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I have a desk in our sunroom where I keep research files and bookkeeping and manuscripts...it's sort of the back office of my Vast Writing Empire. But for actual writing, I generally go out. This started when Older Child was very small, and I was under contract for a book and having no luck finishing it. After trying a friend's "get up too early in the morning and write for an hour when everyone else is asleep" technique and failing utterly (I am profoundly not a morning person), I decided to take my laptop and go to the local Barnes and Noble and sit in their cafe and see whether I could write there. Turns out that sitting around in other people's chaos doesn't bother me. It energizes me. I finished that book (it was The Stone War) and wrote my Daredevil book there. When they covered the electrical outlets in the cafe to discourage the Laptop Brigade (I was not the only one who would sit there for four or five hours, nursing a cup of coffee or a latte), I started looking for a new office.
I made one for myself: it's my laptop (with Airport card) and cell phone, and wherever I set up camp for the day.
Point of Honour and Petty Treason were pretty much written at the Starbucks at 93rd and Broadway. There were a couple of nice armchairs, a staff I came to know pretty well (when it gets to the point where you walk in and they hand you your customary order, you're a regular), and electric outlets blessedly uncovered. Barnes and Noble was cool because you could look things up at the drop of a hat; Starbucks, no three floors of books, instant access. But they're endlessly pleasant about letting me sit there for three or four hours nursing a cup of coffee. And I get to overhear interesting conversations and see my fellow humans interact, which is always a useful thing for a writer.
When we moved out here I had to find a new office. I've gone through several: Tully's near our first apartment; the Starbucks in the building where Spouse works; the coffee shop in our new neighborhood. Lately, as the summer fog has moved in and depressed me, I've been going elsewhere, trying to find somewhere with sun. This has led to any number of interesting experiments. I've found a place downtown which I like--but the Crazy quotient is pretty high; a Starbucks in Potrero Hill was noisy but pleasant--but there's only two hour parking and no way to get there without a car or two hours of transit time. Today I tried a Starbucks in one of the local malls; it's a shlep, but was surprisingly uncrowded (the mall opens at 10, so most of the people coming in were Daly City cops or mall employees coming in for their morning jolt), with comfy chairs, electric outlets, and--today at least--sun.
I made one for myself: it's my laptop (with Airport card) and cell phone, and wherever I set up camp for the day.
Point of Honour and Petty Treason were pretty much written at the Starbucks at 93rd and Broadway. There were a couple of nice armchairs, a staff I came to know pretty well (when it gets to the point where you walk in and they hand you your customary order, you're a regular), and electric outlets blessedly uncovered. Barnes and Noble was cool because you could look things up at the drop of a hat; Starbucks, no three floors of books, instant access. But they're endlessly pleasant about letting me sit there for three or four hours nursing a cup of coffee. And I get to overhear interesting conversations and see my fellow humans interact, which is always a useful thing for a writer.
When we moved out here I had to find a new office. I've gone through several: Tully's near our first apartment; the Starbucks in the building where Spouse works; the coffee shop in our new neighborhood. Lately, as the summer fog has moved in and depressed me, I've been going elsewhere, trying to find somewhere with sun. This has led to any number of interesting experiments. I've found a place downtown which I like--but the Crazy quotient is pretty high; a Starbucks in Potrero Hill was noisy but pleasant--but there's only two hour parking and no way to get there without a car or two hours of transit time. Today I tried a Starbucks in one of the local malls; it's a shlep, but was surprisingly uncrowded (the mall opens at 10, so most of the people coming in were Daly City cops or mall employees coming in for their morning jolt), with comfy chairs, electric outlets, and--today at least--sun.