I wanted to write everyday, but it was impossible to get to a coffee shop or library to do so. It involved a baby-sitter or husband/daddy getting in my scheduling loop. The library has great study carrells, but the hours are limited. And it is just a nerve-shattering act to try to do something uninterrupted at a coffee shop. The general public simply has lots of questions for you once you are seated. Quite frankly, these questions were wearing me to a nub.
“Can I use this chair?”
Obviously! I’m not patrolling the chairs, people – I’m trying to construct a sentence.
“I’m just going to sneak by you.”
Umm…do you even know the meaning of the word “sneak”? It has to do with STEALTH, and you clearly have NONE!
The reality was that I needed to find a way to cope with writing in the house. As the omniscient yet mythological “they” say, necessity is the mother of invention, and thus the Dines Family Designated Creative Space was born. Here are the 2 steps I took to birth the Designated Creative Space:
- I made a sign that included the expectation around maintenance of the DESIGNATED CREATIVE SPACE!
- I cleared off the table. While the pictures below show the table top in plain view, it was previously covered in high chair trays, junk mail, kids’ clothes, and a myriad of chargers for various devices.
The Sign – Note the use of the adorable but underused little verb “shall”!
The Space is prepared for my writing time with my journal, book, and laptops.
I was very careful, deliberate, and strategic about not having The Making of the Designated Creative Space become yet another project. My projects are my written pieces. I don’t need to have 5 kinds of highlighters and different choices of paper. Or a special kind of seat. Or a unique style of seat cushion. Or a Hemingwrite (which I have considered purchasing about 1000 times but never will actually buy). All I need is a place to put words in print or in a computer document. Simple. Minimal. Clean. Clear.
This space is not just for me. My husband uses it for his reading and graphic design work. My daughters use it as a supply table and drying rack when they are art-making in their high chairs. And we all make sure that the space is spick and span after it is used.
Right now, my husband is cleaning up. The baby is sleeping, and the twins are watching something on tv. And I’m sitting here, writing, right in my own kitchen. This table is my own little nook of the universe, and I feel perfectly at home.
Filed under: Artist Date, artistic expression, creativity, interesting places, Uncategorized, writing, writing process Tagged: artist on a budget, creative space, home, motherhood, parenting, workspace, writing, zero dollar
