The Backstory, Or: Just Where the Heck Does It All Start?

If you have decided to write a novel, the story that exists within it extends way beyond the book itself. This ‘backstory’ is what helps give your book depth: here are a few points to keep in mind about the ‘past’ of the book you’re writing.

A novel may encompass any period of time, from an hour or two to many centuries. Yet this span of time, no matter how great, is finite; it has a beginning and an end that coincide with the start and finish of your book. Yet we all know that time itself is limitless – so what happened to make your story happen?

This act – the incident that sends your hero or heroine zooming along their roller-coaster ride through your book – is not the start of your story, though it is the event that starts your story. Let me try to explain this, on the face of it, baffling statement.

The event that starts your story is the one that turns your lead character’s life upside down. This event, decided upon by you, can be almost anything, depending on the story you wish to tell – aliens land and invade earth; he or she loses their job; war breaks out unexpectedly; they are kidnapped and have to escape – virtually anything at all. Its sole reason for happening is to jump-start your story into life and set the ball rolling – without it, there would be no story to tell.

Yet the story doesn’t start at this point. You see, your story is made up of two main elements. The first is your plot – the second is your characters. In order for these characters to be believable and to have ‘life’, they cannot just spring into existence from nowhere. Now I realise that your characters only have the life you give them but you, in your book, are only writing about a certain part of their life – not usually all of it (unless you are writing another Forsyte Saga!).

It therefore follows that your characters must have had a ‘life’ before we meet them within the pages of your book. All of them were born somewhere, grew up, went to school, fell in love, got married, had kids – the normal, everyday things that happen. Or maybe not. Maybe that even-tempered guy who in your book runs a floristry business once did time for robbery. Or that little old lady who you have decided will sell coffee in the mall was a member of the French Resistance during WW2.

Crazy? Hey, much crazier things have happened, believe me! The point, however, is that suddenly these two characters have added depth. They now have a ‘backstory’ – something that happened to them in the past that shapes their life now. It’s imperative that all your main characters, certainly, should have a comprehensive backstory, or there’s a chance that your story may lose it’s reason for being. Imagine:

Chris bangs open the batwing doors in the saloon, stalks inside and comes to rest in front of Bart. ‘Your time’s up, pal’ he snarls, pulls out a big .45 revolver and shoots Bart dead. Dramatic, yes – but why did he do it? People don’t usually behave this way, even in times when life was counted as cheaper than it is now. However, consider this:

Chris has known Bart for years. Maybe Bart stole something belonging to Chris? Land? A gold mine? A girl? He’s given Bart many chances to make amends because once, years ago, they were good friends. Bart won’t give the thing he stole back and just recently he’s added insult to injury by stealing something else belonging to Chris. Result – Chris shoots him dead.

This embryonic plotline shows how Chris and Bart’s backstory is essential. Without it, the scene above would have had one man shoot another for no reason we could think of – baffling for a reader and, in the end, uninteresting. As the opening scene in your novel it would also be mystifying but, when the backstory is fed to the reader, the reason becomes clear.

The backstory to a character – and the way each character relates to another – is the mortar that cements the bricks of your novel together. Bring your characters to life by giving them a past and you will ensure that your readers will see them as real people. Once this happens, your readers start to care about your characters – and you have the makings of a novel that no-one will be able to put down until the last page!

Article Source: http://www.fresh-article-directory.com

Steve Dempster writes articles for the web and works of fiction. If you would like to get the know-how a novelist needs to write professionally, take a look at this.

Share!

Do You Have What It Takes?

If you have read this far in our series of articles on fiction, you are probably fairly confident you can produce a novel. Have you considered all that is involved? Far from any attempt to discourage, the purpose here is to prepare you to face the challenges producing a novel entails.

Here are some things to consider when you think you are ready to tackle 100,000 words of fiction:

Are You Determined?

Producing the rough draft will take you anywhere from a month to a year depending on the time and attention you put into it. After the rough draft you will have probably two revisions at minimum, and often more. The project you start today might not reach its final state for a year or two. Can you work that long? If you are seeking traditional publication, there will be additional months, most likely years, before you succeed in grabbing an agent. And there is no guarantee you will be able to sell your novel, no matter how good it might be.

