Shortly after I sold my first book, I decided I needed a home office. I’d been working primarily from my dining room table up until that point, always at my own speed, but suddenly I had deadlines to worry about. I figured I could carve out a small space in my kids’ playroom where I could have a desk, shelves, and privacy, and if you’re guessing that this was a gigantic, epic fail, you would be correct. Kids, as great as they are otherwise, are not so great at space sharing. Back to the dining room table it was.
When we moved into a new house a couple of years ago, I knew I wanted to try again for my own writing space. It helped that we bought our house from an architect who ran his business from a home studio, and I decided that studio space was going to be mine. (I thought about licking the door to the studio to claim ownership but figured that might be a bit much.)
I knew I wanted to transform the space into one of inspiration and also usability, so I broke it into zones—a writing zone and a reading zone. In the writing zone, I forewent a desk in favor of a dining room table because I wanted a surface large enough that one, two, three, four, or even five people could work at during a marathon writing session. I find I’m much more productive when working alongside others. (That’s code for: I feel guilty messing around on the Internet when I see others hard at work.)
The reading space was the bigger challenge. I was faced with two blank walls, one of which I wanted to house bookshelves, and one of which I had no idea what to do with. I thought and brainstormed for weeks until I got the crazy idea to hand paint the first page of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, the very book that had ignited my desire to write eons ago. My amazing husband built the bookshelves, and now that everything is done, I feel so inspired in my new space. It’s easier to drop into a writing rhythm, even when solo, and if I’m ever stuck, I can look at all the words around me and remind myself that every writer has been stuck, and every writer knows how to persevere.
Meredith McCardle attended the University of Florida and received Bachelor’s degrees in both magazine journalism and theater. She is also a graduate of the Boston University School of Law. She spent seven years working as a commercial litigator by day and writing at night before committing to writing full-time. She lives with her family in South Florida.
