Over the years I’ve used various computers on desks to produce writing. However, the while the overall method has remained the same, the dynamic has changed remarkably.
1996-2000
Cramped in a small bedroom, I had a TV mounted on the wall opposite the bed, and an Amiga 1200 (which I still have, but don’t use) mounted beside the bed. This was a multi-pivoting arm that I could pull and push in whatever direction for comfort and positioning. While I sold zero articles before the mid 2000s, I did plenty of college work and personal writing projects that went nowhere.
2000-2003
Several setups of “PC on desk” existed around this time. However, I had recognised that the more physical desktop space was available, the more productive I became.
2004-2005
I loved that blue shirt
Again, however, this was a cramped up desk, built around the idea and requirements of a desktop PC. With a pull out keyboard table, you would think that the desk afforded productivity while looking tidy, but this didn’t really happen. For a short time Ceri and I had a room dedicated to computers and desks, but this offered no discernable benefit (although the room was at the back of the house and relatively quiet).
2006-2010
Another dedicated room in our new (current) home, things began to change. A large, corner desk meant more desktop space, more productivity, and the beginning of my professional writing career.
2010-2014
Swapping rooms to accomodate a nursery for our twins in 2011, I created a home office environment with vast desktop area, shelves, and even a shelf-based standing desk. I switched between this and the corner desk seen at the top of the page.
Meanwhile, I began to move away from tower PCs towards laptops, by way of a series of dockable Windows tablets.
2015-2021
Since Bruce needed his own room, for the past six years I’ve written at the kitchen table, with a few trips to coffee shops for peace and quiet. This is ideal when the children are at school, less so when they’re at home. I found writing beyond the confines of the house quite liberating, concentrating on paid work and my own deranged musings alike while the world hustles and bustles around me. Coffee is expensive, though.
2021 Onwards
I need to paint
I now have an office once again. This time, it’s outside, in a dedicated new build. I don’t get told to turn the music down, but it’s jolly cold without a heater. I can spend some time pottering with books, writing, doing some photography for reviews, and so forth, without interruption. Okay, occasional interruptions, but rarely anything major. There is also the advantage of being able to record podcasts without interruption.
Better still, I’m saving a ton on coffee.
