Paying for a dedicated space to write - worth it?

[sinister42]

I have a hell of a time trying to focus on writing when I'm at home. There's a husband and kid, there are dogs, there's a TV with a Chromecast that I can zone out on for hours, etcetera. At the beginning of March, I took a weekend away from all that and rented a cabin by myself (well, I brought the dogs), with the intention of spending the weekend writing. It kind of worked. I got a lot more writing done there than I would have at home.

Which brings me to my harebrained scheme. We have a lot of things here called "Co-working spaces." They're designed for startups and self-employed people, who can rent either a "hot desk" or a dedicated desk for around $300/month. That's a lot of money, but if I think about it another way, that's $300 for 24/7 access to a desk that I can go to at anytime and just write, and maybe the money I'm spending will help to motivate me. Although really I shouldn't have to be motivated to do a thing I want to do anyway, but tell my ADHD that. For you role-playing nerds, the analogy is that I have a -10 penalty when I want to roll "self-discipline," even for stuff I actually want to do.

There's also this "hackerspace" that is designed for creative types that has memberships for $49, so I'm also going to check that out. Not sure it really fits the bill either, but it might.

Is it nuts to spend money for a dedicated space to write, or have I hit upon some amazingly brilliant bit of overwhelming genius?

I mean yeah I could just go to a coffee shop, but coffee shops can be loud and annoying.

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

Considering how much money the average published writer makes, in financial terms putting out that kind of money doesn't make sense. If you have that kind of money to spend just so that you'll have a sanctuary of peace and quiet you can go to when you want to, that may be another matter.

It would perhaps make more sense to claim some private space (no matter how small) of your own at home if it's at all possible. It might mean getting creative in the way you see the possibilities of all the spaces in your home, and then moving people and their things around—which they are not going to like—but if your living space allows for this (which not every home does), then it's also a step toward establishing in their minds and in your own just how seriously you take your writing.

(I used to write in a converted storage shed in the backyard. It was actually quite cozy and nice, although that was because I have family members with the necessary carpentry and DYI skills to make it that way.)

 

[The Big Peat]

If you can afford it and it works, sure, go for it. Why not? If I could afford to, I'd seriously consider it too.

 

[TheDustyZebra]

It will probably never make financial sense if you try and put it on a balance sheet with writing income on the other side. But I am totally with you in all the aspects of distraction -- I have everything you mentioned there, and I understand completely. If it's something you can afford to do, give it a shot. However, as someone who also has a -10 handicap, I can tell you that it probably won't motivate you for long. BTDT and got the t-shirt.

Is there a library you could go to? Many, if not most, of them have dedicated spaces for studying -- sometimes a nice windowed room away from the book sections, sometimes little rooms off to the side, sometimes both. I say this as a person who lives a mile from the library and doesn't go there to get away from the crippling distractions, so YMMV.

 

[sinister42]

Hey, library's not a bad idea. I'll look into it.

 

[Stephen Palmer]

I think a private space to write is absolutely essential, so, even though it's expensive, I think it is worth trying.
But there may be solutions at home. One writer i know of has a "public" space in their house which after the swish of a curtain becomes a private space. The rest of the family know the meaning of this curtain - that could work also.

 

[TheDustyZebra]

That wouldn't work in my house, because the problem is that everyone is noisy. I absolutely hate the TV being on all the time, but it is.

 

[HareBrain]

I've sometimes thought about or wished for this (though it wouldn't work for me as I need my desktop for "proper" work). I think there can be something motivating about sharing a space with others who are also working, even if you don't know what they're doing. There's something about walking to work, too, that would help it to feel a "real" job. And $10 a day is only two or three coffees in some places.

As others have said, though, the chance of recouping the cost is very low, so you'd have to be prepared to see it as potentially funding a hobby.

The distraction of internet access could still wreck things.

