As August slips away into September, the autumnal weather has settled damply over Yorkshire for the past few days, and we have had nothing but wind and rain both night and day. I really enjoy this kind of weather. I am ready to see the end of summer and move forwards into the darker, colder months. I have my first chai tea latte of the season beside me, and the study is aglow with scented candles. I'm burning Yankee's new Autumn Glow and it smells like a rain drenched blackberry hedge.
Autumn is a great time for writers because the weather colludes with us, encouraging long stints at the desk as the rain batters the windowpanes. It is safe to say though, that even professional writers don't always wake up in the mood to write. Sometimes we have to gently persuade ourselves to get started and that is where creating the right kind of atmospheric mood comes in. Of course, different atmospheres and environments work for different writers, but when you have a deadline to meet, you don't have the luxury of not meeting the daily word count for your project. So here are some of my most common writing moods and atmospheres, to give you a touch of motivation and inspiration.
Woodland Writing; there is nothing more grounding than taking a blanket outdoors and sitting under a tree to write. Nature and fresh air will clear your mind and help to free latent ideas. You don't have to go far - a tree in your back garden is just as good as one in Sherwood Forest. I have a little bench placed beneath the elder tree in my garden and I can spend happy hours reading and writing here whenever the woodland writing mood takes me. Take a flask of hot latte or mocha with you and settle in for an hour or two, until the chill sends you back indoors.
Wanderlust Writing; sometimes you just need to get away and explore new surroundings and environments, or people watch, or simply while away an afternoon on your project somewhere new. Some people like to go and sit in cafes to write, and while this isn't really my thing, I do enjoy sitting in libraries. However, my wanderlust writing really comes into play when I am in Scotland, or at the coast. I find both of these environments extremely inspiring and I never come away empty handed - I always have a draft of work to bring back with me so that I can edit and polish it at home. It might be a poem, a song or an idea for a new column, feature or book - but for me, the wanderlust writing mood always yields a decent creative harvest.
Four-Poster Bed Writing; let's be honest, some days it's hard to get out of bed, especially as the weather turns colder and the days grow darker. On those days when my chronic fatigue kicks in and getting up is just too big a chore, I take a shower, put on clean snuggly pajamas and climb right back into bed with my laptop. There I can spend a 'lazy' day, still resting, but being productive at the same time. This is a great trick to use for those more laborious tasks, such as correcting page proofs or sending emails to editors, because it tricks the mind into thinking that you haven't even got up yet! It also makes tasks feel less irksome to me, because I am still snuggled under the duvet in my beautiful four-poster bed, so I feel pampered. It works like a charm - and I must confess that every single one of my essays over the past seven years of studying, have all been written this way. I hate writing essays, so I do it a way that is easiest for me, from the nurturing comfort of my bed, and it is clearly effective because I've passed every essay up to now. This mood is great for writers who are night-owls too. In my experience, late night bedtime writing is best served with a glass of wine and chocolate.
Rocking Chair Musings; a big part of writing is in the planning. You have to sit and think things through, question where a project is going and ponder on what needs to happen next. For me, all such musings take place in my rocking chair. Here I can sit and think, as the rocking motion gently takes me into a more dreamy, meditative state. The motion of a rocking chair reminds the subconscious mind of being rocked as a baby, so it lulls us into a sense of safety and dreamlike relaxation. As such it is the perfect tool for a writer, because inspiration strikes when we are meditative and open to it. Second only to the basic tools of notebooks, pens and a laptop, a rocking chair is an essential piece of writerly kit. It's where we meet inspiration, where the initial dream takes hold, to eventually become ideas, projects and published works. I'd be lost without my rocking chair. Just be careful if you have a long-tailed pet!
Old Fashioned Writing; as wonderful as modern technology is for writers, occasionally, I feel the need to step back in time. This is when one of my Victorian writing slopes comes out to play, when I write everything in longhand and by candlelight. On these occasions I feel like a Bronte sister, which is inspiring in and of itself, but the slower pace of writing also means that I think more deeply as I create my copy. This mood is probably best for shorter pieces of work such as poems or song lyrics, although I wrote all ten of my books in longhand, before typing them up and editing as I went along. These days I am more comfortable creating new copy directly onto a screen, but I still have days where I need to feel the pen in my fingers and the paper beneath my hand. Personally, I choose this method whenever I am writing my journal, or something that falls into the Gothic genre, as the mood and the genre complement one another so well. It is also a very witchy way to write, so it's perfect for updating a Book of Shadows or creating new spells and incantations! This writerly atmosphere is all about candlelight and incense, the sound of the scratching nib of a fountain pen and the scent of sealing wax and paper.
So there you have it - five of my most tried and tested writerly moods for you to try out and experiment with this autumn. I hope they work as well for you as they have done for me over the years.
Blessed be
Marie x
