For Fun: Your Dream Writer's Office

[tneeley]

OK, let's just let our imaginations run free here for a minute - oh, wait, that's what writer's do anyway, isn't it? Oh well, for the fun of it, if there were no limitations on your space, finances, etc., (afterall, God can provide for us in ways we can't even imagine) how would you describe your dream writer's office?

I used to stay grounded in reality all of the time and that was the main reason I wouldn't pursue my writing seriously; I didn't want to be disapppointed or get sidetracked on a dream that might never come true. God showed me recently that He really does want us to dream. SO, from time to time I stop and write out my dream job or my dream office or my dream _____ (whatever), and just enjoy the fun of finding out what I might really enjoy. It's helped me to grow spiritually and trust my dreams (the big and small) to God.

Have fun!:D

[Tamera]

My dream office has a huge window overlooking the woods or a lake. All the other walls are filled with bookshelves except for one small section for my certificates, award, ect. and an original Thomas Kinkade painting. It has oak paneling and a very large rolltop oak desk and filing cabinet. There's a cabinet (oak of course) with all my paper and supplies. And it has a very comfortable lounge chair that massages my back while I write. I have a laptop. Oh, and there are fresh flowers brought in every day.

[AnnieJ]

My dream office would be pretty much like the office I have now only it would NEVER be used for storage (Christmas presents, dog crate when people come over, stuff that needs to go to the basement but hasn't made it yet, paperwork, blah, blah, blah) and have lots of organized storage and more display space (I have my fav collectibles in there - tiaras, depression glass, vintage bowls, vintage tablecloths, toys, tin trays etc).

Oh, and it wouldn't be a part of the main part of my house! (Once had a small finished office in the basement where nobody ever ventured - heaven!

annie jones- The Barefoot Believers - out now

[DrRita]

Same as AnnieJ. I have a really really great office. The only think I'd like is that big window and maybe a balcony.

[Timber Wolf]

My dream office would overlook the mts., rivers, forests, coastline of AK. It would be attached to a home where I enjoy the company of AK wildlife on, ohhhh, let's say a couple thousand acres of prime woodlands where I could snowmachine, 4-wheel, go quad-running, and go shooting. Also, if said dream were to happen now, I'd include in there faciliites for my nieces and nephews to be able to live with me, and the ability to be able to home school them as well. My dream office wouldn't be just the physical facilites, but also the emotional needs as well. Of course the office would include all the necessary accrutements for actually getting some writing done.

[righter1]

My dream office... hmmm....

Separate from my house, ideally on the same property, but since I want to have a few hundred acres either in SE Kansas or in the Rockies, I wouldn't be able to see my house from there, and may have to take 4x4 to get there. :D

It would have a fridge for bottled water and my favored Arnold Palmer's (lemonade and iced tea mix) and snacks so I wouldn't have to leave, with a small bathroom off to one side. The office itself would have a large L-shaped desk with plenty of room for me to spread out my things and ideas. Fresh flowers inside. The desk would be in front of a large window, hopefully looking out at a small lake or pond where my hubby could take our kids fishing (but not while I'm working--I'd get too distracted!)

The walls would be painted a soft green and be decorated with pictures of mountains and streams, maybe some wildlife, too, both in black and white and color, some of which I would have taken, maybe others by Ansel Adams or something.

Oh, and a big, leather chair for working, and a comfy arm chair and ottoman where I could sit and think. And, I'd have space for all my books in built-in bookcases behind the desk so i could have all my reference materials on hand.

No phone, probably no internet service either, as I'd be too tempted to use either as a distraction (and CW would be a little too easy to access!)

And, while I'm dreaming, I'd have a robot to keep the place clean. :) I swear, when those things become a reality and if I can afford it, I'm going to be one of the first to get an android to do all my housework, not just the vacuuming. (I don't have one of those Roomba's, but wouldn't mind it if it weren't for all the steps in my split level house!)

