21.12: Breaking Down Barriers- Environment

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3:10Season 21, episode 12. This is Writing Excuses. Breaking down barriers. Environment. Tools, not rules. For writers, by writers. I'm Mary Robinette. I'm Dong Wan. I'm Erin. This week, we are talking about the barriers to your writing process. We started off a little bit earlier this season talking about this sort of track of the curriculum this season that is talking about, like, how do you fine-tune your process? How do you keep going?

3:40How do you make sure that you're in a space where you can keep working on the stuff you want to be working on? And so we're going to be doing a series sort of following on to the process conversation about what are your barriers to writing? What are the things that are getting in your way? How to analyze them? How to figure that out? And, you know, some solutions from us on how to deal with it. And so the first one we wanted to start with is kind of the most obvious. What are the environmental factors getting in your way? And that could be everything from what's your desk set up? Where is your office?

4:11What's the light like? What's the sound like? Those kind of things, right? So I guess what I just want to start with is for each of us, what is your ideal working environment? And do you feel like your current workspace fulfills that? My workspace, like I honestly don't know what my ideal would be because I move around so much when I'm writing. Currently what I have, and I quite like it actually, I'm in a furnished apartment and it came with a standing desk with a giant monitor.

4:45And I find that I love that. I've had a standing desk before and I really like it because it reduces, like I can just walk to the desk. Like I don't have to worry about pulling things out and stuff like that.

4:58But for me, the things that I found that I need for a long-term writing solution is I have to have a window. If I can't see outside, I get like a little squirrely. I need a comfortable keyboard. I need a monitor that I don't have to strain to see. And then I need the right kind of sound, which varies depending on project. So control over my sound, I guess would be the better way to say it.

5:30That makes sense. It's interesting because I have two different sort of setups in my apartment. One is a sort of my desktop setup, which is a desktop with dual monitors that are exactly the same size. It's just two of the same one. And I do feel like I'm probably the most productive when sitting up in front of my desk doing that. However, there are times when I just get sick of working. I can't explain it. I'm just like, oh, more writing. I don't think you need to explain getting sick of working. I mean, it's a very normal emotion.

6:00Why? And so I also have a laptop that I use mostly when I travel. But sometimes I will take it and I will just sit in front of the TV, which is interesting because I know I am not as productive. But it's like I can work on half productivity but less annoyance at the fact that I have to be somewhat productive. If I sit on my couch and like type on the laptop while like 18 seasons of American Greed play in the background or some other show that Cupcake Wars that like is so repetitive that it doesn't really require any full attention.

6:34But every so often something interesting happens and I can look up and be like, oh, I cheated him out of all that money or they made a cupcake and then go back to what I'm doing. I forgot that when I was in Chicago, I did have something that kind of felt like the ideal thing. I had a desk for work, like emails, et cetera. And then I had a chaise lounge that was wide enough for me and a cat for writing. Absolutely. And it was next to the fireplace and a window and it was glorious. Yeah.

7:03For me, I think a little bit similar. I have my own office in the place I just moved to and I have dual monitors. One is horizontal, one is vertical because a lot of what I do is look at contracts. So a vertical monitor is very helpful for comparing documents. I think the biggest thing for me is I need my desk. I need very low visual clutter in my workspace. So my desk is like clean. There's like nothing on it aside from the devices that need to be there. And then I think that's like one of the biggest things for me is just like not a lot of visual density where I'm looking.

7:38My biggest struggle is around natural light. I like to work in a little dark cave. Also, I really like natural light. And so I think finding an easy way to balance those two things is a thing that I have yet to quite figure out at this stage. In part, my office is also like where the projector is set up to watch TV and stuff. And so it has really intense blackout curtains that I could just open. Do I? No. Which results in having a secondary thing, which is I'll often take my notebook and go outside and sit outside and work.

8:14If I'm doing something that's not computer based, I'll go sit. We have like a little picnic table outside so I can sit at that and work. Or just making deliberate time to be like, I'm going to go sit in the garden for a little bit because I've been in my little cave all day. So I think balancing those is part of the trick and figuring out what do I need right now in terms of, you know, natural light, in terms of having like this little dark space that I can focus and concentrate in. It's an ongoing sort of like how do I balance this?

