Do you do it on a desk?

[L.E.]

I've always been a writer, although for a while I did it in secret, stashing enough note books under my bed that by the time I was ten I was sleeping in a bunk!

Eventually we had enough money to buy a forth hand computer and I wrote story after story (mainly because the computer crashed a lot and nothing ever saved properly). The workstation was my domain and there I was a demi electrical god with the power to locate my mouse through Dos!

Then a few years ago I had problems with my back and hands and the quacks recommended that I stop writing or try to dictate (I don't speak coherantly when sober so how was I going to write when...) anyway I ignored the doctor's advice, because lets face it doctors' advice is for patients and I am anything but patient.

So basically I have struggled to find a new domain where I can write without crippling myself. Finally it has happened and the words are flowing out of me like the copious cups of tea I keep drinking. Where is it you ask? Am I doing it on the desk? The arm chair? Not the kitchen table!!!! ....

No, as a stern traditionalist I am tucked up in bed, with the lights down low - this is my new hide out, away from distraction and spouse meddling. Pillows all around me (the padded cell effect) and duvet up high. Bliss.

So I'm curious, where did you complete your masterpiece? Where is the best place on earth to churn out a classic? Should I be in the garden under the stars? Or sat in my car with the engine running? (Don't forget to link to your book)

Dark Waters

[Sherri]

I have a laptop, so my stories are written all over - at the kitchen table, at the laptop counter we have in our kitchen, in my favorite recliner, at my desk at home and at my desk at work during lunch breaks. Basically if I can take the laptop there, then there's a good possibility that I wrote some part of a manuscript or story there!

Sherri Fulmer Moorer
http://www.sherrithewriter.com
https://www.amazon.com/authors/sherri...

[Emmalee]

usually I sit on a comfy chair in my living room, sometimes up in the spare bedroom away from everyone in my house. And sometimes I sit at my dining room table when I just need to sit and concentrate and get it done.

[H.A.]

I have three writing spots.
My bed, a lazy chair or the sofa. I need to be comfortable. Ideally it's quiet and the room is semi-dark. I've never really written while outside simply because the only time I go out I'm going out for a specific reason and heading right back home.
I would love to be able to write under the stars but unfortunately, livingin the city I don't get to see them all that often ):

From Love and Pain

[Sharon]

I have a corner in my kitchen. My pet gerbil, Donald, is my constant companion. I've a view of Hansel and Gretel, my New Zealand giant rabbits and the chicken coop. Harold, my peacock, likes to strut about and flare his feathers every so often. I like the corner because I must smoke and the coffee pot is conveniently located just three feet away. Also, the kids rooms are clear across the other side of the house.

A Lady of the Realm

[L.E.]

To add to my initial post for a while I was able to get lots done while my other half sat and played XBox all night - match made in heaven.

I have been able to write a little with other people around, as long as they are not taking an interest in me, or desperate to tell me random music facts about bands I've never heard of... you know who you are.

[Paul]

I do the bulk of my writing in bed in the evening. Relaxing with my netbook on my lap has worked best for me. I tend to do proofreading corrections during the day at my desk, but not always.
I've tried to keep my computer set up as portable as possible, and a portion of my first book was written on my HTC Ameo phone (5 inch screen with 5 inch keyboard below it).

Astronomicon: Voyage of the Elysian
Astronomicon: The Discovery

[Kashif]

LE wrote: "I've always been a writer, although for a while I did it in secret, stashing enough note books under my bed that by the time I was ten I was sleeping in a bunk!

Eventually we had enough money to..."

I'm another person on a desk and chair, but I have wrist issues and the occasional back pains as well. I noticed that if I do yoga regularly, I can type wherever I want without having to shift around too much.

However, for people that suffer with chronic pain, I recently found out about how beneficial the iPad can be. If you love typing but your wrists can't handle the pressure, try any tablet device. If you can also find some type of reclining chair, your life will improve tenfold. Your typing may slow down, but if you're not typing at 90 WPM, I doubt it will matter much.

[Barbara]

first draft is handwritten on the bed! ;-)
Then typed in the computer (desktop mostly, as I don't know where to position the notebook with the laptop) in installments to save my back... (as if the bed writing doesn't hurt it, LOL!)
But then, I started writing long before PCs, so many of my older stories are still handwritten on notebooks (ans some will stay that way, LOL)
I'm adding my profile because I have more than one book... Barbara G.Tarn

[Christopher]

My writing process is a bit schizophrenic.
I do the bulk of my writing on my laptop; I use my laptop for this purpose at work, at the bookstore, at the coffee shop, and at home (couch, desk, and bed). However, I also have a notepad on my cell phone where I dictate writing thoughts throughout the day. Finally, I have a notebook where I jot down ideas, inspirations, and lessons about writing when I am reading (both fiction books and non-fiction books about writing). Oh ya, I have a small pile of napkins and notecards with ideas and quotes on them, too.

