Your ideal writing room?


What is your ideal writing space like? Is all you need a room with a lock on the door and a hot meal inside you?

I’m asking this question because the 90th anniversary of Virginia Woolf’s A Room of One’s Own is fast approaching. There is a large scale poll of contemporary writing needs being taken. Which has got me thinking.

A poll of writing needs

The Royal Society of Literature is conducting a poll of writers and what challenges we face in writing as a carrier. The poll is to be published to mark the 90th anniversary of Virginia Woolf’s A Room of One’s Own.

That got me thinking about my ideal writing space. I wonder if we writers all have similar ideas about what the best writing space is or if we differ wildly.

My ideal writing space

For me, the ideal writing space is large enough to feel empty but not so big as to feel vacant. It would probably be a white washed attic room with a simple view of a few trees. There would be no phone but there would be a computer.

That computer would not be networked (although there would be a backup server where I could push research from another computer with internet access (somewhere else).

Most importantly, there would be a door. On the other side of this door is a desk, a phone and a coffee machine. At the desk would be a loyal gatekeeper who would stop anyone from interrupting me for any reason. They would also be an enthusiastic beta reader and proof editor.

In practice, what I have is my home PC in the corner of my living room. I have to answer the phone myself. Regular interruptions do not make for ideal writing.

What is your ideal writing space like?

Are you a person with an idea of your ideal writing space? I would love to know what other people envision for their perfect writing room. Please use the comments below to share your thoughts.

A room of one’s own. Endless biscuits. Coffee, democracy, a cleaner, an osteopath, reliable wifi and an ergonomic chair with lumbar support. These are some of the things that contemporary authors say they need in order to write.

A room of one’s own? Today’s writers can’t afford such a luxury, Katy Guest, The Guardian
large home
Your perfect writing space might be large
man at desk
Your ideal writing space might be much more cosy
dreams
Dare to dream big. You never know what might happen.

About Matthew Brown

Matthew is a writer, web dev, and geek from Kent (UK). He is the founder and current chair of Thanet Creative as well as head geek for Author Buzz. His ambitions include seeing a film or TV series based on something he wrote. Matt is also responsible for fixing stuff on AuthorBuzz.co.uk when it breaks.

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