8:44Yeah, I find that when I'm, it was interesting when you asked me what my ideal place is because I've spent more time thinking about what gets in my way than, so like what am I running from instead of what I'm running to, if that makes any sense. So what I tend to do, because I, I have ADHD and I do get distracted with shocking ease and in hindsight, that was my whole life.

9:13But like I will, I will run through my senses to kind of check to see, is it, when I'm, when I'm bouncing off going, it's like, is it, is it a thing that is happening with the desk? Um, is it a thing that's happening with the story? Is it a thing that's happening with outside world? But when it's a, when it's a thing with the, the writing space, um, the, the recommendation I have for folks is literally run through your senses, sight, sound, touch, scent, and taste. Um, and like some people, I, I cannot write with the TV on.

9:46That's a. Sound is a big one for me. My last apartment before this one was next to a major road. Like in having moved, I can tell how much just the constant road noise was draining me on some level that I hadn't even really clocked. Yeah. And now like having a, a nice little quiet room has been so much better for me. I think speaking of sound, I'm remembering the time I tried to like Pavlov dog myself into writing more, uh, constantly years ago where I had a specific song that I would always listen to.

10:16At the beginning of every writing session to the point where like, I just associated it so heavily with writing that I could put it on. It had nothing to do. It was like a random Tracy Chapman song, but I was like, okay, like this song is on. It's time to write now. Um, because listening to y'all, I'm realizing that I'm sort of like a disembodied like consciousness in that. And I think like a lot of times I just screen out everything that is happening around me and like, unless it is really big, I will not notice it. Like I wear noise canceling headphones in my house 99% of the time.

10:50And so when storms happen, it startles me because until the actual thunder hits, I have missed the 18 other cues that we are in the middle of the storm. Like, Oh, it got darker. Like, Oh, this happened. Like I've missed all of that until it's like, go, go. And I'm like, what's happening? Are we under attack? You weren't really capable of working anywhere. I've seen you work in like noisy bars in airports, in hotel lobbies, like, you know, in your hotel room with that. I, I wish I was more flexible where and how I could work. Um, there are a couple of tricks that I have for like working in places that aren't my normal space of working.

11:24You know what I mean? Um, and for whatever reason, this last couple of weeks, we've been staying at this retreat center and there are certain spaces here I work great in and certain spaces I don't in my room. Unfortunately is one that I don't work great in. And over the past few days, we've been more limited to our rooms. And I've noticed that my ability to work gone. Yeah. I finally realized that I needed to sit facing the window because I'd been sitting with my back to the window facing into the room. And I was like, Oh, look outside. It's better. Um, also those chairs are not comfortable, which is like one of the things that was happening to me in Chattanooga that I didn't realize how uncomfortable my chair was, that it was, it was just uncomfortable enough that I was getting up, but not so uncomfortable that it was causing problems.

12:10Um, and when I switched chairs, weirdly, the chair that worked best for me was like one of those old wood schoolhouse chairs. Yeah. It was just ergonomically fit me exactly right. Um, so that was, that was better. One of the things that I, I, I've also done the Pavlovian training of myself. Um, I have a writing playlist, which is, um, uh, instrumental versions of power anthems. Um, which I love like violin with 80s rock power anthems is amazing. Um, but I also, I, I started doing, uh, brain FM, which is binaural sound. And I was like, is this science driven or is this like, and sometimes who cares?

12:57Sometimes who cares? And it is deeply annoying because it works really, really well. I turn it on and I do get more focused and I get more work done. 90% of the time I want it quiet. 90% time is just me working in silence. But there are certain times where I can get into headspace where it's like, my brain is too noisy and I need something to like suppress that in some weird way. And so a friend of mine made this playlist that we call work heavy, that is just like really pounding, driving. It's like industrial horror rap basically.

