Maybe it’s because I had to share a bedroom with my younger by 5 years sister until I was 14. Maybe it’s because I err on the tidy and quiet side of the mess and noise tolerance spectrum. Maybe it’s because I’m basically an anti-social sod, but having been a writer since the age of 7 years old, I know the conditions I like when writing, the conditions that help me be my most creative and productive.
I like to face North. I know - weird, but true. A window to either my right or my left. A sturdy chair and a cushion on which to rest my feet.
I like minimal clutter. I especially can’t be doing with other people’s clutter.
I like quiet. And if I feel like punctuating the quiet it needs to be with certain noises like a bit of soft classical, or a radio play. Or the CD of an artiste of my choice like Caro Emerald, George Ezra, Jools Holland. But mostly, I like quiet.
I like space. To get up and stretch every now and again. To pace about a few paces. To lie on the floor and stare at the ceiling.
I like a door I can push to. But not completely close. No ‘through traffic’, though. No random footfall.
I like a corner I can hide in and read. Hide in and think. Hide in and doodle. Weird, I know. But that is what I have learned I’ve like.
Yesterday, I took over the front bedroom of Damson Cottage as my writing room. A Room of My Own. It had been a guest bedroom, but we rarely have guests, and I felt very strongly that the space could be better and more frequently used. The space needs bringing alive, it needs a stirring of its energy.
Here it is! You’ll notice that Flora and Bambino have moved in already, the presumptuous oiks, making the most of the sun puddles the room collects.
My desk. I’ve had that desk a few years. It’s just right. Not too big that it will attract clutter. The right height. Three sturdy drawers which are full of notebooks. The desk top computer is ancient, but it still works. It does not connect to the internet, so is good for undistracted writing. Basically, it’s a word processor. There is a radio/CD player tucked away to the left of the desk, again ancient. But simple and easy to use. No complex thinking required. My laptop, which is my main writing tool, is in its new bag underneath the desk.
The box here is a toy chest. I’m using it as a surface to create a meditation area. I’ve still got bits to arrange on it, but it requires some contemplation yet, to make it just right. I’ve covered it with one of the quilts I made last year.
And this is NOT a Bambino throne, no matter what he thinks. This is a very comfy reading corner, cunningly constructed from the two bunk bed mattresses that previously resided therein. I bent one to make a chair back against the walls and folded the other in half to make the seat. I then wrapped the whole structure firmly together using a briskly applied bedspread (to stop aforesaid mattresses boinging apart and providing unnecessary comedy moments as I alighted or arose) and I am jolly pleased with the whole effect! I’d investigated buying a couple of chair beds which would have cost upwards of £400 but now, when the granddaughters come to visit, all I need do is unwrap my magnificently cosy reading corner et voila! Instant beds!
A Room of My Own then. It has brought huge peace to my soul, to know it is there.
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