Are You Disciplined?

You’ll need a plan to keep you on course, and you’ll need the determination to finish the first draft. You’ll need a plan to work you through revisions, seeking feedback, and then revising again. Can you set aside regular time and develop the discipline to work faithfully during that time? Are you willing to set word count or page count goals and stick to them?

Do You Have Support and Encouragement?

Are there people in your life who will support your efforts, help keep you honest about your commitment to the project, and encourage you to keep going when the going inevitably gets rough? If you don’t have supportive people for this project, develop ways to remain encouraged and supported. This is an invaluable tool!

Do You Believe You Can Do It?

Can you call yourself a writer without blushing? Do you believe you have what it takes to see the project through? Are you confident in your ability to learn from critiques and make your prose better? Stop and think about how you view yourself as a writer. Take the time to encourage yourself, learn what you need to learn, and practice. Go into this project with the mindset that you will finish it.

Do You Have Realistic Expectations?

Publishing isn’t easy. Your learning curve will be steep long after your rough draft is done. You need to know your genre, your target audience, your platform. You need to know how to present yourself, how to write query letters, and where to learn what you don’t already know. Even if you excel in all these areas, there is no guarantee your novel will get to print. It is a sad truth that excellent works remain unpublished. There are many things you can do to increase your chances, of course, but you will suffer rejections. If you are accepted by an agent or publisher, you will have revisions and edits that might hurt your feelings. If you make it all the way to seeing your book in print, you still might not sell enough copies to earn out your advance. Speaking of advances, they are not big. Most advances for new authors run between $1000 and $5000.

Will You Feel Rewarded by the Project Alone?

If you can say that you will write it anyway and feel satisfaction knowing you did your best, then you will suffer less disappointment regardless of the outcome. Producing a novel is no small task. When yours is finished, you have cause for celebration! Celebrate, then, and enjoy your achievement. It is a big one!

Again, discouragement is not the intent of this article. However, you must be prepared to deal with all the things listed here (and more) if you are going to be a novelist. Discipline, determination, and faith will go a very long way to getting there. Now…start writing.

Share!

Making Time

So how do you make time to write consistently? Pull out your calendar for the coming week. We’re going to make time.

The important thing to remember is that you don’t need large blocks of time. You can write in ten or fifteen minute sessions several times a day if that’s what works, or thirty minute chunks of time here and there. Start small if you need to, but by all means start. Begin building up words right away.

The key is desire. If you want to write, you’ll find the time, and any sacrifices along the way won’t feel so much like sacrifices.

First, consider how much time you spend doing other things that will also allow you to write. Waiting rooms, sports practices, waiting for meetings to start or the soup to boil are all good times to be working in your notebook. Yes, you can write longhand. It’s portable!

Second, consider the things that pull your attention that you can harness for writing. If you absolutely have one “must see” show in television, that’s fine. Cut out the others, or perhaps an entire evening of television to devote to writing. Why not consider turning the television off all together?

Third, consider how you might create time, perhaps by eating lunch at your desk while writing, getting up earlier on the weekends, or having your chores finished early so you can write when the kids go to bed. Are there any activities you can drop from your schedule?

Okay, take a look at your calendar. Try to identify all those 10-15 minute blocks of time that might include a notebook or pen. Consider how you spend your breaks and lunch hour, and what your routine is in the evenings. Next, look at the bigger chunks of time: soccer practice, waiting for a doctor’s appointment, free evenings or weekend afternoons. Before your calendar becomes too cluttered, block in time just for writing. Make an appointment and then keep it.

Finally, decide how important writing is to you. The more you value time to write, the easier it is to carve it out of your schedule, no matter how busy you might be. Don’t be afraid of slow progress. It is still progress. Writing 500 words a day (less than most blog posts) will finish a 100,000 word novel in 200 days. That’s 28 weeks, or roughly six months. “Oh, but that’s so long,” you say? Those six months are going to pass anyway. You can get to the other side of them with a novel in rough draft or nothing. It all depends on how much you want it.

Here are three additional items to help out. My Time is Not Money, Making Write Time, and Push the Boundaries.

Share!

Plan First or Write First?

When you’ve made the decision to work on a fiction piece, or perhaps are just beginning to explore an idea, there are two ways you can go about it.

