The Places I Would Write.
It is very much Autumn outside now. The trees were late heading into the season this year, but there can be no dispute anymore. The world is awash with colour. Blue skies and sun can be seen, but so can cold winds and grey skies.
I love this time of year, from walking through the woods with the kids, and sitting indoors on those rainy days. There is something about the season that just lights up my soul.
With NaNo coming up just around the corner, I have been thinking about my writing schedule a lot. With the kids, it can be hard to find time to write, I have been sitting here for the last thirty minutes (and it is only 05.45 now) with a sleeping baby in one arm. The day-job really hampers me, as it does for everybody who has to work one to survive. You lose so much quality writing time just (in my case) sitting behind a desk drawing doodles with the puddle of brain that has dribble out of your ears.
This then got me thinking about if I was a full-time writer. Where would I write? I have no…. writers cave, or secret hideaway that I can retreat to. My writing is done on the sofa in the living room on my company laptop, or in the corner of the same room, on a half busted computer and an uncomfortable chair.
I would need a place to escape to, somewhere nearby, and I was surprised to find that I came up with a list.
The Library
The Library is a classic choice, and with the silence that it offers, a great place for me to go when I really need to really knuckle down and concentrate. Maybe for those damned edits that never seem to do themselves, no matter how long you ignore them..
The Cemetery
Ok, maybe I am just a freak who is beyond help, but there is a large cemetery across the road from my house, and on those nice warm, I imagine early spring of Autumn (as my love for this season has been confirmed already) days, sitting on one of the benches that have been placed in the grounds, writing on my laptop. I don’t know there is just something peaceful about it, that beats the quiet of a library… I should have put this last so as not to scare you away.
In the park overlooking the Rhine
The town I live in is effective cut in half but the Rhine, it feeds into the Ocean here. There is a lovely stretch of park that follows the river, and many places to sit and enjoy the view. This is another place that I could quite happily sit at. I see this more on those cold days, a hat, scarf, cup of coffee in one hand and a the laptop, or maybe, for this location, pen and paper is best. Notes, and plotting done by the riverside.
In the Dunes
I am also surrounded by miles and miles of Sand Dunes. I used to bike through them to get to work, at my previous job. It was wonderful. The scenery, the wildlife, and once again… the tranquility of it all. Another level apart from the library and the cemetery, there was something about being out in nature that just never failed to get me feeling inspired.
Coffee shops,
Let’s face it, they are classics for a reason. Whether it be the hustle and bustle, the never-ending stream of character and real life observations that can be made, or simply the constant supply of coffee. That magical elixir that sees us through our writing session and so much more. There are not many coffee shops in my town, but there is one place in particular that I think would make a very nice writing zone.
On the beach, in one of the cafe’s that line the sand.
Along with the Rhine, and the dunes, I live a stones through away from the beach, and alone this sandy shore, there are, at certain times of the year, beach cafe’s erected and opened. Terraces with both indoor and outdoor seating. Some are themed, and some are rather tame, but each one offers a great place to sit and once again some lovely views of the beach, the ocean. Sun sets on my section of the sea, and the evening can bring around some truly magical views.
I guess, if ever I am lucky enough to quite the day-job, I have more than enough places to keep me writing, and hidden away from the world. Who knows, maybe I can even save up enough money to turn my shed into the writing Den I so desperately want and have pictured in my mind already.
What about all of you? Where are your favorite places to write?
