I've heard it said that Pope St. John Paul II wrote in front of the blessed sacrament. Is this true? I occasionally get the dirty look from people in the adoration chapel, when writing, and was wondering if it's true that Pope St. John Paul II wrote in the adoration chapel.
Yes, it is true.
Chapter 9 (&quot;The Blessed Sacrament&quot;) from Jason Evert's 2014 book Saint John Paul the Great: His Five Loves reproduced here has this quote:

The Holy Father often spent hours at a time writing before the Blessed Sacrament.  He explained:

I have always been convinced that the chapel is a place of special inspiration.  What a privilege to be able to live and work in the shadow of His Presence. . . . It is not always necessary to enter physically into the chapel in order to enter spiritually into the presence of the Blessed Sacrament.  I have always sensed that Christ was the real owner of my episcopal residence, and that we bishops were just short-term tenants.  That's how it was in Franciszkanska Street for almost twenty years, and that's how it is here in the Vatican.  In his chapel in Kraków, the kneeler was more of a prayer desk, with a desktop large enough so that he could write while kneeling or sitting before the Eucharist.  A lamp was installed nearby so he could work at any time of night as well.  As pope, he spent time in adoration before every Wednesday audience, and always made a short visit before and after every meal.  He also spent long amounts of time before the Blessed Sacrament before and after his pilgrimages.  Marathons of prayer were not unusual for him.  One papal photographer recalled, &quot;I remember that in Vilnius he prayed for six hours in a row . . .&quot;