[Mouse5]

My dream office would have to be big enough to accommodate all my creative activities from crafts to sewing to writing. It would need a closet to keep supplies in. The closet doesn't have to be big but it would have to have a lot of shelf space in it. On one side of the room I want a sewing table set up with different types and colors of material on some shelves that are hung off to the side. On the other side I want a corner desk with a nice computer that doesn't have an attitude problem. My desk needs to have space enough for my dictionary, thesaurus, and other inspirational material. At the right of my desk I want a bulletin board to hang various notes or other things. To the left I want a small filing cabinet to hold my records. Along any empty walls I want shelves with a vast assortment of books and research material. And I want at least one window overlooking a wooded area in between my desk and my sewing table. I haven't decided if I want carpet on the floor or if I want a hardwood floor with an area rug and an assortment of throw rugs. Can't make up my mind on that bit.:rolleyes:
I also want a recliner or a couple of small comfortable armchairs. So I can just sit and read, think, or have quiet time with my Lord and Savior.
If I could fit a fireplace in there I would. I do some of my best thinking in front of a fire. :D

[righter1]

If I could fit a fireplace in there I would. I do some of my best thinking in front of a fire. :D

I'd have one of those too, 'cept I can never seem to get the durn-blasted things started without burning up like 7 days worth of newspaper! I gas there's always a gas start... :rolleyes:

[Mouse5]

No, all that is needed is to get some firestarter and pay attention to the type of wood that is used to get it started. You need dry easy to lite up wood. I like cedar or small bits of kindling. It needs to be dry and well seasoned. Once you get it started then you can add the bigger pieces that last longer. Oh and how you arrange the wood is important as well. A propane torch works wonders in getting a fire started.;)

[Mouse5]

Well, don't I sound like a know-it-all.:o

Sorry, I'm missing my wood stove just a teeny bit. :rolleyes:

[Cymrugirl]

My ideal office would be a small travel trailer, packed only with the essentials (coffee, essential cooking tools, a place for bicycles, a cookie jar). Maybe an airstream. With some curtains. I would need a window that would hold a few potted herbs. My cat. (who would no doubt be thrilled with being on the road all the time ;)) My bose wave radio.

And it would be parked someplace different roughly every two weeks. Places like the beach. The Grand Canyon.

I, of course, include in this fantasy that this space would never be too small for my family - who must, of course, never be separated from me except for a few writing hours at a time. he he he

[Tommie Lyn]

I'm pretty much satisfied with the office I have now. The only drawback is that it becomes Grand Central Station at times -- the grandkiddos hang out in here when they're over. Plus, hubby and others have radar which informs them when a story is really flowing -- that's their signal that it's time to have a leisurely chat with me about nothing in particular.

Another major problem with it is that the woman who uses my computers and desk gets major stacks of books and papers scattered on it and doesn't put the pens back in the holder and leaves my CD backups either stacked in front of the CD tower or on top of it instead of filing them....oops! :o I guess that woman is me.

Hubby's vision of my dream writer's office is a Class A RV with a special dock for my printer and laptop and a slide-out tray in front of the passenger seat that will hold my laptop when we're rolling.

Oops! Mistake. I said hubby wanted a Class B RV -- but I got it wrong. He told me today he wants a Class A.

[Tommie Lyn]

No, all that is needed is to get some firestarter and pay attention to the type of wood that is used to get it started. You need dry easy to lite up wood. I like cedar or small bits of kindling. It needs to be dry and well seasoned. Once you get it started then you can add the bigger pieces that last longer. Oh and how you arrange the wood is important as well. A propane torch works wonders in getting a fire started.;)

We used to have a fireplace, and we collected our own wood and lighter'd for it (for several years, our fireplace was our only source of heat). With seasoned oak, lighter'd and a couple of matches, we could have a fire going in short order. I don't know if y'all in other parts of the country have access to lighter'd, but it is indispensable if you have a fireplace.

http://www.southernlighterd.com/index.html

http://www.southernlighterd.com/kindling.htm

http://www.southernlighterd.com/tips.htm

[Knight of Christ]

LOL i would just love to have an office. Right now i am in our dinning room becouse it qaw the only place we had room

[Gravity]

My dream office would be full of contracts containing large advances. Everything else is negotiable. :D

[Mouse5]

LOL i would just love to have an office. Right now i am in our dinning room becouse it qaw the only place we had room

I can totally sympathize with you there. Right now I write where ever there is a free space. Sometimes it's in the kid's doorway making sure they stay in bed. Most of the time I write sitting on the couch with my laptop in my lap and papers sitting next to me. Other times it's at the kitchen table or while I"m laying in bed. Ohhh... to have my own space where I can spread out and not have to pick everything up after my alloted writing time.:cool:

