Mystery writer William Kent Krueger advises an aspiring writer to write every day. At least, this is the advice he gave to this aspiring writer as I held up the line at his book signing in Charleston, West Virginia last fall. Up until that day, I had trouble even calling myself a writer but I took his advice to heart and set about to follow it.

He said he writes first thing in the morning, every morning, no matter what. He protects that time.  He guards it as though it’s the most important part of his day because it is. When I tried that, it required me getting up at 5 a.m. so I would have time before work. 

Let me tell you something: I’m not very smart that early in the day.

I kept up that pace for about a month before deciding I needed to retool my approach. Spoiler alert. That never happened. Now, I mostly write at night when I ought to be winding down for the day. It’s rarely on special projects and usually just for this blog. 

Clearly, the world hasn’t missed out on my completion of the Great American Novel but I’m certainly not going to get there if left to my own devices. 

Most writers are masters of distraction and I know this to be true of myself. Recreational writing at home is hard because there is a ton of stuff to take my hand and lead me away from my intentions. Dishes need washed, trash needs taken and there’s a fine layer of dust on the dining room table that has peacefully existed for weeks but now requires immediate attention. The cat looks lonely. Maybe he would like to be picked up. No? I put him down and go find a bandaid because now my hand is bleeding. 

All true stories. None are exaggerated. As for the cat scratch, it happens more often than I should admit. And as Scout likes to say, he wouldn’t have to scratch me if I weren’t going around asking for it.

I recently spent some time in a waiting room and got to write recreational projects for about ninety minutes. Then I went to a public library for a little more. I put my watch and phone in my bag. The computer I use for writing is only for writing. I can’t access social media from here and have to actually remember and type in my email password. In other words, the only distractions were a handful of people coming and going as they browsed the stacks. There were other people working at tables around me but we all were quietly minding our own business.

This quiet combined with the gentle hum of an air conditioner and lovely view of nature, allowed me to sit still and concentrate long enough to string together a cohesive series of sentences into paragraphs that actually make sense. It was a gratifying, reassuring, inspiring and delightfully encouraging experience. It’s wonderful to know that I’m capable of doing more than I normally manage.

How does a gal replicate this atmosphere at home?

I really must find out!