13:27And it's like the, the lyrics are fast enough and loud enough that you don't really make them out. But also like, if you stop and listen, you're like, what's happening? What am I listening to? Anyways, they made this thing and I use it all the time. And it really helps me like power through a block in a certain way. Because it's just sometimes it's also like the beat and the aggressiveness will just be like, okay, I'm going, I'm doing the thing, you know? It's funny. I'm thinking about like how tiredness also affects all of this because when I, I also have like, I have like a regular playlist that I listen to and normally it's fine.

13:58Like I will ignore it even though it's songs with lyrics or what have you. But the more tired I get late at night, if I'm still working, I will easily get distracted by the song. I think because I want to be sleeping. And so my brain's like, I don't want to be doing this anymore. I'm done with you. And so I actually have to switch to instrumental. It's the only time that I listen to instrumental is like late at night when I'm still trying to focus because I think I do focus more. And it's the one time that I need the extra boost to like carry me through my actual physical state, which is like, oh, this is not quite working for me.

14:30And just for, for listeners, we are going to be doing a whole episode about physical fatigue later. Yeah. But let's take a break there. And when we come back, I want to talk more about how to troubleshoot these problems.

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18:02WeGovi clinical study information, and restrictions, visit ForHERS.com. Dinner time. It's where little moments are cherished. With Blue Cash Preferred, get 6% cash back at U.S. supermarkets and bring everyone together. I did say everyone. Learn more at AmericanExpress.com slash explore-bcp. Terms and cash back cap apply with Blue Cash Preferred. If the world were like a Sleep Number mattress, everything would adapt for your comfort. Because as your life changes and your body changes,

18:32Sleep Number mattresses adapt and shift to give you personalized comfort night after night. And now everything's on sale during our Memorial Day event. Save up to $1,200 on mattresses, plus free delivery when you add a base. Ends Monday. To experience a whole new world of comfort, visit a Sleep Number store or go to sleepnumber.com. Sleep Number. To a good life's sleep. Okay, welcome back. Yeah, so as we've been talking about understanding what your ideal workspace is in terms of these different sensory things, right?

19:04Like visual, sight, sound, you know, sort of physicality, sitting in your chair and things like that. How do you start troubleshooting when something feels off? Like when you're having a problem, how do you work backwards to is this an environmental factor? I really, so I really do sit there and run through my senses.

19:26And sometimes it will involve sitting in the chair and going, what is distracting me right now? What's pulling my attention? And, like, I will sometimes journal it. It's like, is there a problem with the story? And it's, I become aware that it's an environmental thing when there's not a problem with the story and I know where I'm going, but I still keep getting up. Yeah. That's usually a trigger or a cue.

19:58And if I'm doing some journaling, I'm like, is there other stuff? Because sometimes it is the fate of the world, which we will, again, be talking about later. But usually if I just sit or stand in my spot, I'm like, what is making me feel unsettled right now? I also have to have a clean desk and for the long, most of my life I was not, but now I realize how important that is.

20:23So that kind of thing. Yeah, I think for me, like, when, because a lot of times I'm ignoring my body, when something comes through, like, I need to pay attention to that signal. So, like, I will be sitting at my desk and be like, it is hot in here. I don't know why. Suddenly I'm like, oh, like, I forgot to turn on the air, whatever. It's Texas. I'm like, it's hot. And then I'll be like, but wait, keep working. And I have to remember that the three seconds it's going to take me to go adjust the air or put a fan on is worth all the lot.

20:55Because it feels like, oh, I don't want to step away from what I'm doing. But then I'm going to think in, like, 30 minutes or 10 seconds, like, oh, that's really hot. I'm so hot right now. Like, this is so annoying. And so I think it's like, for me, it's less being able to recognize the signal and more knowing what to do with it. Because I think it can be, it's going to sound weird, but easy for me to ignore things like, I have not eaten. And so sometimes I'll also think, like, have I eaten today? Am I hot? Like, what is happening? And try to, like, but I never thought of it sense-wise, which is interesting, like, what the senses are.

21:27Because it may be that I'm noticing it without even realizing it. Well, that was the thing that I, that was the thing that made me realize that it was my chair.

21:36Was that I was like, what is, what is, what is it?