[righter1]

I can totally sympathize with you there. Right now I write where ever there is a free space. Sometimes it's in the kid's doorway making sure they stay in bed. Most of the time I write sitting on the couch with my laptop in my lap and papers sitting next to me. Other times it's at the kitchen table or while I"m laying in bed. Ohhh... to have my own space where I can spread out and not have to pick everything up after my alloted writing time.:cool:

Me, too, Mouse! I do all of that, 'cept the doorway thing since my only kid is in utero currently... :rolleyes:

[Mouse5]

Just wait. Your time will come. And then you'll be pulling your hair out trying to find time to fit your writing in. You'll be happy with any chance you get no matter where it's at. I talked to one new mom that would type one handed while feeding her baby with the other. Yea... fun times. :p

[Knight of Christ]

Just wait. Your time will come. And then you'll be pulling your hair out trying to find time to fit your writing in. You'll be happy with any chance you get no matter where it's at. I talked to one new mom that would type one handed while feeding her baby with the other. Yea... fun times. :p

LOL thats sounds like something my wife would do

[Tarin]

Floor-to-ceiling bookcases, a few floor-to-ceiling windows, a windowseat, a fireplace, and a ginormous rolltop desk. Though, really, I'm pretty happy with the computer cabinet I use now.

http://www.stacksandstacks.com/image/1308.jpg

[tneeley]

Thanks everyone for playing along! What I'd love to see (and I don't know if we can even do it) is pictures either of your actual writing space or your dream space if you've seen one. I tried searching "writer's offices" hoping to find lots of them but found very few. Now I've started looking at the sites for the office furniture, etc., and I'm going to save ideas of what I'd like to have, eventually printing them and saving them for daydreaming.

[Knight of Christ]

Actualy i kind of like the desk i have now, just a simple self asembled numberalthough it is hard to move sence it is so old it thretns to fall apart on me when i do have to move it.the only thing i would like to have right now is an actual desk chair. or even a small recliner arm chair like i used to have.

As for pics lol at this time nooo you do not want to see my work space lol.

[righter1]

About 6 months ago, we had a thread about our offices and what they look like... You may want to check it out... we've had a lot of new folks join since then...

http://christianwriters.com/forums/showthread.php?t=13361

[Tiata]

The first thing that entered my thoughts was the image a a wall sized cork, or write-on-wipe-off, board. I want SPACE to map out scenes. I want to be able to kick back in my big cushy office chair and ***SEE**** it, from beginning to end. Floor space too...I want to walk around and work out the actions of my characters and then go to my plotting wall and post notes and switch scenes until I am happy with the story (I wonder if that would ever happen LOL).

My computer would have to be located so that no one could look over my shoulder. I just can't stand that!!!!!!! LOL. Oh!...and privacey!!! How am I supposed to write with kids and DH running through the room and interupting me all the time.

I think that I also would want windows and inspiring scenery... a really good coffee maker, shelves and shelves of reference books, paper and supplies.

*sigh* to dream...

In Him,
(who gives us the desires of our hearts)
~T~

[lynnmosher]

Oh, my, Liberty! Yours sounds s-o-o-o much like the one I'd love to have. it would be detached from the house. It would have lots of windows looking out on trees, a pond or lake, and the mountains. A small fridge for water and snacks. A coffee pot for hazelnut coffee. A bathroom. A sleeper couch. A comfy chair and a half with an ottoman. A very comfortable desk chair. A large L-shaped desk. Music. Bookshelves everywhere. Storage. And yes, painted soft green and photographs my son, husband, and I have taken, a lot in black and white. A wood floor with a great rug. Tons of reference books and computer programs. However...I would definitely have to have my internet! Oh, dream on, you silly girl!

[Tommie Lyn]

A sleeper couch. A comfy chair and a half with an ottoman. A very comfortable desk chair. A large L-shaped desk. Music. Bookshelves everywhere. Storage.

Uh oh, Lynn. You don't know what you're asking for. My current office has all of those things. And that comfy sectional sleeper sofa draws interrupters like flies.....plus, the wall of bookshelves is a magnet for people who want advice on which book to borrow from my collection.

