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8 Ideas for Optimizing Your Writing Workspace
Anybody Can Write a Novel Version 2.0

Chapter 1 “Beginning to Write” – Section 4 “Your Workspace”

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"My music is simple stuff. Anybody can sit down, look at a set of symbols and produce sounds the music represents"
-Chuck Berry

In the same spirit of making yourself more self-motivated to write and warding off writer's block, a few of my readers have asked about optimizing your writing workspace for the utmost productivity. This presents something of a difficult topic to talk about because it is such a tremendously individual thing. The same technique that may make me super-productive may very well be a crippling distraction for someone else. However, I still wish to talk about the subject as something that can be studied, analyzed, and used with precision to optimize the writing experience. I'll do so by sharing some of my personal strategies so that you can think about how to adapt the ideas towards creating your own optimized workspace.

Idea 1: Keep a corkboard, a whiteboard, and/or an easel, on the nearest wall.
When I transitioned past a level in my writing—from where it was something formless and aimless to where I discovered the power of writing everything with purpose and precision—I discovered that elements of my story needed to be brainstormed through idea trees, scribbled notes, visual outlines, maps, graphs, and grids. For me, the best way of doing this was to quickly sketch my ideas on a large surface that I could look at and think about while writing. I'd write the major I was having in big letters, create dividing branches of possible solutions, and then further branch from those with all the things I would have to change in my story to make that work. As a result, I was able to compare possible solutions, how they would affect my story, and how difficult they would be. This can also be done with a notebook, stickynotes, flash cards, scrap paper, or anything else you can imagine. Just begin to create a visual representation of your ideas in a medium that you can constantly see, play with, and adjust.

Idea 2: Hang a large and detailed calendar or day-planner.
At some point, you may find that you need a writing schedule in order to optimize your time. For me, this happened when I realized that I needed to find a way to balance daily chores, time spent on research, blogging, reading, writing exercises, composing, goofing off, and revising. (And yes, you should totally schedule some goofing off time so that your breaks and distractions are structured and feel purposeful.) One way to do this is to create deadlines and schedules for yourself, and then to write them out on a large calendar or day-planner, so that you can strategize and commit to your strategies before enacting them. You can even set alarms on your phone or computer to remind you when you need to move from one scheduled activity to the next.

Idea 3: Collect totems for all of your characters.
When I am creating a story, I find it important that every character, heroes, villains, supporting characters, etc, have realistic goals, desires, actions, and thoughts. I achieve this, is by placing myself in their minds and wanting what they want, feeling what they feel, and remembering what they remember. This process can be difficult, tedious, and take quite a bit of time (imagine all the time and tedium of method acting but for a dozen different characters). One thing that has helped me to switch between my characters is my collection of totems—little items from knickknack stores, rocks and such I find while walking, or any other small item that I can use as a physical representation of that character. Note that I don't necessarily advise the hypnotic and complete sort of trances that some actors and writers use for this purpose, as they can become dangerous and unhealthy (and simply aren't as needed when you don't have to almost literally become a character for a camera that detects even your microexpressions). Rather, I recommend a focused and meditative empathy.

Idea 4: Find a novel that represents the spirit you wish to emulate for each story.
When I am writing, I will occasionally reach a point where something just feels off. Most recently, I found that my scene descriptions felt blocky, out-of-place, and that they broke the flow of the narrative. When that happens, the best thing to do is to have a book that closely matches the style and spirit of the novel you are working on. By reading a few pages out of it to focus on how that author dealt with these subtle details, I was able to fix the problem of flow, while also feeling reassured in that these many problems had practical solutions that I could learn. I recommend keeping a mass-market paperback that you can mark up with a pen or pencil. Additionally, if one of your characters is inspired by a character in another work, this can serve as their totem.

Idea 5: Clear your space of unneeded tech extras.
Cellphones, tablets, and the like, are my number one cause for distraction in writing. From texts that I feel like I must answer lest I seem rude, to streaming videos, to playing games, there is just too much. For that reason, I keep them far away from my workspace and on silent. If I want or need to use them, I have to think about it on my own, get up, go across the room, and get them—making my writing that much more uninterrupted. Should these devices be helpful to your writing, of course you should keep them around. Just put any distraction out of arm's length from you so that you cannot just unthinkingly pick it up and begin to lose precious time. If internet is too much of a distraction for you, go and get your ethernet cord or wifi adapter and put it in a closet. Just devise a way to make distractions less accessible.

Idea 6: Try using a spinning or wobbling chair, or no chair at all.
Most humans have the need to move, period. The idea of putting a student or an office worker in a wooden or metal unmoving chair and expecting them to sit still for hours on end is sadistic, in my opinion, and makes for less productive and attentive learners. The mind is more free to work efficiently when our physical desire to move is fulfilled. In addition to exercise before and after working, you can constantly optimize your brain's capacity by sitting in a chair that allows you to spin, wobble, twist, or rock (and there are many types of chair that can efficiently serve this purpose). Or you can even create a workspace that is elevated so that you can stand, just like many vloggers are beginning to do.

Idea 7: Have some healthy, non-messy snacks around.
Hunger is not good for writing; walking to the kitchen is not good for writing; sticky fingers are not good for writing. So keep some brain-food like nuts, dried fruit, carrots, or some other healthy snack at your workspace. Personally, I keep a 5lb bag of dried cranberries with me any time I write, which keeps my brain alert and happy, while I stay productive and don't have to go wash off the sticky after every bite. Some water (the devil's tasteless drink) is also a good idea to keep around ... especially if you have some lime juice or mint to add to it.

Idea 8: Get a coffee maker and/or tea for your writing room.
I find that caffeine (in moderation) is very helpful to writing, and I love the taste of coffee. However, this is not the only benefit. I've spoken before about putting your mind into “writing mode” so that you stay focused on the task. Similarly, many religions utilize smells like incense, and tastes like wine, to activate a state of mind for purposeful worship, prayer, and/or meditation. While perhaps coffee is not the best taste and scent for you, personally, to activate the centers of your brain associated with writing, I highly recommend finding a smell and taste combination that you enjoy in order to develop a trigger for your writing mindset. Additionally, having a cup of coffee or tea around just makes writing a happier experience, as opposed to something one should dread.

Write-A-Novel Exercise 1.4
In the comments section, share what you've done to make your workspace geared towards creativity and productivity. Give others some ideas and maybe pick up some for yourself.

-O-

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