Where Do You Write?

Last Sunday's New York Times had a small article about Roxana Robinson, a novelist who lives in Manhattan in a very nice apartment, yet chooses to do her writing in a sparsely furnished former maid's room rather than in her well-equipped office.

It got me to thinking about where we choose to write.

I used to write in my home office, a nice, cozy room in our home which held my computer, desk, books and reference materials. It also had a window which looked out on our backyard where Cindy would plant colorful flowers for me to look at when I gazed out, and a TV, VCR, and DVR to watch programs, as well as nice speakers my brother bought me so I could listen to quality sounds from the music on my computer.

I loved my office.

But eventually Cindy expressed concern that we were not spending much time together because I was spending so much time in my office. After giving it some thought I realized, especially with my new (at the time) laptop and our wireless connection, that I could easily do a lot of my online research work while sitting on the couch with Cindy watching a TV show together or while she read. I would use my office when I needed peace and quiet to create.

Now I am on the road a lot and most of my researching/writing time is spent at a desk in a hotel room at night after work or sometimes in a Panera. When I'm writing something non-fiction I can usually write with the TV on or in a place like Panera with its multiple distractions of people, talking, etc., but if I'm trying to conceive and create I really enjoy the solitude of the hotel room with the TV and most of my social media apps (Twitter, Facebook, IM) turned off and perhaps some music playing.

With our preparations to move to the mountains next year I have lost my office in our home to storage boxes, but I am fortunate enough to not have been home much during the past several months so I have not really missed it as much as I might if I had been home. And the cabin we are building will have a nice second floor office overlooking the creek that flows at the edge of our property. I am looking forward to writing in that atmosphere.

If you're a writer reading this; where do YOU write? I'd be interested in hearing all about it.

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