[Chris]

For me, the process is pretty much all over the place.

I usually set aside a little time in the morning for jotting some things down on my laptop, but in the evenings I've always been a fan of the classic notebook and couch/futon/bed method of writing. However, I've always made it policy to keep at least a few scraps of paper (if not a proper pad or notebook for the scribbling goodness) with me at all times.

If I'm struck at work with some creative thought, or up in the mountains (Colorado wandering for the win), I'll find a moment to turn aside and spill my thoughts onto paper, for later transcription onto computer.

For whatever reason, if I can choose a spot, it's rarely the desk/chair method. Too constrained for me. Nor have I ever been a fan of the coffee shop method--usually too much noise, and I fin the other people a distraction rather than a buoy to the effort. A little music for the appropriate mood, or silence--that's my work environment.

The Hollow March

[Ginney]

Since my heroine is twenty-something, I could lose all credibility by admitting that I need a recliner to use my laptop. The side table is covered with little notes and a tablet, but I research/create/edit/rewrite on the laptop (sans mouse) from a near-fetal position. In the old days, I sat at the kitchen barstool, then finally figured out why my neck was killing me.Looping for Love

[Nick]

I'm a big fan of Starbucks and the comfy leather chairs. My laptop on my... lap (duh!), and a Chai Latte on the table.

I hardly ever write at home. Not because I don't try, but because there are way too many distractions (like the adorable cat that INSISTS on riding shotgun with my laptop (on my lap, duh!).

[Paul]

Kashif wrote: "If you love typing but your wrists can't handle the pressure, try any tablet device."
I cannot stand touchscreen simulated keyboards. I don't have much idea what my typing speed is, but I would estimate I drop to about a sixth of my normal speed without a proper tactile keyboard, plus I think it would only take a couple of days typing to crack a touchscreen (I get through at least one keyboard a year). I typed for a while on the little onscreen keyboard of a relative's iPad and I can honestly say it was the third worst keyboard I've used so far, and you lose a huge chunk of screen area to it.

[Will]

My first book, now out, was done on a desktop, so that had to be at the desk. But I've tried lying on the couch with a laptop, sitting up in bed, and have in the end come back to the desk.

basically, I feel more disciplined and i@m much more productive. Even though my ancient gas lift office chair keeps farting and unlifting...

The Banned Underground

[L.E.]

Will wrote: "My first book, now out, was done on a desktop, so that had to be at the desk. But I've tried lying on the couch with a laptop, sitting up in bed, and have in the end come back to the desk.

basica..."

Office chair flatulence is the curse of a desktop writer.

[Cheryl]

LE wrote: "Office chair flatulence is the curse of a desktop writer."

Ewww! (But, so true, LOL!)

[Jenn]

My last book was composed at my desk, on the dining table, in three-ring binders roughly the thickness of the blocks holding up the Egyptian pyramids, and in fragmented thoughts in the shower where there is no paper to be had.

My current book is mainly being written on a portable table while I sit in my favorite chair.

Sometimes it is propped on my cat Harry, who insists on editorial involvement.

[Martin]

Like most, I work at the kitchen table after the kiddos have gone to bed. When I need to be anti-social and in a quiet place, I go down into the office.

And by quiet, I mean that I blast heavy metal, alternating with Old Time Radio. :)

[Sharon]

I do it on the train with music in my ears.

[Sharon]

Welcome. It appears to be my only free time at the moment, so I have to get it in.

[Cheryl]

My first books were written in pen in school composition notebooks. Editing was a definite challenge! The stories would be so full of crossed-out lines and notes written in the margins that it was almost impossible to read them after a while. But, the beauty of that method was that I could write anywhere.

Then, one year for my birthday, I received a Brother manual typewriter that I used to write my stories at the kitchen table. I was in heaven! But, editing was still no fun. I eventually progessed to an electric typewriter with the ability to correct mistakes. That was a little better, but it was still a challenge to shuffle paragraphs around and insert new lines...lots of paper was wasted during revising of the manuscripts.

Now? Well, let's just say, I want to kiss the guys who invented the computer because writing is now a snap! I have a nice sleek laptop that I can use on my desk in my nice quiet office, or out on the glider on the front deck.

[J.W.]

L.G. wrote: "Sometimes loud music or noise will drown out the noise of your own mind and allow one to write without the distraction of silence."

It was interesting to read that Stephen King prefers heavy metal while writing. Not for me, but music does set a "mood."

[James]

Awesome Connoisseur Classics WHRO on iTunes Radio Classical Brass & Winds Thursdays. Granger, Lincolnshire Posey, U. Michigan Band, H Robert Reynolds (not USC Thorton School of Music Faculty?). A favorite of mine, greatly performed.

[Paul]

Now I can't listen to music while I'm writing. I don't mind background noise, as long as it's not too intrusive, but I find music quite distracting.

[Martin]

The sequel to Animal Farm?