The first way is to just sit down and start writing. You might not know where you’re going, but you’re getting words down on paper. The advantage is to set down scenes while they are fresh in your mind, learning about your project as you go.

The second way is to pre-write, exploring your idea more fully, even developing it to its conclusion before you begin writing the piece. The advantage is to have a rough idea where you’d like to end up (and how you’ll get there) so you can lay down words in that direction.

Is there a right way or a wrong way? Not really. It depends on your personal process.

Pre-Writing can take many forms. You can create a mind map, an outline, brainstorm lists, free-write about the story and about the characters, create a story arc, or any combination you can think of. Through this early work you’ll gain an idea of your characters, the world they live in, the essential conflicts of the story, and maybe how to tie up the ending. You might become increasingly excited about the project or develop a lukewarm feel if it doesn’t grip you. In essence, you are exploring the story elements beforehand, drawing your conclusion and your ending before you sit down to write your rough draft. Some writers include snippets of dialog, fill in characterization sheets, even sketch out big scenes.

The down side is that you can pre-write yourself out of any desire to write a rough draft. In order to avoid this, I suggest putting strict limits on this stage in terms of time. The purpose of the limit isn’t to inhibit you. If you set a limit of, say, three days, to complete this phase, you are less likely to feel the story is “done,” and move on to something else. Keep this phase to exploring the merits of the plot and getting to know your characters in order to avoid such a conclusion.

You can always opt to write “by the seat of your pants,” which might start with a key scene. Eventually you will have to impose an order and structure on the story, and can stop to plot and work out the kinks then. For writers who have a tough time beginning a project, this might get you over that first hurdle. Don’t worry that words have been wasted. Every thing you’ve written can be used, as background information for you if nothing else. It gets you in the mode of writing, and keeps the excitement of the project fresh. Some writers don’t like to know the ending. They prefer to discover it along with their characters. Many even write their scenes out of order. Holly Lisle prefers to write her “candy bar” scenes first, then go back and tie them together, though she also outlines her stories.

The disadvantage of writing first is that you might not have an idea where the story is going, or feel that you have wasted time if you go back to cut out extraneous scenes. If you are one that will feel this way, do your plotting beforehand. If you like not knowing where you will end up, let the characters lead you.

Whatever your personal process, there’s no harm in changing things up. If you struggle with feeling you and the story are floundering, try some pre-writing. If you find that spending too much time in the pre-writing phase destroys or dampens your desire to write the story, jump on in. Use what works for you.

Share!

Plot vs Character

Are you ready to embark on an overview of an argument that still rages?  Talk to writers who plot first, and writers who characterize first, and you’ll come away with strong feelings of your own…or utter confusion.  This article is not meant to confirm the importance of one over the other, but to provide you with a view of both.  I’ll say it again…the only thing that works, is the thing that works for YOU.

Let’s see if we can’t break it down a bit.

Writing from characters means, simply, that you develop a character first, then let that character guide your plot.  Writing from plot means you outline and polish a plot first, then people it with characters.  Proponents of one over the other are vocal and adamant.

I’ve done both.  Sometimes a character will appear to me, almost fully formed, and all I need do is get to know him or her.  They are generally more than willing to tell me the plot of their story.  Other times, a plot forms first, and I’ll work on it.   As I work on the plot, the character begins to come alive, making suggestions and fine tuning the story arc.

Now, for some genres, plot is king.  If you are writing action/adventure or a romance, plot might be more important in the beginning.  Thrillers, suspense novels, and mysteries are dependent on their plots to move the story along and provide the eye-opening conclusion.  The success of the story, in these cases, hinges on the plot, and it deserves your time and attention.

For other forms of fiction, plot can be grown organically through exploration of the characters, or the characters themselves will generate the plot for you.  Get to know your character pretty well and then ask him or her two questions.  What is it you want most in the world?  What are you most afraid of?  Once you have the answer to those two questions, you can plot out a conflict in which the character strives for what they want most, but must face what they fear most in order to get it.

Writing exercises are an excellent way to determine if you are a plotter or a characterizer.  If your early morning writing or timed writing produces character sketches and personalities, you are probably in that category.  If, on the other hand, your exercises tend to produce plots, crisis scenes, and story arcs, you might be a plotter.

