Do You Need Your Own Writing Space?
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Teal table with a laptop, pink flowers and gold paperclips.
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In your career, you will discover all kinds of writers. Each of us have our own superstitions and ways of doing things. One that surprises me from time to time is the two sides of having a dedicated writing space.
When I started writing, I had a dedicated space. It was small. Ok, it was tiny. But it was mine. After shutting the door, I went to work. I loved my space. I put writing quotes around the desk and had a pile of to be read books by authors I admired.
I only wrote in this space. Nowhere else. All the magic was behind the flimsy particle board door. There was a trail of muse glitter that stayed in the room. The muse went nowhere else.
Not that I only thought about my stories in that space. Ideas came to me all over the place. I cannot tell you how many epiphanies I’ve had in the bread aisle of the grocery store. But any actual writing was done at that desk.
Laptop, a phone with the time, magazines and a glass vase of pink, lavender and cream flowers.
Photo by Jess Bailey Designs: https://www.pexels.com/photo/macbook-air-flower-bouquet-and-magazines-on-white-table-839443/
Stephen King has always has a place he goes to write. Neil Gaiman has a writing shack where he works. Brandon Sanderson has his space. There are many authors who like having their own room. Since I want to be as good at writing as they are, they're great examples.
At a writer’s conference many moons ago, Suzanne Brockmann was speaking as the keynote. I remember her saying that she writes every day wherever she was. Later in the weekend, I saw her writing by the pool as she soaked in some vitamin D. Changed my writing forever.
Consistent bestsellers write every day. As much as I wish that wasn’t true, there is no getting around it. Your story needs you to be fresh and creative. It’s hard to do that when you’re trying to remember what you were writing about two weeks ago.
Are you always at home? Every day? That might not be a fair question with the pandemic still about. But I think you get the point. Sometimes you’re on vacation, or visiting family and friends, sick in bed or at a weekend writer’s conference. You still have to write.
Today, it’s easier than ever to take your book with you wherever you go. Most of the major writing software out there syncs between an app, or an online interface to their servers. I have Scrivener for my tablet. Not gotten a ton of use out of it in the last few years, but I can if I want to.
Not to get off track, but I’m a night writer. I’ve been a night owl my whole life. My father is an early riser. We had terrific screaming matches at five am while I was in high school.
My point being, I like to write when everyone else is asleep. I don’t have to wait for the night. Two NaNoWriMo's ago I wrote between three and five in the afternoon. But I’m on at night. No interruptions. Just sweet quiet and snores.
I do my night writing in bed. Etsy has several sellers who make lap desk things. I ordered one from England that is a thick piece of wood with groves for both a phone and my tablet. It has some ventilation and a small mouse pad area. I love it. Best present I’ve ever given myself.
On it, I usually have my laptop, phone, planner, scene cards and a pencil case. It’s my personal command center. The puppy has tried to chew on the corners. She tried to electrocute herself the other day by gnawing on an electric cord. I’d rather have her chew on my table.
Keyboard, fancy pens, a white alarm clack and a pink and cream flower.
Photo by Katie Harp: https://www.pexels.com/photo/dawn-leaf-keyboard-time-7361322/
Sometimes I write downstairs. Especially during holidays when I want to see all the decorations. The Christmas tree being my favorite. I’ve got a laptop, and it goes where I need it to.
I’ve got a room that is mine with an enormous desk and all kinds of things I think I can’t live without. The room has never given off writer vibes. More of my art things than writing. But it’s mine and I could write in there if I wanted to.
Since my phone is never away from me, I’ve used Dabble on the go. The software syncs back and forth fast. Some days I squeeze out words one sentence at a time. If I’m sitting in a doctor’s office, I can work on a scene.
I’ve taken my iPad with a keyboard with me on vacation. Ended up using it more than I thought I would. Now I take the laptop.
There are several things I like to do to clear my space for writing. I grab my pens, scene card ring and the book’s small notebook. I lay them out beside me. A simple meditation helps get me in the right frame of mind. It doesn’t matter where I’m at. Hotel, restaurant, coffee shop, mall, in the passenger seat of the car and everywhere else. Writing is going to happen in the space I’ve been given.
There are so many excuses for not writing. Don’t let having your own writing space be one that keeps you playing small. Let your muse out to play and see where the writing takes you.