My sister, who was visiting one day when pandemonium reigned in my office, said she doesn't know how I ever get anything written (she is the official writer in the family -- she has no children and doesn't know how to cope with the noise and liveliness of a houseful of young'uns -- she writes in peacefulness and solitude with a couple of cats to keep her company).

But I guess when you've raised three sons, with their attendant scrapes and escapades and demands for attention, you learn to go with the flow and tune things out. Unless there's something like a broken arm acquired while skateboarding which necessitates a visit to the emergency room.....

[lynnmosher]

LOL! I can dream of that comfy chair and couch, Tommie Lyn, because the nest is empty and I now enjoy that peacefulness and solitude! I only have weekly visits from my granddaughter and an occasional visit from my daughter. And the hubby doesn't bother me too much when I'm writing.

[Tommie Lyn]

LOL! I can dream of that comfy chair and couch, Tommie Lyn, because the nest is empty and I now enjoy that peacefulness and solitude! I only have weekly visits from my granddaughter and an occasional visit from my daughter. And the hubby doesn't bother me too much when I'm writing.

My nest is supposed to be empty (my youngest is 37). But my elderly father lives with us now, and various and sundry people come stay with us for a while, and my grandkiddos spend weekends and many of their school vacation days here. I've often thought I should put a sign out front: Tommie Lyn's Bed and Breakfast and Used Car Lot.

Empty nest? What's that? LOL.....Actually, I wouldn't have it any other way.

[lynnmosher]

http://www.mysmiley.net/imgs/smile/sign/sign0101.gif (http://preventingidentitythefts.com/equifax-canada/)

I thought I remembered that your kids were all grown. Our house is pretty quiet. I'm sure your house gets hectic, and I know, as you said, you wouldn't have it any other way. And I love this...

Tommie Lyn's Bed and Breakfast and Used Car Lot.

Too funny! http://www.mysmiley.net/imgs/smile/happy/happy0030.gif (http://preventingidentitythefts.com/equifax-canada/)

[VLSmith]

I would love to wake up every morning and pad into my large office with enormous windows overlooking Lake Tahoe. In the comfort of my slippers and my robe, I would while away the early hours of the day, writing by the fireplace at my L-shaped desk with a large flat panel monitor. I would also have a credenza for my laser printer and storage of all my supplies. Close to the hearth would be a comfy chair and foot stool for my leisure reading during lunch. A glass door would open onto a balcony and I would have bird and squirrel feeders which, of course, would be robbed by raccoons. Even more inspiration!

I probably would not have a refrigerator in my office. Food is my downfall. It would be a distraction. But I would have Internet for research.

I would also have a great dog bed for Galahad and a fantastic cat condo for Elias and Camelot. They are almost always with me when I write.

I think that's it.

[lynnmosher]

Oooo, oooo, oooo! I forgot the fireplace!!!

[jacks girl]

I'm a little late in joining in. But here goes.

It would be a room 15 by 15 or bigger. I would have a great book case with every book i love on the shelves. I would have a special case for my published works. A small area with a fridge microwave and TV/stereo. Two sliding glass doors for lots of natural lite, great carpet and the best chair i could find.

Lots of pencils and papers pads and printers. Tom Cruise would be standing by to sharpen my pencils and Cesear Romero would drop by daily to walk the dogs. There would be lots of greenery in the rooms and I would sit down to begin my day with a prayer and a hymn.

Last but not least a safe for all my important works, my guns and my huge piles of money. LOL LOL.

Jacks

[tlm]

I have the perfect little office but when the computer died, I had to abandon it for the computer in the den. The room is small but has a desk that faces the window.

What makes the room so perfect? It is on the 2nd story of the house and the desk faces a window that looks out on a large shade tree. In the summer I can rest my eyes from the computer screen by watching the hummingbirds who are waiting in their branches for their turn at the feeder below. I can get my binoculars that are in the desk drawer to get a close up look at the squirrel hole, or simply wait for the squirrels to dance from branch to branch. I occasionally get a glance at the woodpecker getting lunch. Something about watching all that was going on in that tree was so relaxing that it made the actual editing of a MS much more fun.

[Tarin]

Tom Cruise would be standing by to sharpen my pencils and Cesear Romero would drop by daily to walk the dogs.