Many writers and writing instructors will tell you that one is better than the other.  I’ll tell you I don’t think so.  What matters is the end result, not how you get there.  Character writers might need to work hard on their plots just as plotters might put a lot of effort into their characters.  Either way, start from your position of strength and move along.  Your story needs both plot and character to be successful.  Readers want to become engaged with the character.  They also want a satisfactory plot.  You, as the writer, must provide both.  The reader doesn’t care which was your first inspiration or how you formulated your ideas.

You can spend a lot of time reading all the advice you get your hands on (and I do hope you read a wide variety), but it ultimately comes down to you and the blank page.  Spend less time worrying about whether you are doing it right and more time getting it done.  If you are a plotter, then embrace it and pick up advice on characters.  If you are a characterizer, work on them, then learn what you can about creating good plots for them.

In tomorrow’s article, we’ll talk about pre-writing, which is a great way to flesh out both your characters and your plot before you write your story.  Pre-writing is an essential exercise for a lot of writers for one simple reason…it allows us to work out the kinks and have an idea where the story is going or going to end up.  Just remember to allow for the possibility that the story or the characters might change your mind.  However, pre-writing is the best place to make sure you have a balance of engaging plot and engaging character.  Use this time to work on both.

Share!

Creating Fictional Characters That Hook the Reader

As readers, we want to get drawn into a novel and pulled along from the first page until the last. As writers, how can we create characters that help us do just that? Read on for some of the top tips to help you bring your fictional characters to life.

What Every Character Should Have

There is one thing that every character should have: a reason to be there. This shows up in two ways.

The first reason is simple. Every character should matter. When you have unnecessary characters in your story, you end up with plot lines and fluff that do nothing to further the story. Instead, it bogs it down, which leaves the reader asking the worst question possible, “Why should I care?” They’re already asking that when they pick your book up, so you have to give them a reason to care. By removing some characters, or combining several minor characters into one important character, you increase the impact and drama in your book.

Second, and one of the most important aspects of a good novel: every character should have realistic goals that we can see. While there may occasionally be the bartender who is there just to give directions, something he says or does should give him depth. Don’t pass up an opportunity to show the reader something about your world. By taking that cardboard bartender and having him try to stall the hero, then apologize because the antagonist is threatening his daughter, you not only show the reader more about the antagonist and the type of person they are, but you’ve potentially created another obstacle for the hero to overcome-freeing the daughter.

Special Requirements for the Protagonist

The protagonist (hero) has three additional requirements.

The hero must be likeable. Your readers are going to spend a lot of time with your hero. While it might be tempting to have a darker character that goes through hell and comes back with a bright and cheery disposition, characters like that require a very deft hand. If you’re not very careful with the character he can become too negative and “angsty” that the reader gets turned off, and walks away from your story. Not what you’re trying for!

The hero must be relatable. Every hero should have a personal goal or problem that today’s readers can relate to. Depending on the story type, the hero may be faced with obstacles the reader doesn’t immediately understand, and that’s alright. Especially in stories dealing in different worlds and times. If you keep a personal issue involved, then the reader will be able to hold onto that until they understand the foreign issues. Without something that the reader to latch on to, emotionally, they won’t care about what happens to them. And that’s not what you want. You want the reader rooting for the hero to succeed.

The hero’s problem must matter. This last requirement goes back to your idea. Without this, your story doesn’t matter. Not trying to be rude or tough, but if your main character’s problem isn’t the most difficult thing to have happened to them up to this point, why should we, as readers, care about it? Make sure your protagonist’s problem is as big as possible. It doesn’t have to be world-shattering, in the literal sense, but it must be of utmost importance to him.

By following these simple guidelines, you will ensure that you have a firm foundation built into your characters that will make your readers care about who they’re reading about. That means they’ll keep turning the pages until well after midnight.

Lonnie Ezell is a fantasy thriller author whose work has been getting high marks from writers like NY Times Bestselling author Michael A. Stackpole and readers like yourself. He has put together a breakthrough online course that teaches you how to write a novel in the simplest, fastest way possible.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lonnie_Ezell

Share!

