Virginia Woolf said “A woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction.” J.K. Rowling recently got trolled on Twitter as an elitist for mentioning her writing room in her little Scottish castle. Let me tell you, if “The Ripple of Stones”
A. gets published,
B. I turn it into a series,
C. Hollywood options it for a blockbuster franchise and
D. It become a cultural phenomenon with its very own theme park,
I too will have myself a writing room in a castle in Scotland. Y’all can come visit.
For now, I am a proud minimalist with a three bedroom house occupied by four people, one dog, and the rotating school of fish. Zero writing rooms. I suppose I could scratch out a corner of the basement, but there’s no daylight down there. To be honest, I’ve been perfectly happy writing on our rattletrap screened-in porch, lovingly and ironically dubbed “The Atrium.” I adore sitting out there with the breeze on my face, looking out on a peninsula of green, with the beautiful giant maple at the back of the landscape. I can watch my kids play, listen to the sounds of the neighborhood, and inhale the scents of nature. My work is inspired by the natural landscape, so it really is a perfect space to write.
However…
#Michigan. In winter.
It’s currently 17 degrees. The Atrium is closed. To compensate, I’ve created a little writing space at the dining room table. Sun streams in the window, I can see trees, and for my birthday, my kids gave me the cutest little collection of succulents. I’ll probably kill the poor little houseplants despite all my valiant efforts, but by then it will be spring and I can return to the Atrium. I also bought myself this painting I’ve been eyeing for a year. Nicole Warrington is the artist, and I find her landscapes very inspiring. (I get no commission for this mention, btw, I just wanted you to see her stuff.)
My point is, dear Reader, that we don’t have to have a perfect space in which to create. We just have to sit down, wherever we are, and start.
But it’s fun to dream, SO… for our first The BOOK Tuesday poll, we’ll start easy. More armchair psychoanalysis and deep writing dissection in later Tuesdays. For now, please tell me about your dream creative space. I know there is a project you are creating or dreaming of creating. No holds barred, tell me all about the space you dream of to begin this endeavor.
(A friendly reminder – I’m rotating topics biweekly. This week is our opinion Tuesday devoted exclusively to light little pieces and polls about The BOOK. Next Tuesday we’re back to longer introspective essays about life.)
Enjoy the poll and I’ll see you next Tuesday!
