Monday, December 14, 2009
The Writing Space-Time Continuum: The Best Place to Do Your Writing
I have determined that reading and writing late at night is the best time for me. Everyone else is asleep. It is so quiet; I can hear the air wheezing through dust- riddled vents in the ceiling. There are no children tugging at my shirt. My wife has given up her quest to enlist my involvement in the completion of household chores. I can focus all of my energies on the transference of the words dancing in my head to the digital dance floor before me.
The best place for me to write is in my Lazy Boy. I extend the leg rest and push back until the maximum point of reclination is reached. I prop my knees up to position the laptop keyboard to be readily available to my finger tips. This may sound cumbersome, but it works for me. You might be different. Comfort is most important. It will be hard to focus if you have to adjust your position in a search for comfort.
Setting a daily goal is as important as determining a place and time. Some people set a goal to write a certain number of words each day. I find that setting a chronological goal works best for me. I set a goal to write for at least one hour each day. Some days I am able to write more words during that hour than others. Whatever strategy works best for you is fine. Contact me for a free consultation. 918-394-2665
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My ideal writing space/time: 6-12 am, at the cafe near my home where I can refill my ice tea all morning, plug into their outlet and use their WIFI to post to my blog, tweet or check email. The music, classical piano or quiet guitar, is perfect background - as are the hiss of the espresso machine and the hum of morning conversation. By noon, I've written 6 hours and I'm ready for a different kind of day. What blessed freedom.
ReplyDeleteI also find that the early am hours are an ideal time for writing. All is silence and my brain works best at night anyway. I am, after all, an astronomer. I tend to focus more on a goal of a chapter per night as opposed to a set number of words or a time-limit. This is what allowed me to achieve the 50,000 word goal for Nanowrimo and to write both Magician of Oz (45,000 words) and Shadow Demon of Oz (63,000 words) in 30 days each.
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