If you're going to take writing seriously, you need to consider it as a lifestyle - and as such to take into account what you eat, drink, how you exercise, sleep and schedule your work (writing) in your day. Right now, I want to talk about things you can do to your schedule and environment in order to maximise your effectiveness as a writer.
Critically, where is your writing space? Is it in the middle of chaos, surrounded by childrens' toys or facing the distressingly filthy kitchen? Do you have a writing space? Now, while I can recommend having a space dedicated just to your writing, it's not necessary. For the first month or so that I dedicated my lifestyle to being a writer, I wrote in my four-poster bed. Every night I would get home from the gym, have a shower, dinner, and then jump straight into bed and turn on the lanterns that I had hung from each post. I would then write for a few hours before going to sleep. It made for terrible sleep hygiene, but as I have no problem with sleeping (more with staying awake), it was fine, and it was truly a wonderful time in my writing life.
However, when I got my tax return (yippee!), I went out and bought myself a named 'writing chair'. (In itself it's not particularly special; it's IKEA and probably half the world has the same chair, my treatment of it lends it significance.) My aim is to keep this chair for purely writing purposes. I'm not sure whether my writing is any better for it (difficult to tell), but my back is certainly happier.
Surroundings: I live in a one bedroom apartment, so my chair is in my main living area facing the kitchen. I find that sitting facing an unclean kitchen can be highly stressful, and constantly tempts me to leave my writing in order to clean. While I know it's possible to train yourself to block out the niggling thoughts about cleaning, I simply hired a cleaner. For the price of staying an hour and a half longer at work (or not going out to a movie and dinner), I come home every second week to a completely clean apartment. Definitely worth it.
I've made concerted efforts to make my writing environment nice. My furniture is arranged so that I have inspirational books on shelves within arm's reach, inspirational words and favourite quotes festoon the walls, and I have plants around me. I find pictures that evoke my work to myself, as well as large prints of places I've travelled to and adventures I've had, both of which excite my imagination.
Lighting is very important to me, and not just having good light. Sometimes I need low, mood lighting, while at other times I need sunlight streaming in. I've fiddled around with my lighting options, and have a lamp that has a warm light bulb in it, along with my down lights, and moved my chair to be situated right near the windows. I still love the lanterns over my bed, and think fondly back to those times writing like a princess, but have not moved them to my current location so I still get princess reading time before sleep (part of my sleep routine!). Think for a moment how your lighting might affect you? Are your lights too harsh? Do you need to invest in a lamp? You might be surprised the difference it makes.
I also have different soundtracks that I play depending on the book I'm working on. Music changes my mood and the tempo of my writing (also sometimes the tone), so it's an excellent tool to vary what you say and how you say it (as well as putting you in the mindset).
I once heard about writer who had tried unsuccessfully to write while raising young children. She eventually tried locking them in a play pen so she could sit down and write, but the complaints and noise made that impossible. So her solution? She set the kids free and locked herself in the playpen! And it actually worked for her, so don't be afraid to think outside the box (or in this case, inside it!).
Picture for a moment your ideal writing place. What immediately jumps out when you try to picture yourself writing in the future, once you are rich and famous and can write anywhere? What are the key elements?
There are two images for me that recur in my mind:
The first is of a clear, light conservatory. A comfortable chair is surrounded by greenery, and beside it is a small table with shelves for books and can hold my pot of exotic tea that I breathe in deeply while thinking.
A warm, carpeted study, with large French style windows that look out into tree branches, dark wood bookshelves all around, and a large mahogany desk facing into the room. There are also comfortable chairs for curling up and reading beside the fire. The room smells of fresh coffee.
For me the colour contrasts and the amount of light are important, and the nearness of books inspires me, and the use of natural elements such as wood soothes me. The images probably mean I don't need much memory input, such as the photographs I have up around me, as the books do that for me. I try to recreate the essence of these two images as much as I can in my current environment.
Describe your imaginary writing space in as much detail as you can, even down to the scent in the air. Spend five minutes trying to go deeper: where is the light coming from? What is closest to you? What colours dominate the scene? Are you sitting, standing, reclined? How are you supported: feet up with a neck rest, sitting on a desk chair, no back rest? What is your method of writing - desktop, laptop, typewriter? Once you have gotten as much detail out as you can, go through and make a list of elements that are most important to you. Then from these, implement any you can into your current space.
