Why I need a dedicated writing space

Why I need a dedicated writing space

When I first started writing, I would love to tell you that I had a quiet and spacious study that I escaped to and worked on my craft for hours without interruption, but that wasn’t the case. Believe it or not, I wrote my first novel on my phone and while on my lunch breaks from work.

While everyone else I knew was rushing off to the canteen or town to get some lunch and take a break, I hid in a deserted corner of the building and began bashing the buttons on my phone. I had an idea that was bursting to get out, and I always felt like I didn’t have the time to work on getting out into the world. So I used any opportunity I had to write.

In doing this, I learned some valuable lessons about writing over the years – one of the most important was that rushing to get an idea crafted into a story usually ends in disaster. And trying to write a 90,000-word novel on a phone is not the best way to write a compelling story.

It was only when I started taking my craft more seriously I invested in a proper workspace. I had not planned to make it extravagant, but I desperately wanted a place I associated with writing. A place I could escape to and get immersed in creating an engaging story with compelling characters. A space where I felt relaxed and not under pressure.

It took a while to get everything I felt suited me. This included trying various desks, chairs and computer screens. But I got there in the end. Although I rent an office in an office block in my town, I also converted one of the rooms in my house into a dedicated writing space to help me focus – and focus I did!

I changed the way I approached writing – I have always loved the craft and never looked at it as work – it is just way too fun to be called work. But when I started to look at it as work, I found that I was getting more writing done and hitting those tight deadlines – and it all started with setting up a dedicated writing space. I adapted quickly – associating the area with writing. Soon as I sat in front of my desk, I knew it was time to get writing.

This might not be important to everyone. You might like writing in coffee shops or libraries or anywhere you feel inspired, but creating a space worked for me – it got my creative juices flowing and prevented me from procrastinating.