Jilly Cooper writes in a gazebo in the grounds of her Cotswolds home; Jeanette Winterstone uses an outbuilding that she describes as a cross between a shed and an office – she calls it her ‘shoffice’; and Roald Dahl famously wrote in a shed at the bottom of his garden.
When the children were small and I was an occasional, dabbling writer, I wrote at the kitchen table so I could keep an eye on what they were up to; I’ve also been known to write in the car, in bed, or even in the bathroom – there was a time when that was the only way I could get a little time to myself!
These days, I’m lucky enough to have my own study. I have all I need: desk, office chair, bookshelves, books, a couple of comfy chairs and even a halogen heater for those days when the central heating just can’t warm someone who is sitting still for hours at a time. The dog lies at my feet and photos of my loved ones look down on me from the walls, which are also adorned by pictures that I like, plus framed certificates, awards etc. There’s also a corkboard with ‘interesting things’ pinned onto it. It’s a great room. I love it.
Why then, do I really struggle to write in it? I can write this blog, I can write letters, I can write student reports and I can do all my lesson planning. But when it comes to the novel, I seem to dry up.
Recently, a friend offered me the use of a desk in her office for a few weeks until her new employee started, and I was amazed at how much I achieved. So I tried to analyse why. What was different? First, the desk was clear and tidy – nothing on it but the pc and keyboard. At home, even though I try to clear my desk every night, there are always a few things that it doesn’t seem worth putting away. Second, my friend was sitting opposite me and working – if someone else is working, I feel guilty if I’m not working too! Third, no home telephone – at home, you’re at the mercy of people who know you’re there and think it’s ok to call you for a chat in a way that they wouldn’t dream of doing if you were ‘at the office’. And fourth, I didn’t use the internet. There was a connection, of course, but because my friend was working away in the same room, I felt far less inclined to spend time on Twitter, following interesting links or just chatting.
So now I no longer have use of the office, I need to find a way of working that’s just as effective. At the moment, I’m using cafes. I love the little independent tea and coffee shops, but these can be almost too friendly and intimate, and anyway, I’d feel guilty sitting there for ages with one drink. But the big, impersonal places like Starbucks and Costa are perfect, because as long as you buy something, they don’t seem to mind you taking up a table. So for an outlay of roughly £2 for a coffee, I can stay comfortably for two hours and get quite a lot done.
When I thought about it, I realised that it’s probably because these places have all the elements I’d identified before: the table is clear – just a laptop and a coffee cup; there are plenty of other people around working away on their laptops; there’s no landline telephone, and you can put your mobile on silent; and finally, there is an internet connection if you want it, but with everyone else around working or chatting, you’re less likely to use it.
So, at a ‘rent’ of about £4 a day for two 2-hour sessions, it’s way cheaper that renting an office. If I do two sessions, I’ll come home at lunchtime to deal with emails etc. If I’m only doing one, I’ll use it for fiction, then I’ll do the other stuff at home.
If I had a big garden, I think I could make a ‘shoffice’ work, maybe in the form of an old camper van that doesn’t go any more, but in the meantime my ‘office’ will be Starbucks or Costas, because I’m finally making some progress. I wonder how many novels are currently being penned in Starbucks and Costas?
What about you? Where do you write? Where would you write if you could choose an ideal place?
For more about me and my writing, visit www.susanelliotwright.co.uk
I attempted to turn my spare room into a writing room. I bought a lovely desk, and put a cork board for notes and planning and whatnot up on the wall beside it. Then I tried actually writing in it. The result was backache (from sitting upright for too long) and cold hands (the room faces north and has two outside walls). I decamped to the sofa in our cosy, south-facing living room and have written there ever since!
I love working in cafes. It's far too embarrassing to be caught on twitter when you should be writing, which helps; plus there's always the possibility of some entertaining eavesdropping that might find its way into your piece.
