Writers' Rooms
I am always fascinated by where, when, and how other people write. I think I believe that by accumulating this knowledge from various people - friends or strangers - I will somehow hone my own practice into one that is all power and no waste, kind of like wind energy.
I'm not sure that this will ever be the case - birds fly distractedly into my propellers - but I did really enjoy the Guardian's collection of photographs of the writing rooms of a whole host of writers, from Lord Byron to Hilary Mantel. Beneath the photos are descriptions by the writers themselves (or by historians, if the writer is no longer alive), and are wonderfully insightful, as in this bit from Will Self:
"My books begin life in notebooks, then they move on to Post-it notes, the Post-its go up on the walls of the room. The shaggy patch of them in the middle of the wall (they're stuck to a map of the Isle of Grain, my spiritual home) are all short story ideas, tropes, metaphors, gags, characters, etc. When I'm working on a book, the Post-its come down off the wall and go into scrapbooks, which is why the wall to the left of the window has Post-it alopecia - that's where some of The Book of Dave was stuck up. I can't throw anything away."
Where do you write?
Comments
This is a really interesting post – thanks!
When you discover the key to a super-productive, no-waste writer’s life, please pass it along! (Or write about it.) I’m always on this hunt. It seems there are two components to consider:
1) the location (those photos were fascinating! I myself have a quiet, cozy, basement office, but need to get out to nature often to breathe)
2) the means (notebooks, typewriters, Post-Its, computer, note cards, etc. — loved the Post-It covered walls in that photo! Personally, I have waffled from pen/paper to computer and back again . . . obviously, I’m in process)
And like you, I wonder about other writers and how they go about the task.
I’m far more productive and prolific when surrounded by other productive, prolific writers. Something happens in a room with the sound of keys under the fingers of other authors I admire. So the concept of the community space, the writers’ room, works wonderfully for me.