A Room of One's Own
For as long as there have been women writing, there have been women writing furtively, interruptedly, sporadically. Jane Austen wrote in the parlour, hiding the pages when someone entered the room. Nearly 200 years later, Jane Urquhart wrote stories on her dining room table since she was the only person in the house without a room of her own. Little has changed.Women have a long history of putting their ambitions last. Of course these days it is encouraged to try (I say try because I wonder how many are really doing it successfully) to balance career and family, but generally only if it is economically feasible. Work where the payoff is uncertain is often considered frivolous and unnecessary. This is a whole other post I know, one I don't have the strength for right now!
To get back on topic, I could carve out a room of my own and I should. I need to buy myself a good office chair and rearrange the guest room. I need to stop writing at the dining room table, or on the sofa with the laptop burning my legs.
Where do you all write (or paint, compose, whatever)? How many of you have a room of your own? Do you want one?
posted by metro mama @ 12:20 PM
17 Comments:
We do have an den in our house, where our computer is. It's not a laptop so I have to write in that room. However, I think if I had a laptop I would probably be writing in the family room on the couch or in my bedroom. I do that sometimes now in a notebook.
I do not have a room of my own, and I want one -- desperately. I can totally picture what it would look like and be furnished with.
Right now I surf, write, pay bills, etc. on the couch with my laptop. Thank goodness for wireless, at least!
I 'write' ( I don't consider myself a true writer, a blogger yes, a writer no) in a room off the kitchen that looks over my yard. I love it.
we have a nice room with a desk on it, but the computer is always on the couch with me. however i suspect i'll lament the loss of the room once this babe takes it over.
but to be honest, i do most of my writing at work.
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...a nice room with a desk IN it, even.
I've been thinking about this lately. The "office" is in the basement - for quite a long time it was an adults-only space, not childproofed, no toys, gated. But in the last year or so, it has been slowly invaded by a train table, playpen, toy stroller, various toys that were supposedly taken out of circulation but have since been rediscovered...
At the same time, I have also got a laptop now, so I tend to work at my kitchen table - nice breezes come in the window, snacks are (far too) handy... I find it more pleasant up here, but it's highly symbolic - I'm always having to shove my computer out of the way (usually on top of the microwave, which can't be a good thing) to make way for meals, kids, etc.
I would love to have a house big enough for a room of my own.
The living room couch is kind of my room right now. Half of it is covered with my laptop and school books. Our den is the one room we have never really moved into properly, though I don't know if I'd use it for its intended purpose if it were set up--too far from the center of things.
I'll have a carrel at the library next year, so that will be my room of my own for next school year--a little drab and cramped, but my own space. When we buy a house, we'd love to have a fourth bedroom with a door and everything where the adults can have the academic books and a couple clean surfaces.
I have my own office! With a bay window and a beautiful computer and everything and I do noooothing to justify it!
I love my office.
I share a desk with SB in the living room. But most of the time I take my laptop, burn my thighs (and god knows what else) on the futon couch in our bedroom. It's quiet and I get more done. I do wish I had my own desk *sigh* - apartment living sometimes sucks.
I usually take my laptop outside (weather permitting) in my backyard- though the blinding sun often makes it next to impossible to see the screen.
or the kitchen, or basement or in bed.
we have a den with a comfy chair and bright skylight but for some reason I never hang out in there to write...but maybe I should.
less distractions.
Curled up in the nook of the couch with pillows and quilt. Oblivious to laptop burning and all other distractions.
I finally got a room of my own when we moved into this house 4 years ago. But in addition to being my room, it is also a great dumping ground for all the little bits that do not have a place. And often, when I am in there, my children feel the need to come play there. So is it really a room of my own?
Posting from the couch...
Probably won't change too much when we move into our new house, I'm afraid.
ah...yes. i dream of a secret place with drawers and bins that only belong to me. i don't see it happening anytime soon, but yes, i'd like that very much.
I dream of having a room in an English country home just like the one shown in The Hours.
In reality house prices here in TO make me happy that I have a laptop with wireless access.
Baby girls room was my office. It had a nice desk but the view was better from my kitchen table. I had to make myself go into work sometimes when I was trying to finish my thesis.
Did you see Jane Urquhart in the Globe home section friday? She spoke at my book club about a Map of Glass. I really liked her and the book.
Right now I have a room for my glass work, but in the fall, it becomes the Pumpkinpie's new room, and I move to the basement. We are clearing the middle room of the basement out for me and setting up a table and lights and so on. Just me and the spiders...
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