Finding peaceful time...

[Kokopelli]

I am curious to know what steps everyone takes to find total peace and quiet when it comes to writing. I cannot find this luxury for the life of me.

The place is always filled with incessant noise that I cannot escape; wife bothering me with questions, the television, daughter barging into the room to ask what we are doing for the pet’s birthdays. Don’t get me wrong, I love my family dearly. But crikey! There are times where my head feels like it is going to explode.

My wife tells me to use headphones.. only problem, is the music becomes an annoyance. Like the stupid, arrogant paper clip on Microsoft Word, interrupting you with useless information or stupid questions. Granted, I could easily leave and hop onto a wifi somewhere, but then I feel like I am abandoning the family. Yet if I’m at home, I cannot begin to concentrate on writing.

 

[MrBF1V3]

I write at night, when everyone else is asleep. It's luck, I'm a night person, my wife isn't, and my kids don't have a choice, yet. Also, I have a work schedule where I get Mondays off. If I can keep my wife from piling my day up with errands and other stuff I can get some writing in.

Sometimes.

B5

 

[sunstruckdream]

I live on a dorm floor with sixteen people and walls the approximate thickness of toilet paper. I feel your pain.

Since there's rarely an escape from this, I've gotten really, really good at blocking out excess noise. If there's noise the hall, I usually don't hear it. Sometimes headphones help with noise in the room (I have a dramatic roommate), but I know what you mean. Unless the music's more or less instrumental, I get distracted by it. What I've taken to doing is staying up late when everyone else is sleeping. It's not the best habit I've ever gotten myself into, so sometimes I go outside or to the library. That's usually best for me. But short of leaving the house, I'm not sure what else you can do...

 

[Tariel]

I know exactly what you mean about the dorm I live in one too. There's certain music that I can (and almost have to) listen to when I'm writing, but I'm very picky. There are only 79 songs I can use. Sometimes I stay up late, sometimes I try to block out the surrounding noise with music and willpower. When I really start writing, the rest of the world vanishes though. My roommate once told me that she could tell me that aliens were attacking and I wouldn't respond while I'm writing.

What you may want to do is get a pair of noise canceling headphones and just wear them with no music playing - my brother has been known to do that and it works well for him.

 

[sunstruckdream]

When I really start writing, the rest of the world vanishes though. My roommate once told me that she could tell me that aliens were attacking and I wouldn't respond while I'm writing.

Oh man...I identify. My roomie thinks I have the polar opposite of attention deficit disorder.

Her: Hey, do you know what's for dinner?
Me: (keeps writing)
Her: Kath.
Me: (keeps writing)
Her: (gives up)
(A minute passes)
Me: Oh...I think it's teriyaki night.

 

[Doubtless]

/rotfl. I'm kind of like that, only it usually goes:

Bro: Tomorrow, I think I'm going to...
Me: *looks up*
Bro: check Ebay for...
2 1/2 minutes later
Bro (cont'd): and then I'll-
Me: Wait, what? I totally missed that, start over.

Yeh, I think musicless headphones could be a good investment. For me, as long as the music is quiet, I can write away. Lots of times, though, I play certain songs nice and loud, and use the emotion in them to affect my writing.

 

[Soldier_For_Christ]

I can hardly find time to write anymore. I'm hoping that will change over the summer.

 

[Kokopelli]

Thank you guys for the tips - good to know I'm not alone with it. The funny thing about it, is that I have a nice set of the Bose headphones, but they're not the noise-canceling version. Though they do well in canceling out the lady who sits behind me at work..

But I might have to try going to a Barnes and Noble a few nights week.


-MrBF1V3

Like you, I write best at night too, provided I haven't stressed myself out during the evening.