At home – I live alone, so there's no demands to cook tea or take anyone to football. But it's amazing how urgent cleaning the bathroom can be when there is writing that won't write itself. However – I am lucky – I have a lovely room with doors that open into the garden, to write in when the weather is balmy, and in the winter I cuddle up by my fire. So I seem to have the best of all worlds!
The best laid plans…It's such a shame to not be able to use the room properly, isn't it? The cold is an issue for me too. I sit very near the radiator, which means left side warm, right side freezing. I can often be found wearing a dressing gown over my clothes, two pairs of socks, a hat and fingerless gloves. Foxy, huh?
Ah yes, the eavesdropping – always good! I only have the OH at home, and he's fairly undemanding so I can't really blame him. But it's the other distractions, isn't it? I too have been known to indulge in some uncharacteristic bathroom cleaning (or plant dusting, kettle descaling etc) But no-one expects you clean the loo in Starbucks!
When I first began writing, I had a clean desk in a corner where, a cat curled on my lap, I'd write for hours, the inspiration rarely leaving me. But ever since I grew older (grew up, really) and moved from that house, desks have always swallowed the Muse rather than inspired it. These days, I am tempted to put a little writing nook together by a window and a favorite bookshelf (desk and chair and nothing else). I have a preschooler and a full-time job, so writing always takes place after my son is in bed, yet oddly enough, what seems to work best for me now is my bed, where I sit with my back against the wall and my laptop on my lap. On weekends when my son is occupied by other things, I work in a chair in a room with nothing near me, and sometimes simply on the floor. Somehow, the presence of my laptop seems to help; perhaps its warmth and weight mimics the cat from so many years ago. Like any writer, I have good and bad days, but this seems to be the natural way I write.
What an interesting comment! I love the idea of the laptop mimicking the warmth of the cat! I think you're right about there being good days and bad days – I suppose there are some days when nothing can help us to find the right words. I do occasionally write in bed, but must try it more often – especially when it's as cold as it is right now!
I've got a full time job and two children under 10 so time is a real problem – and like everyone I find the internet so distracting. If I can get a link to Twitter I'm gone. What I've found useful though is tapping into my natural habit to be ready too early for everything. I usually find that I have half an hour every morning between getting the children ready for school and setting off – so I let them play while I get out my notebook and scribble. There isn't enough time to put the computer on so that distraction isn't there – and there is a set time limit which gives it urgency. I've written whole short stories in that half hour and then used the following day's slot to proof and re-write!
I've got a full time job and two children under 10 so time is a real problem – and like everyone I find the internet so distracting. If I can get a link to Twitter I'm gone. What I've found useful though is tapping into my natural habit to be ready too early for everything. I usually find that I have half an hour every morning between getting the children ready for school and setting off – so I let them play while I get out my notebook and scribble. There isn't enough time to put the computer on so that distraction isn't there – and there is a set time limit which gives it urgency. I've written whole short stories in that half hour and then used the following day's slot to proof and re-write!
Wow! That's really impressive (writing a short story in that time AND having the kids ready early every day). Sometimes those little snatches of time work better, don't they? And Twitter – wonderful though it is – is the downfall of many of us.
Being a full time carer pretty much ties me to the house. I have a lap top that I only seem to use for the social media sites when I'm in the sitting room with my daughter watching TV and a desk top and printer in my dining room/office. I also use them for editing. To me, there is nothing like sitting down (anywhere) with a sharpened pencil and A4 lined notebook and scribbling away. I do tend to get up around 5 a.m. because I revel in the silence and the few hours of uninterrupted writing it gives me. When I have something of substance I take great pleasure in typing it onto my computer where I can then play around with it and knock it into some kind of shape.
I have also had to discipline myself on the social media sites because they rob me of my time. I now try and turn them off when I'm writing.
It sounds like a really good way to work, Michelle. I think getting up early is great for creativity – I don't do it often, but when I do, I always have good results and swear I'll do it more often. I really should try writing with a pencil again, too. As for social media sites, well, they definitely run off with your time!