Critically, where is your writing space? Is it in the middle of chaos, surrounded by childrens' toys or facing the distressingly filthy kitchen? Do you have a writing space? Now, while I can recommend having a space dedicated just to your writing, it's not necessary. For the first month or so that I dedicated my lifestyle to being a writer, I wrote in my four-poster bed. Every night I would get home from the gym, have a shower, dinner, and then jump straight into bed and turn on the lanterns that I had hung from each post. I would then write for a few hours before going to sleep. It made for terrible sleep hygiene, but as I have no problem with sleeping (more with staying awake), it was fine, and it was truly a wonderful time in my writing life.
However, when I got my tax return (yippee!), I went out and bought myself a named 'writing chair'. (In itself it's not particularly special; it's IKEA and probably half the world has the same chair, my treatment of it lends it significance.) My aim is to keep this chair for purely writing purposes. I'm not sure whether my writing is any better for it (difficult to tell), but my back is certainly happier.
Surroundings: I live in a one bedroom apartment, so my chair is in my main living area facing the kitchen. I find that sitting facing an unclean kitchen can be highly stressful, and constantly tempts me to leave my writing in order to clean. While I know it's possible to train yourself to block out the niggling thoughts about cleaning, I simply hired a cleaner. For the price of staying an hour and a half longer at work (or not going out to a movie and dinner), I come home every second week to a completely clean apartment. Definitely worth it.
I've made concerted efforts to make my writing environment nice. My furniture is arranged so that I have inspirational books on shelves within arm's reach, inspirational words and favourite quotes festoon the walls, and I have plants around me. I find pictures that evoke my work to myself, as well as large prints of places I've travelled to and adventures I've had, both of which excite my imagination.
Lighting is very important to me, and not just having good light. Sometimes I need low, mood lighting, while at other times I need sunlight streaming in. I've fiddled around with my lighting options, and have a lamp that has a warm light bulb in it, along with my down lights, and moved my chair to be situated right near the windows. I still love the lanterns over my bed, and think fondly back to those times writing like a princess, but have not moved them to my current location so I still get princess reading time before sleep (part of my sleep routine!). Think for a moment how your lighting might affect you? Are your lights too harsh? Do you need to invest in a lamp? You might be surprised the difference it makes.
I also have different soundtracks that I play depending on the book I'm working on. Music changes my mood and the tempo of my writing (also sometimes the tone), so it's an excellent tool to vary what you say and how you say it (as well as putting you in the mindset).
I once heard about writer who had tried unsuccessfully to write while raising young children. She eventually tried locking them in a play pen so she could sit down and write, but the complaints and noise made that impossible. So her solution? She set the kids free and locked herself in the playpen! And it actually worked for her, so don't be afraid to think outside the box (or in this case, inside it!).
Picture for a moment your ideal writing place. What immediately jumps out when you try to picture yourself writing in the future, once you are rich and famous and can write anywhere? What are the key elements?
There are two images for me that recur in my mind:
The first is of a clear, light conservatory. A comfortable chair is surrounded by greenery, and beside it is a small table with shelves for books and can hold my pot of exotic tea that I breathe in deeply while thinking.
A warm, carpeted study, with large French style windows that look out into tree branches, dark wood bookshelves all around, and a large mahogany desk facing into the room. There are also comfortable chairs for curling up and reading beside the fire. The room smells of fresh coffee.
For me the colour contrasts and the amount of light are important, and the nearness of books inspires me, and the use of natural elements such as wood soothes me. The images probably mean I don't need much memory input, such as the photographs I have up around me, as the books do that for me. I try to recreate the essence of these two images as much as I can in my current environment.
Describe your imaginary writing space in as much detail as you can, even down to the scent in the air. Spend five minutes trying to go deeper: where is the light coming from? What is closest to you? What colours dominate the scene? Are you sitting, standing, reclined? How are you supported: feet up with a neck rest, sitting on a desk chair, no back rest? What is your method of writing - desktop, laptop, typewriter? Once you have gotten as much detail out as you can, go through and make a list of elements that are most important to you. Then from these, implement any you can into your current space.
About the Author:
This is an excerpt from Buffy Greentree's book 'The Five Day Writer's Retreat', available now on Amazon. Five_day_Writer_Retreat
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