This Week: Fiction Writing

There are numerous resources on the web to help you become a fiction writer. We will be sharing several of those with you below, along with articles on the craft throughout the week.

Fiction writing differs from other kinds of writing in many aspects…chief of which is your characters. Tuesday’s article talks about creating characters that will hook your reader. You might also want to read Melissa Donovan’s Getting Into Character, and the introduction to Men With Pen’s Ebook, How to Create a Believable Character.

Wednesday we’ll talk about plot. Plot vs Character is a good article to read to determine the best way to go about your story creation in addition to articles.

Thursday’s subject includes a discussion on prewriting/planning vs writing by the seat of your pants.

Friday we’ll address the time commitment of longer fiction and some tips to make that time.

Let’s begin with a look at different types of fiction. These are not arbitrary designations. In fact, you need to know where your novel fits in order to sell it. Libraries, bookstores, and publishers rely on these designations to market and shelve every novel that is published.

Action/Adventure: Action stories revolve around the action, which takes precedence over the plot and characters. Think James Bond, Allistair MacLean, Clive Cussler.

Crime: These stories are centered on a crime enterprise, such as the mafia, and can range from light hearted capers to seriously dark intentions to take over the world.

Detective: Although similar to mystery, detective stories are from the viewpoint of a professional (cop, detective, private investigator). The genre allows for multiple stories using the same solvers, such as JA Konrath’s Jack Daniels and Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum. There’s also a category sometimes called Noir, often called “hard boiled” in which the characters and settings are darker, seedier, and bleak. Another sub-genre is True Crime, which often starts with a body in chapter one.

Fantasy: Tales of high fantasy include elves, dwarves, dragons, and halflings, among others. J.R.R. Tolkien and Forgotten Realms (Wizards of the Coast) are examples of high fantasy. In addition, you have other forms of fantasy ranging from Mercedes Lackey to Anne McCaffrey. Sub-genres include urban fantasy, sword and sorcery, and stories involving vampires, werewolves, and the darker side of our folklore heritage.

Horror: Stephen King helped define the genre. John Saul took it to new gruesome heights. Horror can be frightening, grisly, and pump out the shock value. This genre is still evolving, having moved away from supernatural plots to those involving medical or psychological elements. There is great room in this genre, I believe, and many paths it can take.

Mystery: Mysteries are similar to detective stories, but your solver doesn’t have to be a cop. Cozy mysteries include anything written by Agatha Christie. Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew, and Cherry Ames also qualify as “non professional mystery solvers.” For a more modern definition, read Remember Me, by Mary Higgins Clark.

Romance: Romance has a huge number of sub-genres, including sweet, inspirational, action, noir, fantasy, mystery, seductive, and historical. They are all, in essence, love stories between the main character and the man of her dreams. Their execution is as varied as the imprints under the Harlequin umbrella.

Chick-Lit: Romance is a key element for most chick-lit novels, but not the only element, and the ending doesn’t have to be happily ever after. Often, the ending is happily for right now. These stories appeal to modern women and parallel modern life.

Science Fiction: Sci-Fi uses science in its setting, story line, or conflict. Space stories are sci-fi, certainly, as are stories set in an advanced society that uses that science and advancement as key elements. It could also encompass a science breakthrough in our own time that threatens to destroy the world. Orson Scott Card, Isaac Assimov, and many others have helped define this genre.

Western: Westerns are stories set in the age of settling our country west of the Mississippi. Often they include frontier life, cowboys, stage coaches, horses, whiskey,and six shooters. Think Larry McMurty.

Literary Fiction: This type of fiction is characterized by the elegant prose of the story and emphasizes the internal conflicts of the main character. It is separated from Mainstream fiction by focusing more on style and character, whereas Mainstream focuses more on plot and narrative.

Thriller/Suspense: These novels focus on building suspense in the reader. They often include elements of violence, action, espionage, and survival.

Speculative Fiction: SpecFic combines elements of suspense, horror, sci-fi, fantasy. At its best, it combines elements from several genres to create a work that is alive and engaging.

There are many more sub-genres and evolving genres out there. This is not intended to be an all inclusive list, just a basis for starting your own research. Wikipedia’s Genre Fiction Page and Definitions of Genres might be helpful reading.

