I have always said that a serious writer needs a work space of one’s own in which to write. For one thing you need a place that is out of the main flow of family life where distractions abound. For another, if you work on the dining room table, you are always having to pack up your stuff and move out of the way. This is not much of an issue if you only write short pieces and have little in the way of notes to keep up with. But if you write longer or complex pieces – or a novel – you use a good bit of material you must pack away every time you pack off.
I have an office of my own in the building that is my woodshop: an old mobile home a 100 foot walk from door to door. That room served as my office for furniture making: communicating with customers, designing furniture pieces, ordering parts and materials, bookkeeping, and file storage. It also had a mini kitchen (tiny fridge, toaster oven, and a coffee maker) so I didn’t have to trudge through snow, rain, and mud to get home for lunch (and mess up the house).
This had many advantages.
One of the main advantages was that there was a clear demarcation between being “at home” and being “at work”. This was not too much of a problem in regards to the woodworking (there was no table saw in our living room), but as writing again took over the majority of my time, it was easy to slip back into “work” when I was at home. Doing all my writing on my office desk-top computer helped keep that line clear.
For a variety of reasons, I started using a laptop at home to do more of my writing. This was good and bad.
Good was that it is FAR more comfortable at home, for me and the two large dogs that accompany me everywhere I go. Healthier too. I won’t go into that right now. Bad because now I’m “at work” pretty much all the time. And work gets interrupted when household issues arise. Most problematic is that my work space is either on the dining room table or using a lap desk in the living room easy chair.
The chair is extra comfy, but offers no space for anything but the laptop. Even a mouse is tricky; I end up running the thing on the side of my leg. This is fine for putzing around on the internet, Facebooking, even whipping off a quick blog post. But for any serious writing, anything complicated, this doesn’t cut it. For the heavy work I move to the dining room table. Less cushy, but with room for mousing and to spread out some notebooks.
I have from after breakfast until just before dinner to work. Then I pack it all up and move out of the way: normally a minor inconvenience since I’m supposed to be quitting for the day anyway. If all I did was the copy-writing for commercial clients, I could get away with that. But the more creative works don’t like to work on a schedule. Inspiration can come at any hour: day or night. Quite often it ambushes me in the wee hours of the morning. I’ve lost a good many pieces that I thought were quite good because they sprang into my mind when I was not prepared to get them down. When I was where I could record them … they were gone. Never to return.
As complex works increased in number, playing musical chairs was more of a nuisance – especially since I was happy to abandon the idea of keeping to a “work day” as a writer. I contemplated going back to using the office in the shop. But Marie thought it would be better to carve out a space for me here at home.
We have a spare bedroom that has served multiple purposes (all at once). The one thing it wasn’t was a bedroom. Over the years it has become more closet than anything else. But if we cleaned it out and rearranged it … we could make a pleasant work space with a small desk and a book case.
Marie spent several days investigating the contents of boxes, deciding what to keep, what to haul to the Goodwill, and what to haul to the dump. For most of this I just stayed out of the way. When she was ready for my help, I did the strong-back hauling and helped move the keeper furniture around.
The results of her efforts were amazing: there is actually a ROOM in there!
I spent a couple of days assembling a desk and bookcase. I could have built these, but we wanted them THIS year. So we bought them from Sauder Furniture.
The end result is my own corner work space where I may retreat to write as the muse moves me. Space to lay out notes, a place where my books are at hand. And a place where I can close the door and shut out distractions if I need to. It is also a far more pleasant environment to be in than the dark, grungy shop office. And, of course, I still have access to all the comforts of home.
Blondie Bear is my research assistant. She likes being able to be right next to me and able to monitor the whole side yard at the same time. Not that there’s much going on out there when we are inside, but should a cat walk by or a neighbor dog come to visit; she wants to be aware and able to respond appropriately. She also likes watching the birdies.
Cochise likes this work space too because a sunny spot forms on the floor in here much earlier than it does in the living room, and the floor is carpeted – hardwood floors in the living room aren’t cushy, so I have to lay out a folded blanket for him and move it as the sunspot sweeps across the floor. On the carpet he just shifts as needed.
When we’re through with this renovation it will again be a nice looking room and may even have space for our inflatable bed should anyone be brave enough to come visiting. Cochise can be a little intimidating at home with people he doesn’t know. There are advantages in that too.
I am enjoying this new work space. Thank you Honey!
