Indeed.
Pay close attention to the places you visit. Write up descriptions for your diary, trying to capture the flavor of the place.
Grab characters when they appear. One never knows when an interesting person may need to be resurrected with a different name.
In other words, become a writer before you start writing.
It would seem being a little on the crazy side would also seem to be a help. I have never really heard well in noisy crowds. If I try hard I can usually understand someone is trying to say. But if I don’t need to know what they are saying I just choose the most interesting thing they might of said. It was far more entertaining. As a child I got Goldwater and goldfinger mixed up and wondered why they would have wanted him for president. There was also this preacher that talked about a cross eyed bear .