21:42And just bumped through the senses. I mean, the thing that I struggle with sometimes is exactly what you're talking about, Aaron, in terms of overcoming the threshold of, I need to deal with this, right? The, like, I'm uncomfortable right now, but, like, I need to get up and go get a glass of water. I need to turn the fan on because my room is hot. Or I need to spend five minutes researching a solution to the problem that I'm having of, like, my pens are all over my desk and it makes me insane every day. What's a better place I can put my pens? I need a caddy or a thing or something, right?

22:14This also leads to the flip side of it, which is sometimes I end up buying 18 different productivity things that make no difference at all to my life. You know what I mean? And, you know, I'm someone who's very easily swayed by the aesthetic thing that looks nice and then does not meet my function for whatever reason. There's an old YouTube video that I think about all the time that has a key line in it, which is sometimes expensive things are worse, you know? Yeah. And I think about that a lot sometimes when I'm like, this notebook is very beautiful. It's not meeting my needs as a physical object that increases my productivity.

22:45Yeah. I will, in those cases, what I will also check is, is the thing that I'm working on something that makes me want to flee? Mm. Because if it's something that makes me want to flee, then I'm like, you're not actually thirsty. Yeah. You just want to get away from this. You're just being avoidant. Yeah. You don't actually need a new pen right now. Like, it's right now. And so, I, when I am a good person. I'm laughing because I just remembered a week ago where I changed the ink in my pen for no reason.

23:18Yeah. And clearly I just didn't want to do whatever I was doing. Yeah. I have done that and been like, well, now I need to clean all of my fountain pens. Yeah.

23:26But I find that, that if I can, if I, if my desk is clear, then my notebook is there and then I can make a note to myself that I need this thing. So, so like running through the, you had said, let's, let's talk about some of the things we can do to solve problems.

23:48Because we already talked about some of the sound things. Um, sight things is one of the things I actually want to really flag for people because our phones are a visual stimulus and they are designed to get your computer, your, your noise or all of the things that are happening on your, your computer. So, um, nursemaid apps, uh, like, uh, freedom.to, uh, I have a minimalist app on my phone, um, just turning off notifications. Even just customizing your do not disturb settings so you can turn it on and then you know that, oh, if the school calls, it'll still come through because I set on my do not disturb properly.

24:25Right. Even just taking the five minutes to do that could be really helpful. Yeah. Um, I have a bowl that I put my phone into, uh, that's on my desk. It's an aesthetically pleasing bowl. Uh, but the action of pulling it out of the bowl is so specific that, um, that I notice it. Whereas when it's just on the desk, like that's, you set the phone down in all the time and pick it up. So it wasn't enough of a, this is different. You made it, you, you, you set it there because you didn't want to use it.

24:56Um, I know some people use a bag to stick their phone in, which is just one. It's just, you have to figure out what the barrier is. And the opening the bag to put the phone in was too much of a barrier. So the bowl works better for me. So funny. Cause I feel like I'm the opposite way, but the same totally makes sense. Which is that like, I wear a smartwatch, uh, because I think digital watches are a neat idea to call back to previous episode. And I, I just liked the fact that it will buzz if something is happening that I need to pay attention to.

25:30So to me, I think the danger is if I'm just getting an email, I actually don't find that distracting. I can easily process. Is this something I need to do? Is it new work? Is it like a thing? Cool. I'll deal with that later. And I use like a very, uh, not complex, but I use like a tagging system in my email to say like, I have a to respond tag. So I'll just be like, okay, tag that to respond. Then I won't forget about it. And I know it came in, but I don't check my phone to see if anyone has texted me or called me because if they did, I would know it would have buzzed.

26:00So there's no reason to just look. And I found that before I had the watch, I would pick up the phone thinking like, oh, maybe somebody in my family texted me and, oh, let me check the state of the world while I'm holding this. Oh God, but the notifications won't tell me about the state of the world. They will only tell me about the state of people who are trying to reach me in this moment. And I can easily like, for me at least, distinguish between what's important there and what isn't. And I don't freak out thinking I'm missing things, which I think is a thing for me. I also do literally the opposite, but because my job requires me to not miss messages when they come in and get those notifications.

