I needed a writing space. Stephen King told me I did, and I do not disobey Mr King without good reason.
The space can be humble (probably should be, as I think I have already suggested), and it really needs only one thing: a door which you are willing to shut. The closed door is your way of telling the world and yourself that you mean business; you have made a serious commitment to write and intend to walk the walk as well as talk the talk.
-Stephen King, On Writing
Until a few days ago, my writing space was in the living room. I didn’t have the whole room to myself, just my desk in the corner. That was fine when AJ was working nights and I was alone in a silent house… except that it wasn’t. There was always a mess on the coffee table to be cleaned, dishes in the sink suddenly screaming to be washed as soon as I sat down to write, unmade beds chanting horrible and ominous things in the bedrooms.
You see, there was no door I could close. I needed my own writing space, I just didn’t know where to find it.
Cassandra Page posted last week about her new writing space– an actual study, if you can believe that. I said there was nowhere for me to have writing space, except for the stinky basement. True, we have a small bedroom that houses the desktop computer and the assorted geekery (read: toys) that AJ and I collect, but it’s not my space, and there’s no room for my desk.
And then I started thinking about that stinky basement…
I couldn’t take the only enclosed room. That’s the playroom, and AJ would go insane if that mess moved out into the open. I couldn’t take the TV area beside the stairs. That’s the “boy cave.” So where to put my girl cave?
Hello, storage area!
Holy carp, it’s even worse than I remembered. O.o
Fine, so it didn’t look like much. Fortunately, I’ve spent a bit of time over the last few years developing my imagination and learning to see possibilities.
I was going to make this WORK.
Now, obviously I couldn’t just move things and stick my desk in the corner; that would leave me no better off than I was in the living room. No, I needed walls, but my traditional construction skills are somewhat lacking.
Good thing I double-majored in box-stacking and blanket fort-building in kindergarten. I knew that would come in handy some day!
So I stacked me some boxes, unpacked and threw out some basement-smelling cardboard boxes, put everything back into the bins, and built a wall. I stacked the Christmas decorations in one easily-accessible corner, and covered the inside of my wall with the prettiest vintage bedsheets I had lying around. I stole an icky rug from the cats’ eating area, vacuumed the hair out of it, and laid it down. I set up the dog’s old kennel in the corner to make a table to spread my papers out on.
Eew. Needs a tablecloth or something.
I took a space heater from upstairs, brought down a Scentsy burner, put up a picture, and stole my glider-rocker back from the boy cave, because they don’t appreciate it like I do.
I stole borrowed a bookshelf AJ wasn’t using for much in his workout area, and brought another down from my space in the living room.
All I needed was… The Desk.
Yeah, I capitalized it. It’s not the biggest desk out there, but it’s 2×4 feet of heavy wood, handmade by AJ’s grandfather, plus a rolltop. Oh, and AJ was away this week, so I had to empty it, flip it, get it down the stairs and into my room all by myself.
Cue scary music
Nooooo problem. *flexes pathetic muscles*
And there we have it. An office built out of storage bins, blankets, and my own stuff from around the house (though I did treat myself to a new lamp, white board, and corkboard, because DAMMIT, I HAVE WALL SPACE!)
I’m so proud of my blanket/box walls. 🙂
Only one problem remains:
I still have no door.
Anybody have some extra, pretty sheets lying around? No? Looks like I’m off to the thrift store…
disregard the prologue 
October 31st, 2013 at 10:50 am
Well done writing space, Kate. I love the use of the dog’s old crate. All this time I’ve kept the previous version of Ellie B’s home folded up on the screened-in porch. Who knew what a great table it would make!
October 31st, 2013 at 10:51 am
You just never know until you have no other options. 🙂
October 31st, 2013 at 11:11 am
Have you considered using curtains in lieu of a door? You could (and I’m guessing the height here) suspend a pole across the crate ‘doorway’ where your cats are in the pic.
October 31st, 2013 at 11:25 am
I could, indeed. Might need to be a little higher so I don’t bonk my noggin on the rod, but that might work!
October 31st, 2013 at 11:36 am
another couple of boxes on top of those other boxes 😀 and you are sorted! Be sure to get a Health and Safety assessment form completed before beginning work, though!
October 31st, 2013 at 11:38 am
MOAR BOXESSSSSSSS! 😀
Jeez, health and safety… I didn’t even wear a hard hat during construction.
October 31st, 2013 at 11:50 am
Even empty ones would be enough to support a lightweight curtain, although you might be best taping the pole to the boxes – or sliding it through any useful handholds in their sides!
October 31st, 2013 at 11:51 am
Needs more pulleys. And a trebuchet. And more cowbell.
October 31st, 2013 at 12:15 pm
Definitely more cowbell. 🙂
October 31st, 2013 at 11:48 am
This is AMAZING!!! Aunty Kathy and I are so proud you didn’t wait to move the desk! Of ourse there was the time I got a bookshelf stuk in the turn of the stairs and I was stuck in the corner…and had to pee. But I digress. This is a wonderful space and you are going to love having it!
October 31st, 2013 at 11:49 am
That’s kind of what I was worried about, except I thought I’d get stuck half-way down the stairs with gravity overwhelming me.
October 31st, 2013 at 11:50 am
(And I always have to pee, do there’s that.)
October 31st, 2013 at 4:29 pm
I’m glad you took those before and after pictures. I love space transformations!!! You did such a great job on this. Maybe you should have a DIY show.
November 7th, 2013 at 10:55 pm
Awesome. Congrats on the new writing area. Looks nice and cozy. I’m impressed with you hauling the desk downstairs. Sounds like something my wife would do 🙂
I’ve been blessed with my own office at home for years now because I work from home. About the only thing I don’t do right is close the door when I go into get some writing done. You can bet that’s going to happen now!
November 7th, 2013 at 11:00 pm
It helps! I pulled a sheet across. It’s not a door, but it shuts the world out and tells me it’s time to work.
April 17th, 2014 at 1:07 pm
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