You are not pigeon-holed into one genre, but if you want to be published, it’s good to select one that excites you and focus your work there.

Share!

Explore Worlds of Writing

The writing world is full of possibilities.  You can free-lance, write articles, fiction, non-fiction, web copy, sales copy, ghost write, edit, journal, write for your scrapbook pages, publish a newsletter or bulletin, write bumper stickers, greeting cards, motivational aids, curriculum, user manuals, and the list goes on.

So if you love writing, how do you know what you do best or what you might like the most?  Quick Answer:  Try them all!

Below is just a short list of some writing areas we don’t often think about:

• Professional and Academic Abstracts
• Advertising copy for direct mail or email
• Billboards
• Greeting cards
• Book reviews
• Brochures
• Company and community histories
• Catalog copywriting
• Employee manuals and corporate communications
• Fund raising letters
• Help screens
• Menus
• Radio commercials
• Telemarketing scripts
• Training & Development

These areas don’t generally come to mind when we think about writing the way novelists, non-fiction writing, and free-lancers do, but they are something to keep in mind or perhaps research.  I’ve written plenty of corporate, non-profit and training materials over the years and enjoyed it.  I can’t say I’d be thrilled to write telemarketing scripts since I hate to be called in the middle of dinner, but someone has to write them.  It would be a challenge to write one that worked well, wouldn’t it?

When I was a child, I was convinced that only fiction writers were Writers.  There were special people like poets and playwrights, but my young mind equated writing with novels.  I’m glad I grew out of it, and  surprised how many people still think that’s all writing is or should be.  I have several friends who write for the web and still get asked when they are really going to write (or get a real job).

Think about what you like to write and what you like to read.  Explore different styles and areas as long as or in as much depth as you like.  Seriously, if you come out of the closet as a telemarketing script writer, we might have to talk.  I can give you some tips on what doesn’t work!

Words belong to a whole bunch of worlds.  Build yours around what you love.

Share!

10 Daily Habits Writers Should Cultivate

1.  Read; not just your genre, but a wide sampling of styles, subjects, and voices.  Read for pleasure.  Read to learn.

2.  Move your body. Walking and exercise are great ways to work loose the log jams of the mind.  In addition, since writers tend to be sedentary, it helps keep your body fit.

3.  Breathe. Practice breathing every day, not in a new age way, but to become aware.  Breathe deeply to nourish your body and to connect with the present.  Let your thoughts wander.  Sometimes you get the “click” just through breathing.

4.  Cross Pollinate. Take in art in all its forms:  dance, painting, music, you name it.  Enrich your writing compost pile with a variety of art experiences for your mind and senses.

5.  Get enough sleep. Seriously, it will help your mind stay alert and ready to write.

6.  Pay attention. See the world around you in terms of the five senses and with a writer’s eye.

7.  Laugh. See the humor and joy in everyday life.  This makes you a more positive person, is fun, and releases tensions.

8.  Stretch. Long periods of time spent writing or thinking can be hard on your body.  Stand up, stretch, work the kinks out.  It is not a coincidence that moving the body can also frequently move your mind, bringing you the perfect phrase or fresh idea.

9.  Cultivate support from your loved ones and mentors.

10.  Write daily. Set a time or page goal.  Work from a prompt or free write.  Write every day without fail.

Share!

Your Writing Space

Gone are the days of the writer’s garret. Unless your attic is climate controlled, it’s probably not where you want to spend much time. I wonder how many other writers dream of old houses for the nooks and crannies we could claim as our own?

Today’s modern writer uses a spare bedroom, the couch corner, or perhaps the kitchen table. Successful or fortunate writers might have offices, a carriage house/outbuilding, or a converted garage.

What is important in a writing space? Why should we cultivate space for our craft?

Space that is reserved for writing 1) Keeps you organized; 2) signals to your brain that it is time to write; 3) Keeps your projects safe and centrally located; 4) Communicates to your family that you are writing. Working. Do not disturb.

A designated spot in your house would have room for a filing cabinet or storage boxes, a table or desk, perhaps a bulletin board or even a white board, easy access to paper, pens, printer, and possibly music. If you use a computer a lot, your table or desk must be able to accommodate both your monitor and room to jot notes, edit, and set a coffee cup.

