Creating Your Writing Space

 Photo credit: sotontab.co.uk

Contrary to both ends of the stick of extremities, authors do not have to write in a) beautiful garden sheds overlooking a floral garden at the crack of dawn, and b) a haphazard, pathetic excuse of an office, like shown above. My writing space (which I use to write the yet unfinished cozy mystery I am working on) falls comfortably in the middle, and it’s easy to make yours suitable for your own needs too.

One tip is to mix alluring and boring objects. If your whole space is filled with the softest teddy bears ever imported from Switzerland that beckon you to touch them all day, I can guarantee you that not a lot of writing will get completed:

      Photo credit: cnsolartoy.com

However, if your entire room is filled with nothing but sterile-looking and empty billboards,

chances are, you won’t get much work done in that scenario either because of sheer boredom and despair. You want to throw in a few ‘comfort’ objects, as I like to call them, along with some that might not be so tempting. That way, you can still feel satisfied without being lured to procrastinating while writing.

Make yourself comfortable! Surprisingly, this is the one most authors surpass when envisioning the big picture—I admit to making this mistake myself. The first step to make sure you are settled in snugly is to get yourself a roomy, plush chair. Avoid stiff-backed or very rigid seating arrangements—not only will your back begin to hurt, but you will also want to leave the room as soon as possible and therefore abandon your writing as well. If you know you’re going to want to keep your feet up, find a soft, upholstered ottoman or something like that and place it underneath your desk, so you can prop your feet up whenever you feel the desire.

Soothe your senses rather than distract them. While aromatherapy is amazing, an overpowering scent of jasmine in every millimeter of the room is likely to hinder you. Try a more neutral scent, such as a few sprays of freshly pressed linen. This goes for your eyes, too. While you want to play around a little bit with your writing space (after all, it is your personal haven), try not to overdo the superbly flashy color scheme. I would suggest keeping your walls baby pink, baby blue, or if you get distracted really easily, beige/cream. Of course, your hearing is also another one of your senses, so try to play sounds of nature rather than music. For example, I particularly like listening to the sounds of a waterfall on very low volume while I’m tapping away at the keyboard. If you must listen to a rhythm or tune, go with classical music so soft it’s almost muted.

Have your space represent you. I don’t know if it’s our sentimental values instilled into our brains since childhood, or if we simply have huge egos, but humans, in general, like to be reminded how completely and utterly amazing they are. A few photos of you won’t hurt, especially if they’re not in your direct vision while you are writing. Same goes for any awards you may have won, or certificates you may have attained.

Don’t make it so clean that a single ink-stain will make you go crazy. I know for a fact that when the scene I’m writing is leaning on dull and I’m struggling to get through it, I’ll snack on something to spark my muse again and to refresh my senses. Don’t turn your writing space into a kitchen, but make sure a few food splotches here and there won’t kill the atmosphere.

Make limited technology available to you. Do not place a phone extension or even cell phone anywhere near where you’re writing—I know from firsthand experience that it is way too tempting to even try. If possible, keep the ringer very low while working so that someone else in another room can pick it up without it ever bothering you. Similarly, do not have a Palm Pilot, Nintendo DS, camera, or any other form of electronic material except for your trusty computer nearby.

Keep a notebook on hand. Typing up random notes on the computer just isn’t as fun as jotting inspirational phrases of shorthand you may have thought of as you look around. Keep this notebook nearby so you can write down inklings of ideas whenever one may occur.

Preferably have a window somewhere near you. Nature is very soothing, and sometimes, a pretty panoramic view of beautiful, leafy trees and lush flora is just what you need to spark your muse that’s struggling through writer’s block. My own window has provided me with several jolts of inspiration when I really needed it.

Try creating your own writing space and let me know if this post helped. Good luck!

Getting to Know Your Genre

 Photo credit: literature.mrdonn.org

As a writer, it's important to know your genre inside and out. Whether you write science fiction, fantasy, or chick lit, the principle remains the same for everyone--get a good feeling of what you're writing before you dive into a project headfirst.


The first way to familiarize yourself is read as many books as you can in that genre. For example: if you want to write science fiction, a good choice to start out with would be The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. If you want to write something inspirational, try books by Thomas Kinkade and Katherine Spencer. If chick lit is your game, try the Shopaholic series by Sophie Kinsella. Choosing the right books to read will ensure that your project reflects the quality and effort of published authors.


Once you've found a couple of good books in the genre you are writing, try to acquire a deeper perspective of the book itself. Currently, I am trying to write a cozy mystery, and I've been reading the Knitting Mystery series by Maggie Sefton:

 Photo credit: barnesandnoble.com

My first step is always analyzing the author's voice. What is it about the way Maggie Sefton spins this series that makes it successful? What is this author's secret to making her book enjoyable? So far, I've noticed that while mysteries are known for being plot-driven, Sefton puts a lot of effort into making the characters equally as well-developed as the plot. That's one quality of hers I've noted that I will make an effort to use in my own cozy-mystery-in-progress.

As an aspiring writer myself, I know it's important for me to learn from both the mistakes and good qualities of other writers in the same genre. The same goes for you. Read, analyze, think, and note. These four simple steps have proven helpful for me, and I hope they do the same for you. 

Another thing to think about while reading a book of the same genre is the length. I've noticed the cozy mysteries I read typically aren't very long. If you write literary complexities, then you are bound to have a longer piece up for publication. If you enjoy writing picture books, the length of your own book will typically be pretty short.

Once you've read a few books and honed in on a few excellent authors, you have a strong feeling of what your genre is about. But how do you know your genre is 'write' for you? (Get it? Ha ha!) If you still have a tiny shred of doubt in your mind that you enjoy another genre more than the one you are setting out to write or if you think you are incapable of fully capturing the essence of your genre, it might be time to consider all the different possibilities there are when it comes to the world of writing.

A test that works for me is trying to write one page of my genre. Then I examine that page with the most critical eye I can bring out. Firstly, I look for specific references. If I am trying to write a sci-fi novel, I'm going to look for mentions of outer space, extraterrestrial activity, etc. Then I look for the emotions the characters are experiencing on that page. If I'm writing a romance, are my characters lonely enough to be able to find a significant other in the book? If I'm writing a mystery, do my characters always appear naturally inquisitve, or are they dull and dawdling? After I have found out about both the emotions of the characters and the specific references, I'm going to take a look at my author's voice. Does my individual voice shine through clearly, or is the page mundane enough to be written by anyone? For example, one writer may like to write very concise prose. If that writer looks through her page and finds flowery sentences with adjectives tacked on before every word, chances are she's not sure how to approach this genre and is stifling her writing style.

If after going through those three steps and I am still unsure about the genre itself, I'll read the page over again and think to myself, Will I be able to write a whole book on this? Estimate the amount of pages you will be able to write revolving around this theme. If it's significantly less than one hundred fifty, you've got a problem.

After undergoing this form of examination, some writers may choose to abandon their original genre. And that's completely okay, if your rough draft idea really wasn't working for you. Other writers will carry on with their story.

For those writers who do use that genre, I would definitely advise you to take a look at the major publishers of your genre. Read through their submission guidelines. Familiarize yourself with the types of books they publish.

Those are my ideas for truly getting to know your genre. In a nutshell, take a look at similar authors, make sure your genre is right for you, and do lots and lots of research before starting on your project.