26:32So I literally have a magnetic charging stand. So my phone is directly under my computer monitor. So if it buzzes, I can look down and be like, oh, my mom texted. I can respond to that later. Sorry, mom. Or, you know, my boss is calling me. I need to pick that up and see what he needs. You know what I mean? It's funny because I developed a bowl because the thing I used to do was to put my phone in airplane mode when I was writing. And with mom, they had to be able to reach me. And so the phone would buzz, like if someone needed to get to me, the phone would buzz.

27:05And it was it's much louder in the bowl when it buzzes.

27:10But there's a it's a limited number of people. And the vast majority of things, if if they have to wait half an hour or an hour, there's almost nothing that that is that urgent that that is a business thing. So I think for me, the reason also I was thinking about environment. Environment, I'm sure we're going to talk about this in another barrier later, but like I think part of environment is people in your environment, like who is in your environment physically.

27:40And I think as somebody who lives alone, like I think I also like the buzz because it reminds me that, like, I'm actually a person in the world and people want to reach me, even if it's just to tell me about the great sale that I can only get 20 percent off today. But it makes me feel connected in a way if I'm like this is the fifth day in a row that it's just going to be me in my house working. And I think that is why I'm like, oh, at least somebody, at least the people at the sale care about me type of thing. That sounds bad. But, you know, I mean, like it's a nice to see like all family members texting me.

28:11Let me see what's going on there. And so I like being able to have it right at hand. Yeah, I'm sharing space with a new person in my life. And so, you know, when we moved in recently, we had to have a conversation about like, OK, what are our signals for I'm interruptible? I'm not interruptible. What level of contact do you want throughout the workday? You know, and for me, it's it's the problem with me is it's variable. Some days I'm like, yeah, you can come in and chat and it's not a big deal. And there's other days where I'm like, I need to be focused on this. So even just coming with a couple of really clear signals to roommates, partners, children, whatever it is of door closed or open, you know, maybe a certain light in the hallway on or off.

28:48Those kind of things just come up with some system that lets you signal to other people. Hey, I'm interruptible. I'm not interruptible. The biggest thing I hear from people is they just constantly, you know, have those interruptions and it derails them. So finding ways to protect your space from your loved ones is also really important. Yeah, we're going to do a whole episode on on how to manage interruptions because they do happen. And so like how to how to deal with it when someone has interrupted you. But I have the same thing like I had to it is it's a even if you have them trained to not interrupt you, sometimes it can still be a visual distraction and make you go, what is going on?

29:29So like I had to set my desk so that I could not see the door because my husband would come to the door and, you know, I had a thing on the desk that said I was writing, but he would come to the door and you'd see this slowly peering as he was trying to see what it said. And then slowly back out. And by that point, I've already noticed him. It's such like a cartoon situation.

29:57Yeah. But it's also you like the person. You want to talk to the person. So it's like distraction isn't necessarily them being an intrusion. Sometimes it is also like protecting our time from ourselves. Yes. Yeah. Yeah. Having a reasonable response to a piece of stimulus. So you remove the stimulus by not removing your spouse, but just setting it so you can't see them. I also want to mention really fast reading glasses because this is a thing that will creep up on people. Um, if you find yourself, you've, you've identified everything else and you get drowsy when you sit down while you are writing, there is a fair chance that you're having eye fatigue.

30:35Um, I was having this thing where I would literally fall asleep while I was narrating, actively speaking, because, uh, because of the eye fatigue. And, like, you can solve that with, uh, reading glasses that you can pick up at the grocery store. Nice. Yeah. Shall we? Yeah. Um, so with all of that, I have a little bit of homework for you, which is, I would like you to use your senses and make a list of all the things you experience in your writing environment.

31:07Uh, sound, smell, texture, weight, make an inventory of your body's physical experience of your writing space. And then, once you've made that list, consider what serves you and what is a barrier. This has been Writing Excuses. You're out of excuses. Now go write.

31:27Writing Excuses has been brought to you by our listeners, patrons, and friends. Your hosts for this episode were Mary Robinette Kowal, Don Juan Song, and Erin Roberts. This episode was engineered by Marshall Carr, Jr., mastered by Alex Jackson, and produced by Emma Reynolds. For more information, visit writingexcuses.com.

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