Successful writing spots have been created out of large closets, pantries, spare bedrooms, odd angles, laundry rooms, the space underneath stairs, and closed in porches. If you have small children, the ability to watch them will have an effect on your location. The same goes for noisy roommates you might wish to avoid while working.

Make your space off limits to others. If you can’t close a door on it, give some visual instructions such as removing the chair, covering the desk with a cloth, or curtaining your alcove with a tacked up shower curtain. However you accomplish it, the message you want to send is that the space is off limits and, at least to a degree, you are off limits when you are in it.

For tips on cultivating space for your writing desk, browse through some books on home offices at your favorite bookstore, or browse such sites as <a href=”http://www.homeofficebuddy.com” title=”Home Office Buddy”>Home Office Buddy</a>, <a href=”http://sbinformation.about.com/cs/office/a/officetips.htm” title=”About.com”>About.com</a>’s home office article, or <a href=”http://interiordec.about.com/od/planninganoffice/a/budgethomeoffic.htm” title=”Budget Home Office”>Budget Home Office</a>. Your solution is unique to your dwelling, lifestyle, and personality. Get creative, but always keep firmly in your mind the size of space you will need and how much privacy you hope to achieve. Examine each possible solution against these two criteria. Get the best match you can.

Here’s a list of common items for a writer’s space:

*Computer
*Paper (notebooks, journals, loose paper, printer paper)
*Pens and pencils
*Printer
*Calendar
*Cork board & push pins
*Filing cabinet or desktop file holder
*File folders
*Colored pencils or markers
*Space for coffee mug or favorite beverage
*A task lamp
*A source of music (the computer, iPod, etc).

Keep in mind, all that is required is you, something to write on, something to write with, and enough light to stay between the lines. If you start with that, great! You can always add later as you need to.

Create your space. Make it a place you want to be, but also a place in which to work. Create your modern day version of the timeless writer’s garret that meets the needs of today’s writer.

What do you do if you find the household too distracting despite a carefully chosen workspace? Well, this is part discipline and part reality check. You might need to schedule your writing during times when the household is more peaceful, or complete your editing and revising tasks during the parts of the day everyone is around, saving the concentration and composition for quieter hours.

If you absolutely cannot get work done in your space or have trouble using good space, consider borrowing a friend or relative’s apartment. If they travel a lot or work long hours, you might gain permission in exchange for bringing in mail or watering plants. The point is, you know the place and probably are comfortable there, but it’s not yours. The laundry, dishes, and dusting belong to someone else, so they are not a distraction (or excuse) for you.

You might also consider writing in a café, at a bookstore coffee bar, or at the park. While it is hard to break away from home, sometimes you just need breathing room to concentrate. It is amazing how well you can concentrate in a setting like this. Peripheral activity keeps one part of your brain happy while the other part is busy with the pen. Natalie Goldberg, author of several books on writing, including Writing Down the Bones, suggests writing in a public place such as a coffee shop and does so herself.

Sharing a den with your spouse is an option, but beware. If he uses a voice headset or you sit too close together, you must learn to tune him out. If your spouse conducts her business and personal calls from the den or has a frequently ringing phone, you must either learn to work through it or tune it out. While you can probably become deaf to some of it, you might not be able to achieve the concentration level you need. You also run the risk of ignoring the spouse when you are spoken to, causing hurt feelings.

The easiest way to cope with loved ones and distractions in your writing space is to learn to roll with them. Train yourself to keep the thread when you are interrupted or jangled by the phone. Save the periods of deep concentration for scheduled times—nap or bedtime for the kids, while the spouse is running errands, or early in the morning before anyone is awake. Some writers deliberately schedule their day job opposite the spouse (one working days, the other evenings) in order for each to have time alone as well as together (this arrangement also works well for childcare, but rarely for both writing AND childcare).

If you work in an office setting, perhaps you could stay an hour late and spend the time in pure composition. If you have a flexible schedule, head to the library and a carrel in the back.

There are ways to find concentration time for the portions of your project when you need it. However, work to create a writing space at home that provides both the access you need and the privacy you require. It is a space you will be spending a lot of time in, so don’t neglect the planning. When your space is complete, settle in and get to work.

Share!

« Previous Page — Next Page »