Goodreads Authors/Readers discussion

As it says in the header, what is your preferred writing environment?
For example: I seem to do my best writing in the afternoon, usually alone (my wife is at work), headphones on listening to slacker.com on the 80's, 90's and today station (usually).
This is my most common environment. I do sometimes mix it up and write in silence or with open windows and the sounds of the neighborhood. Sometimes I write with the wife home if I feel a scene needs to get from my head to manuscript ASAP while its fresh. But those are exceptions.

I do my best writing at the peak hours between midnight and 5a.m. But, have done a great stride or two in the afternoon right before my eight year old gets home from school.

But the best times for me are really at the peak hours, my mind is like a mad scientist's at that time and it never fails, it just flows and it's a bit overwhelming at times and disturbs my sleeping patterns until I write it all out, which causes me to lose a lot of sleep. Because then I'm too busy to sleep or to fall asleep.

I can really only write when I'm alone, and these days, that's pretty much when I'm at work, everything's done, and my boss leaves early.

I'm a morning person. I have always done my best work (writing or otherwise) before noon. By the afternoon, my brain gets tired.

I prefer writing when it is quiet. I don't even like to have music. That way I lose myself in the story.

I write anytime, anywhere if given pen, paper, or computer and time. I write everyday in my comfy leather chair in front of the TV and my laptop on my lap. I am a receptionist at a local museum and write either on my laptop, tablet or scrap paper. I write on my tablet in the car when a passenger or in a waiting room. I write on planes and trains, but not buses.
Sarina Rose
The Relentless Brit ebook is free on smashwords.com

Ooooo. I can write anywhere, really, but my top favourite place to do it is Costa Coffee lol I seem to get less distracted there... which is amazing, when you think about all the cakes they have

In the bath with the jets on and my headphones in. I have a playlist just for writing. I spend hours in there (not kidding). With four children and a husband (child #5), I can't get a quiet moment unless I lock myself away. I do write after they all go to bed, too. But my best writing is done in the bathtub. Haha! :)

I write at home with my dog by my side. It's quiet; I only have Aura, a music channel, playing in the background. I write in the afternoon, usually, on my days off. Sometimes I write late into the night. Often, that's when I get my real inspiration. I may be all ready for bed and then an idea strikes. I simply jot it down in a notebook entitled "Imagine."

I don't think I could write someplace public and crowded. I like to people watch and that would be a distraction.

I can tune things out, so noise isn't an issue. But I have an irregular sleeping pattern, so keeping a routine and writing at a spacific time is nearly impossible. Because of this, I got in the habit of writing wherever and whenever I can, so the only things that really matter are that I have a way to write, and am able to do so without constant interruptions.

I too have to be alone to write. I prefer an empty house, but have been known to lock myself away in the bedroom when in the midst of a wrting frenzy, and others are at home.

I recently took myself off to a retreat for a couple of days (no, not a spa; the treatments would have been too distracting). It was amazing! Tranquillity and a room all to myself, and a good supply of coffee. And then when I needed a break to clear my head there was a grove and feilds to wander around. This is now my favourite place to write. Shame I can't afford it more often! But I think I will go back when I really need to.

I also prefer not to have the cat around, otherwise it's "meow" (I want to go out), "meow" (I want food), "meow" (you've still not fed me!), "meow" (stroke me otherwise I'll paw your keyboard)! ;-P

I love listening to music...I create a particular playlist and listen to it for about an hour and then write. Having a cup of coffee within reach is also a big plus.

I can write pretty much anywhere even if there is some noise. I have gotten used to silencing the world around me if I need to otherwise I would never get anything done.

My desk faces a white wall. I never write facing windows because I learned early on there's always a temptation to look out. I can write under almost any condition. If it's noisy outside I put on shooter's earmuffs. I'm most efficient from early morning to noon. After lunch I'll put in another couple of hours.
J.M. Garlock
"The Centurion Chronicles"

When I write, I like to do it in my writing room at home. Unlike J.M., my desk does face the window but I keep the drapes closed so I'm not too distracted by what's going on outside. I like quiet--no music, no T.V. and no hubby chattering in my ear! :) As for timing, it's usually in the evenings.

My profile picture is me on a terrace, cup of coffee, keyboard looking at a sea view in the warm. I even manage to get writing done!

Unfortunately it's a holiday experience not everyday

as long as i have headphones and an outlet (yay janky battery) i can write anywhere. in a pinch i will hammer out chapters via phone or tablet. i usually work at night from 9p to 5a during the summer (yay no ac) and reversed for winter. im typically a night owl but since i function on 4 hours sleep (yay insomnia) i can basically work any time anywhere lolz

Coffee shops from like 8 AM to 4 PM.

Most of my writing and a lot of my editing and formatting time is done in local coffee shops. I usually hate the music in them, but I tune it out anyway.

I've actually submitted several of my books to Smashwords and Kindle Direct while at coffee shops. Smashwords was so fast that I not only submitted them, but watched them go live while still in the same shop.

I can write with some distractions around me, but prefer a quiet environment. If I have written nothing by noon, I will write nothing that day.

A quiet one where I know I won't be disturbed.

Dead quiet. I wear earplugs to avoid even the noise of the furnace clicking on.

Anytime. Anyplace. Anywhere.

If I get a brain worm I write.

I actually wrote a lot of my first two books on the bus or in my office but I think its not the environment its the mindset. Sometimes you can't find the words to write them

I have written just one novel and do not intend to write another.

That said; during several months of writing, re-writing, brainstorming with proof readers and editors and polishing the final manuscript, actual writing time was spent alone in my very quiet den with notes strategically placed on the desk, along with a glass of 12-year single-malt Glenlivet scotch.

