process.

She said: ''One of my favourite things to do in the world is to have time set aside, like two or three weeks, to say I'm just going to write.

''Go up to my old mountain home. I fast and pray for a few days to get myself into kind of a spiritual place, even get through the headaches and everything with the fasting til I get kind of... Yeah, I hate to fast.

''But once I get into the writing, then it starts to be creative.''

After her fast, the singer is able to enjoy a feast as Dolly is convinced her cooking improves when she is writing music.

She added in an interview with Uncut magazine: ''I love to get in the kitchen when I'm getting prepared to write because if I'm in a good creative mood, my food is spectacular.

''If my food is spectacular, my writing is going to be spectacular.''