Writing Space

Writing requires self discipline and motivation. One key to developing and sustaining an internal drive to write each day is to create a writing area that inspires you. We all know how difficult it can be to actually sit down and put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard). The greatest benefit of a writing area is its ability to transport your thoughts from your busy daily activities to your writing world as soon as you cross its threshold.

But how, you may ask, should I go about setting up a special area for my writing? What should I include? Where should I begin? As a writer working on my first novel, I struggled with these same questions. I settled on an area in my home that I transformed into a haven for my writing. Here are the steps that I took to create a motivational writing area:

STEP 1: Public or Private? You may write in many places - a coffee shop, the local library, outside at a park, or in your own home. The first step to creating a writing area is to decide whether you prefer to be at the mercy of public places or in control (for the most part) of your private environment in your own home. If you choose a public place, some of the following steps may not apply to you because you won't be able to set up a constant space in the same way as someone working at home. Most importantly, choose a place that you like to visit and one that is easy to access.

STEP 2: The Tools. Writers have both necessities and favorite tools. The necessities that you will need for your writing space may include a desk, a chair, a dictionary, a thesaurus, and paper. Favorite tools include such things as your preferred writing instrument (such as a computer, legal pad, pen, pencil, or tape recorder) and back up method (such as a printer and/or computer disks). For research purposes, it may be helpful for you to have internet access as well as index cards or a notebook for jotting down thoughts and information.

STEP 3: Stimulation inspires motivation. We each draw inspiration from different sources, most of which are related to our five senses. Use your five senses to create a stimulating mood in your writing area. If you are visually stimulated, then fill your writing space with favorite photographs, favorite quotes, favorite books, postcards, talismans, and other decorations that will inspire your imagination and motivate you to write. If you enjoy stimulation from sound, then play your favorite music in the background. Perhaps taste and smell arouse your creative side. If so, try scented candles or your favorite food and drink in your writing area. To satisfy your sense of touch, be sure to choose a comfortable chair for your writing area. You plan to spend a lot of time in that chair, right?

STEP 4: Eliminate Distractions. Interruption is the enemy of the writing process. The worst experience as a writer is to be disrupted in the middle of a writing streak. Don't let your train of thought roll on without you! Eliminate as many distractions as possible turn off the television, turn off or ignore the phone, get rid of errand lists and clutter in your writing area, avoid taking frequent breaks, and (if possible) find time away from pets and children even if you can only steal half an hour. Tell friends and family about your general writing schedule to eliminate unexpected visitors during your writing time.

STEP 5: Get to it. Schedule a time to escape to your writing area each day or week or weekend. Treat it as your own appointment with yourself. Sit there even if you stare at the blank page for an hour. As you succeed in spending time in your writing area each day, you will build motivation to return to the area and a positive attitude toward the space you've created. Over time, you will also notice things that are missing, things that you want to add, and things that you don't need or that may become distractions.

Above all else, keep writing!