 

[Danny McG]

An ex workmate had similar probs with wanting to write his memoirs (he was in armed forces when younger)
He didn't bother getting sheds converted etc.
He scoured local media and got a battered old caravan (trailer for you from the colonies) incredibly cheap. A scrub out and stuck it at the bottom of his garden with a power lead running to it. No admittance on the door.

Probs cheaper than monthly renting

 

[Biskit]

They're designed for startups and self-employed people, who can rent either a "hot desk" or a dedicated desk for around $300/month.

How much space do you have at home? At $300/month you could save up for a small shed/summer-house. (With lots of extra insulation for winter.)

I am lucky as the Biskitetta also writes, but we still have a second-hand caravan out in the paddock for when we want to get away from the house and the weather is too nasty to sit out.

There's a husband and kid, there are dogs, there's a TV...

Invest in a broom handle. It works to explain to our cockerels to go and crow somewhere else when we're sitting out the back of the hosue.

 

[Write_err]

Hello everyone, my first message here (I lurk...).

I've tried the Co-working spaces thing and my experience was that although it sometimes works, a lot of the time it doesn't, for two reasons:

1. The start-up types tend to be on the phone a lot, having loud conversations. Like you, Sinister42 I'm a bit ADD, so I found it quite distracting.

2. One of the reasons people choose shared workspaces is because they work remotely and don't want to sit alone at home, so often they look to be sociable, which was exactly the opposite of what I need when writing.

I did try theDustyZebra's solution of going to a library, and that worked really well -- if you have that option and the library has some quiet workspaces + scary librarians who hush the noisy, then it can work quite well.

 

[Venusian Broon]

As Peat said above, if it works, why not?

However it does give off warning bells for me - could it just be another layer that could be used to procrastinate. Say you found a beautiful library and it was wonderful for writing, but was forty minutes in a car to get to? So do excuses not to make the journey start to become prevalent? Also does being making a special space for writing mean that writing practice becomes highly idealised? i.e. I can only write if I am sitting in this particular desk, at this particular time, in silence etc...If you make it too special, then it cuts your writing out totally, when all these conditions are not met?

As for the argument that 'spending hard cash for self-discipline or motivation', I dunno. There are plenty of people that buy gym membership, who at the time think this will make them exercise. I can't find the stats, but a surprisingly large number turn up once (if at all) and then don't turn up again. How would you feel if this happened? Personally I've found spending money does not give me self-discipline, it just tends to drain the bank account .

Personally I would try and give it another go at your own home ('cause it's a lot cheaper than $300/month!). And commute times are much nicer. I understand you've got a bunch of other things happening, but to make your writing space it's partly physical and partly mental.

- Physical in that sometimes it about finding the right time to dedicate to writing, I like really early in the morning, say 5-6am, before anyone else is up and it is quiet - hey, even London zone 2 was quiet at that time! Honestly you get used to it and an hour a day really adds up. But perhaps you have quiet spots at other times? Also, as Stephen said, finding a private spot is really important, have everything at hand, be comfortable and be recognisably in your writing space. I say recognisably because hopefully the rest of your family (i.e. husband) will respect your wish for some time to do some writing and help you create this space. Perhaps even getting a pair of ear plugs to get silence-lite! (Or headphone some background music?)

- Mentally I use the same mental trick that I do with sport competition or public speaking. Basically it's about focusing down so that you just concentrate on the task on hand and push everything else, spectators or audience, into nothingness. When you can focus you can write about anywhere - trains, hotels, other peoples homes, out in the countryside, in the midst of a rowdy crowd...(okay my hang up is that I need a keyboard, can't write it cursive, my left-handed handwriting is awful )

I think all I'm saying is before you go to the point of having to physically extract yourself from your own home to just write, I'd explore trying to carve out time and space at home first. And if you manage that, then you should be able to write anywhere!

 

[Brian G Turner]

Hello everyone, my first message here (I lurk...).

Welcome to the chrons forums @Write_err !

As for a space for writing - it's a common initial problem for people who work from home that their families might presume that home = home and not work, and therefore think nothing of interrupting or asking for tasks to be done.