Something tells me that's not going to do much to help your concentration. :p

[Rebecca]

Something tells me that's not going to do much to help your concentration. :p

LOL, Tarin! :D

Rebecca

[kerrig]

My dream office would be in my dream log home. It would have a big antique writing desk, I would have my quill pen right on my desk, I would have a soft, comfy chair to sit in. My desk would be positioned to look out a picture window overlooking a trail through the woods leading down to the lake.
I would have a mini-fridge in there to hold my tea and snacks. I would have to have a coffee maker in there also with all the fixins. I would have floor to ceiling bookshelves with all my books and others in them.
I would have no phone or internet in there and it would have to have a door that locked!

[AyatsuriNingyo]

Well, I'd have to move first. And win the lottery. And hire groundskeepers. lol

I like beauty, so I like the idea of being surrounded by it. I wish I lived in the middle of a few fenced-off acres, with a little stream running through it, and lots of fountains. I'd like to live in a house where I would never have to see another plain, white, flat wall ever again. Not because I want to be a rich snob, but because the human soul thirsts for beauty, and we have lost practically every concept of it in the ordinary human dwelling. Beauty fuels creativity, and raises the soul to God. (It isn't just for people who think they're better than everybody else.) I would have every inch embellished, carved, painted, wallpapered... I would even tolerate white walls in simply embellished wooden boarders... but four flat walls and a blank ceiling would be absolutely forbidden. (Which is why I have my bedroom painted like an ocean from the bottom of my walls to the light fixture on my ceiling.)

So my dream office, then, would be set in a nice-sized room next to a library. Not too big, but not too tiny either. (And the library would be one of those ones that has two floors to it, and those winding little staircases that people only use now in horror movies. lol) I'd a have a nice wooden desk with a place for all of the stuff that the little table I'm using is covered in. (I think I could get a discount on stock in the Post-It company, for instance!) And I would have to have more bookshelves in my office, which I would fill with the very best encyclopedias money could buy, and lots of language reference books, and a Japanese copy of every classic literature piece I like.

It would have to have it's own little bathroom (saves time having to look for one elsewhere! lol), a water cooler, a very good coffee pot and a little tiny fridge for my flavored creamer which I cannot live without. And it would need a lifetime supply of Red Buffalo coffee in flavors like chocolate cherry, banana foster and blueberry cobbler.

Finally, the walls and ceiling would be bordered in wood (cherry, like the desk and everything else in it), and the empty spaces in the boarders would be painted up with pictures of Christ, Mary and St. Joseph, as if it were the Sistine chapel. In the corners, I should like to have a life-sized statue of Jesus and Mary, and on one wall, a built in little niche with a lovely statue of the infant Jesus with little cherubs painted around it.

After that, it wouldn't matter what the rest of the house looked like, because I'd just go into the office and never come out again, save Sundays and holy days, for a space of about two hours.

But a chapel would be nice too...

But in all honesty I could never live in a place like that. One has to be particularly sound of mind and heart to live in a setting where every inch is so packed with beauty and grandeur that the soul is reminded almost instantly of the judgment seat. It would be like living in heaven's foyer. Having only recently amended my life, my conscience isn't nearly that clean.

I wonder, though, whether that isn't why people have banished all intense beauty from their surroundings, in lieu of empty walls and meaningless forms on the canvass. It's easier for the dirty conscience to breathe in surroundings so packed with nothingness. Such a soul is pacified by such externals, as if, beyond death, we would also find "merely nothingness." But beauty... true beauty... always raises the soul to thoughts of God, and the more profound the beauty, the more it smacks of the grandeur of the Judge.

[ellenjames]

What about an indoor/outdoor office?

Indoor office would have the Thomas Kinkade pictures (I like those, too) and file cabinets and more book cases or shelves. A new carpet or hardwood floor. A comfortable seat and a corner desk with lots of drawers and storage space.

I'd step through the french doors to a deck with desk and laptop. I would look down green lawn of the hill to the lake surrounded with trees. Flowers, roses, azaleas and others would bloom by the deck. It would face the east, so I could see the sunrise. A comfortable lounge chair would be available early in the morning for my daily devotions.

If I'm dreaming, let me dream on! !thumbsup!

Bertha
www.freewebs.com/wayber

[Tarin]

It would have to have it's own little bathroom (saves time having to look for one elsewhere! lol)

Ah, yes, brilliant addition! !thumbsup!