Introduction

I’ve come to realize something about my writer’s workspace: writing in the same space, all the time, impacts productivity. This is another instance of there being no one right answer when it comes to writing.

The Perfect Workspace?

My workspace has everything I like to have around me while writing: a couple monitors; frequently read books that inspire; the perfect keyboard; Bath & Body Works “Leaves” candles; good speakers and headphones; and a large span of corkboard where I post my three-act structure, character cards, timelines, and notes for my current novel.

Most of the time, this space is perfect for writing. It’s here that I’ve written all my short stories, blog posts, academic papers, and first novels. I also taught high school English virtually at this desk at the start of the pandemic.

However, now that I’m home twenty-four-seven during the pandemic while teaching my boys alongside the district’s virtual academy, this space becomes constraining emotionally and creatively. The same sounds. The same lighting. The same chair. All the same things lead to a decrease in productivity.

While my workspace is great, it’s not always the best place to write, and there is in fact no perfect writer’s workspace. There’s only a writer’s workspace that works in any given moment. So, again, don’t get hung up on doing things the one true right way because the one true right way is a myth that can turn into writing resistance.

My Next Post

In my next post, I’m going to head back in the academic direction with either some literary analysis or taking a closer look at the books I commonly reference in my blog.