Comforting mellow music at a low volume and a comfy sitting space (i.e. living room couch). Can't write nothing if I'm uncomfortable!

I used to write notes on any scrap of paper, then in my office with the door shut against noise. Once I got my laptop, let's face it, I write in BED. I write into the wee hours until I can't see straight anymore, then pull the laptop back open as soon as my eyes function again in the morning and write some more! Until the animals look at me soulfully and I rouse enough to feed everyone. And coffee. More coffee.

I need fairly large chunks of time (at least 2-3 hours) to feel like I can keep the story coherent. Because life is so busy, it's hard to find that kind of time available. For that reason, I often find myself doing a fair amount of writing on the airplane as I travel for business. Otherwise, I'll try to find an evening at home where I can turn on some music (instrumental only to keep from being distracted) and commit some words to the novel then.

However, it turns out that some of my best ideas come to me in the morning (this whole writing thing started with a dream for me.) When that happens, I'll grab my phone and quickly jot down notes to capture the creativity on the spot.

On the couch, with my dog next to me and the TV on...

Newest addition to my writing environment is a walking desk, a treadmill with a platform for my computer. I walk 1 mph as I write. Doesn't seem to affect the writing in any way, except that I make more typing mistakes, but I've always been a bad typist. And I'm losing weight. The docs say, even 1 mph is much healthier than sitting down. Got all the way through my latest novel, on the treadmill. Now I wish I'd kept track of how many miles I walked!

I like writing in a quiet spot and putting in some headphones to listen to music :)

-Nihar
www.niharsuthar.com

at home, in the evening by the light of a streetlamp just outside the window, hopefully with sirens and broken glass shattering outside to set the atmosphere. For 1st draft I stick to a strictly compiled music selection that's suitable for the book, I want the rhythms to seep into the work. For drafts two onwards no music as I have to concentrate on the detail.

I would like to think that i can do alright anywhere but in all honesty i am too easily distracted, i need forced isolation without any electronic devices to pull me out of my head. Some days i dream of the power lines being cut by a freak wind storm or something so that i can't find anything else to get lost in.

Jane wrote: "Anytime. Anyplace. Anywhere.

If I get a brain worm I write."

So true Jane! The same happens to me on occassion

On an island of obsidian at the centre of a lake of fire (unless there's no power supply; I'm a laptop man...)

Mornings. After First and Second Coke, and First Nap.

For as long as I can function (a couple of hours, usually)

And today, by coincidence, since I just had an article published on Boomer Café, you can SEE my working environment (if not the pyjamas I usually write in):
(warning: it's boring and must be completely silent)
http://www.boomercafe.com/2017/01/12/...

I have a bit of a system when writing. My time to spin a yarn is usually during the afternoon until evening. I jot my stories down in longhand inside notebooks. In the morning, I sit at desk, surrounded by all my strange little knickknacks and type in what I have. I HAVE to listen to music when writing and at my computer typing. When it comes to where I write, I can pretty much write anywhere, but I prefer to be alone.

I prefer to write inside of my man-cave with epic music playing and my beloved pit bulls napping on their beanbag chair. Examples of music that I like listening to while writing includes John Williams, Final Fantasy, and Within Temptation. My pit bulls would snore loudly as they napped on their beanbag chair. During that combination of sounds I am able to write smoothly and words fly through my mind.

My first three books are non-fiction autobiographies that include no embellishment or exageration. It's easy for me to write anywhere when I decide to write. I usually have a music app going in the background on my iPad and the pages flow from my "video-graphic" memory.Yes, I do exist

Although I mostly write alone, I can write in a waiting room, the hair salon, virtually anywhere until I am interrupted and I prefer to do it in longhand first.

I write better when I am alone at my desk. I seem to be able to concentrate more then. But sometimes I enjoy a little time writing in a nice cafe with a hot frothy coffee.

In the summer sitting somewhere near water is always nice as it soothes my poor writer's brain and makes me feel so calm.

I love writing early in the mornings while listening to music, as there are very little distractions then!

-Nihar
www.niharsuthar.com

I usually write late at night with music on at times.
If I write during the day I like to be outside surrounding by nature...

On my days off I usually write on the couch with headphones on. But I work full time so I do have to squeeze writing in my lunch breaks. For each chapter the process starts with pen and paper and then typed on a computer. And now that my computer broke, I have to go to the local library and do this:( We do what we gotta do I guess.

I like to write anytime - morning to night, but primarily in silence. Occasionally I'll have some tennis matches on tv for background noise. If I'm home alone it generally happens in the living room, but if S (husband) is home working then I hibernate in the bedroom with the door closed...mainly because his job requires him to yell at a lot of people and that doesn't promote my creativity.

On my bed, with the television in the background.

I prefer writing alone in my room while listening to a certain type of genre depending on what the scene is about. Metal music for action, classical for dialogue, dramatic for... dramatic, etc.

I used to write in the living room, but my brother would blare the television, so it made thinking and reading difficult. He would also smoke cigarettes and drink alcohol, which would entice me to join him.

Recliner. On a bench on a sunny day.

Pupola wrote: "Recliner. On a bench on a sunny day."
That sounds lovely! Almost too lovely, I think I'd be in danger of falling asleep.
For me it's just boring, on my comfortable chair, in my room, with my laptop. Usually at the weekend, since my brain is like stewed cabbage after work.

I can write pretty much anywhere, as long as its quiet. I do enjoy listening to lyric-less music when I write, as it helps keep the motivation and creativity flowing. A nice cup of tea helps too!

In my bedroom, where I have a work table on which my laptop is set, while a small shelving unit supports stacks of large envelopes containing my notes and sketches concerning my past novels. With the door closed, I have a quiet, intimate place to let loose my imagination.