At some point it needs underlining that when at a certain place, using certain tools, you are at work and are not to be disturbed.

 

[ratsy]

Library is a great place. Often they have tables or those little private walled Cubby's you can use with out being disturbed. I've written at mine a few times.

I'm one of the lucky ones with my own office at home and no kids running around. I do still often use ear buds and play fantasy soundtracks or classical in them. Have you tried that? I honestly find no distraction in it, and it can help me concentrate oddly enough.

There are also coffee shops. Find a quiet time in the corner of one, order a tea or 2 dollar coffee and type for a couple hours. This will be much cheaper than a 300 dollar dedicated space.

Best of luck! You can make it work

 

[sinister42]

An ex workmate had similar probs with wanting to write his memoirs (he was in armed forces when younger)
He didn't bother getting sheds converted etc.
He scoured local media and got a battered old caravan (trailer for you from the colonies) incredibly cheap. A scrub out and stuck it at the bottom of his garden with a power lead running to it. No admittance on the door.

Probs cheaper than monthly renting

Cool idea! And since I've been saturated in British television for years, I also call it a caravan sometimes.

 

[TheDustyZebra]

As for a space for writing - it's a common initial problem for people who work from home that their families might presume that home = home and not work, and therefore think nothing of interrupting or asking for tasks to be done.

At some point it needs underlining that when at a certain place, using certain tools, you are at work and are not to be disturbed.

This is a problem for more than writers.

 

[The Big Peat]

The advantage of going somewhere else isn't just that the family can't push into your private space, its that you don't get tempted into leaving your private space. That is potentially worth paying for, depending on your levels of self-discipline.

I think the ideal would be a quiet free space a five minute walk from your house/your place of work. Not so far away as to become a barrier, far enough removed to put you into a very different frame of mind. Maybe there's a risk you leave yourself unable to write other places, but if you're so easily distracted you can't write at home, what is there to be lost? Being only able to write in one place beats not being able to write in any...

I am seriously contemplating going and spending a lot of time writing at the library now.

 

[J Riff]

FWIW - Fredric Brown used to get on a cross-country bus when he had a deadline to meet. Would that work today? Probably not. Maybe the train?

 

[Juliana]

Library is a good idea. One of my local critique partners wrote her entire first published book in a Barnes and Noble café - in her case because she likes movement around her, it helps her concentrate!

I also have kids, who are less of a distraction now that they're older and more prone to spending time plugged into their ipads, but when they were younger were definitely hard to work around. I work from home - I'm a translator, which is pretty sporadic work, so I have lots of writing time. What I found worked was setting the morning hours as non-negotiable work time. On most days, that means no more internet etc by 9am, and working through to around midday. That still gave me time to run errands etc before the kids get home from school. (Now they're older and can be left alone, I leave outside errands like supermarket for afternoons.)

Thing is, this is more of a mind set than anything else. It's disciplining yourself not to cave to outside distractions like all the programs piled up on your DVR, or a book. It took a while to get used to this at first. I would work for an hour and then find myself distracted. Now I can tune everything out and work for hours at a time. But it took a concentrated effort to build up to this. I think its no use just organizing an 'away space', if you don't organize yourself to respect your own writing time.

 

[Ann]

I am actually fascinated by this thread. My life is set up to give me space for creative work at home.

I have a home phone that pushes forward automatically to my cell phone which pushes forward to my voicemail WHICH IS ALWAYS FULL. My voicemail says text me if this is an emergency and then says Sorry You a Will Never Be Able to Reach Me by Phone.

I have a sign on my front door that says Do Not Ring My Bell Or Knock Unless You Have An Appointment No Exceptions.

When I write I wear headphones and listen to an app that just has white noise sounds. I prefer a crackling fireplace sound.

Sometimes I am just typing away in my bed with the lamp on listening to a crackling (fake) fire and someone walks in. I don’t look up. I just say: Love You-Writing-Get Out. They get out.

Until this moment I think I just assumed that everyone who worked from home did the exact same thing.