The Writer's Desk

For anyone who wants to write professionally, it is paramount not to jump into writing right away. While the impulse by novice writers may be to simply get a notebook and start jotting down everything and anything that you would want to write, there are a few steps in between idea and publication. The first step, of course, is to organize a home area where a writer can do most of their work and find relaxing enough to allow thoughts and imaginations to take place. The type of writing environment that is ideal for the writer depends on individual preferences and styles. For some writers, having a certain level of sound, like a favorite CD, radio station, or movie, provides a comfortable amount of background noise to energize thoughts. To others, total silence is the only way to go, because any bit of distraction can influence greatly the writing process.

Similar to this first step is the writer's desk, which is incredibly important for the organizational success of a professional writer. Young writers may fall into the trap of having to keep everything meticulously organized and clean, as well as staying chained to a desk in order to get everything on their checklist done. The writer's desk, like a person's home or their car, should reflect their personality. For example, I am not a clean person by any stretch of the imagination, but I do see patterns in the chaos I create. While my desk looks a bit like a paper tornado hit it, I have Post-It notes and a calendar in order to create an overview of the next month worth of writing. Writers who normally keep everything clean should have clean desks and those who fall into the "chaos is beauty" camp shouldn't fret about keeping their desk too tidy. Becoming self conscious about a writing desk clouds the mind from ever getting any substantive work done.

The writing process is not all about environment and the writer's desk, however, and there are plenty of small things a new writer can do to aid in their creative endeavors. An idea for a great article or a fantastic short story can occur at any time, anywhere, and even the best of writers get flustered trying to remember the "phantom idea" that came in the shower or in the car. That is why having a note pad, a piece of paper, or a notebook in every conceivable place is important. I have notebooks in my car, my bedroom, my home office, my work office, and the kitchen. At the end of the week (or month, depending on how busy I am), I gather up all of the notes and get them down onto a writing ledger. To go along with this idea, I also archive all of my notes, ideas, and finished products on CD, in hard copy, and in my email box. I have learned that a writer can never be too paranoid about their product and having an archive is important for future publications or portfolios.

Writers also need to avoid the monolithic long term schedule, which can look daunting even to the most experienced writer. As an undergraduate and graduate, I figured out that instead of giving myself a list of major papers and projects to complete, I would break down the projects into smaller bites. For example, my senior history project was a thirty-five page paper on Franklin Roosevelt and the Supreme Court and I broke down the paper into five sections. As a cautionary tale, I did not obey completely the checklist and ended up writing the paper in its entirety over a 24 hour period. However, in most of my projects since then, I have used the bite sized system in order to make projects more manageable. This should be a method that new writers use, especially when they make the transition from a novice to someone who has multiple projects working at the same time.

In a similar vein to the bite size checklist, new writers need to take breaks often, especially if they are full time freelance writers or editors. Sitting at home in front of a computer or a notebook may seem like the ideal situation, but it can take its toll quickly without an appropriate amount of breaks. When I sit down for a full day of writing, I write for an hour or until I complete a project that takes a little more than an hour, and then I go for a walk or I do an errand. It is important to take these breaks not only because computer screens can take a toll on the eyes, but going out into public or into nature can inspire great thoughts and story ideas. Of all the advice given in this article, this is the most critical and new writers should look to work breaks in order to be more productive.

Finally, writers should not be afraid to shake up their writing process. If you listen to music while you work, try working with silence or with a television in the background to change the background noise. If a writer prepares an outline and researches in one way, they should consider changing up their process. Writing is not just a profession, but a life long learning process and no writer, even the most prolific, should see their writing style as a finished product.