This post was originally published at Novelicious.com and is now at WritingTipsOasis.com. WritingTipsOasis.com acquired Novelicious.com in June 2022.
I love to write in my conservatory. It’s a gorgeous room with lots of light, overlooking my garden with a view to the country fields beyond. I find it a really relaxing place, which is great when I want to set my mind free and be creative. I don’t have a special desk, I just write at the dinner table, which seems to work fine. My best time to write is when it’s totally quiet, and when there’s no-one else in the house, but that’s not always possible.
All I need is a pen, an A4 lined pad, my laptop and a cup of tea. (Occasionally, I might sneak in a slice of cake or a chocolate bar. This particularly helps when deadlines are drawing near!) On the days I’m not at the day job, I’ll try and write for about seven hours. I’m usually most productive in the mornings. So then I’ll take a break at lunch time, and another mid-afternoon when I’ll often walk the dog in the countryside near my home. I’m lucky that I live in the beautiful county of Northumberland. The scenery often inspires the setting of my novels, (The Cosy Teashop in the Castle is inspired by my local castle at Chillingham), and a walk clears my head and often gives me the thinking space for new ideas. Then it’s back to the conservatory.
I’m lucky that I can also write just about anywhere. I can often be found in my car in a layby, having had a light-bulb moment for the book I’m working on, and I’ve had to pull over. I always try to keep a pen and paper in my handbag. I have written on trains, planes, sun-loungers, in bed, possibly even on the toilet. When an idea strikes you don’t want to lose it!
With the first draft of my novels I write long hand, as my typing speed can’t keep up with the creative scenes going on in my head. Sometimes my writing can’t keep up either, to be fair. I often go back to my notes the next day and find them hard to fathom! I type them up on to the laptop, usually a scene at a time within a day or so, that way they get a brief edit straight away. When the writing is going well, it’s like there’s a film going on in my head that I have to capture and get down on paper and then save to the laptop. It’s such a wonderful feeling, hours can just fly by.
Caroline’s second novel The Cosy Teashop in the Castle is out now!
You can find her on Twitter, on Facebook and at her blog.