Kristin, I think the answer is - whatever works. People are wired so differently. Some are just prone to distraction, some need an inspirational setting, while others deal with multiple hurdles that don't have much to do with setting at all. I have a few rules I must follow to be productive. I write in the afternoon and early evening, never in the morning, never write if I've had a few drinks (Have no clue how somebody like Kerouac pulled that off), never have the television or music on, never make notes on my phone. Others do the exact opposite, and it works for them. Good topic, enjoyed this. - Jim
The image of Annie writing and smoking in that cinderblock room (and also in the solitary shack on the PNW island) is equally unnerving and inspiring. Totally agree with the beautiful view and walking theory!
When asked, I would say I need beauty and light to write. In reality, I typically get more done in settings that are void of distraction. However, I have taken to dictating ideas and beginnings of writing while on long walks in the mountains with my dogs as that seems to be where inspiration hits. And when I was in graduate school, I did my best writing and thinking while sitting at a dimly lit table in a local run down bowling alley with the sounds of balls and pins and people and 70s rock streaming through lousy speakers all around me. So, I guess whatever works. Ha!
Yes, I definitely need light! And for everything, not just writing. Scandinavians crave light, so I think I'm genetically predisposed to that. And yes, walking into inspiration, it happens to me, too, even in this little farming village. I haven't yet tried a bowling alley (do they even have them in Portugal?!), but you're right – whatever works!
Kristin, I think the answer is - whatever works. People are wired so differently. Some are just prone to distraction, some need an inspirational setting, while others deal with multiple hurdles that don't have much to do with setting at all. I have a few rules I must follow to be productive. I write in the afternoon and early evening, never in the morning, never write if I've had a few drinks (Have no clue how somebody like Kerouac pulled that off), never have the television or music on, never make notes on my phone. Others do the exact opposite, and it works for them. Good topic, enjoyed this. - Jim
Thanks Jim! It's an old journal entry from 1998, which I'd forgotten all about until I came across it the other day.
The image of Annie writing and smoking in that cinderblock room (and also in the solitary shack on the PNW island) is equally unnerving and inspiring. Totally agree with the beautiful view and walking theory!
When asked, I would say I need beauty and light to write. In reality, I typically get more done in settings that are void of distraction. However, I have taken to dictating ideas and beginnings of writing while on long walks in the mountains with my dogs as that seems to be where inspiration hits. And when I was in graduate school, I did my best writing and thinking while sitting at a dimly lit table in a local run down bowling alley with the sounds of balls and pins and people and 70s rock streaming through lousy speakers all around me. So, I guess whatever works. Ha!
Yes, I definitely need light! And for everything, not just writing. Scandinavians crave light, so I think I'm genetically predisposed to that. And yes, walking into inspiration, it happens to me, too, even in this little farming village. I haven't yet tried a bowling alley (do they even have them in Portugal?!), but you're right – whatever works!