Where and when do you do your most creative work? That's a question writers are often asked. My theme for November is "Time & Place." Some of this months posts will focus on the theme in their work (see Kaye George's post from Monday about researching an ice-age mystery). Others will be showing us where and when they write, and author Terry Shames leads off today with her (not that) messy desk and her task-dependent schedule. Welcome back Terry! ~ Sheila
Writing Time and Place
by Terry Shames
Recently I was thrilled to read that people are more creative
when they are surrounded by clutter. Years ago someone told me that it is
important to clear your desk when you are trying to write a first draft. Ever
since then, I’ve scolded myself every couple of weeks because I can’t seem to
stop piles of detritus from evolving around me. Even if I start the day with a
clean desk, by the end of the day, it’s a total wreck. I kept thinking there was
something wrong with me.
Ahhhh…after reading that article, now I can settle down and
write surrounded by the following: empty coffee cup, an old Bouchercon program,
Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine, a fat folder of event planning for Northern California
Sisters in Crime, bookmarks, my eating diary, lots of notes about everything from my current novel to
old grocery lists, a Thesaurus, my glasses, and an odd assortment of pens and
pencils.
What’s more important for me when I’m doing a first draft is not
where I write, but when. If I’m editing,
it doesn’t matter when I do it, but for some reason when I’m writing a first
draft, I work best early in the morning. I mean EARLY. I get up at six o’clock,
feed the dogs (or else they’d nibble me to death), brew myself a real cup of
tea made with tea leaves and am at work by 6:30. And I write. I can write in an
easy chair, in bed, at a café, at my kitchen table, or pretty much anywhere—even
at my cluttered desk.
I was glad to discover that I could even write on our catamaran.
A couple of years ago I had started a book just before I went to the boat. I
told my husband that I was on a roll, and needed to keep working. I asked him
to clear out of our cabin every morning at 6 o’clock while I wrote. Luckily, he’s
an early riser, like me and the book came rolling out. The only problem I had
was when one of our guests complained that I never came out of my cabin until 9
AM. I told her I was writing. I don’t think she believed me until A KILLING AT
COTTON HILL came out this summer!
When we sold our catamaran I felt nostalgic for writing there*,
but I need not have worried. A few months ago, my husband said he couldn’t live
without a boat. We found a new, smaller one that we both liked. When we were
looking her over, my husband came into the main cabin to find me sitting up on
the bed. He asked what I was doing. My reply? “Making sure I can write here.”
In fact I’m in the cabin writing this at 6:30 AM.
How about you? What’s your best writing time? Do you have to be
in a particular place, or can you work anywhere? What’s the most unusual place
you’re ever been able to write?
*Read Terry's earlier post about writing on the boat with her dogs here.
A KILLING AT COTTON HILL: A Samuel Craddock Mystery
The chief of police of Jarrett Creek, Texas, doubles as the
town drunk. So when Dora Lee Parjeter is murdered, her old friend and former
police chief Samuel Craddock steps in to investigate. He discovers that a lot
of people may have wanted Dora Lee dead—the conniving rascals on a neighboring
farm, her estranged daughter and her surly live-in grandson. And then there’s
the stranger Dora Lee claimed was spying on her. During the course of the
investigation the human foibles of the small-town residents—their pettiness and
generosity, their secret vices and true virtues—are revealed.
“…if you’re as fond of good writing as I am, it will be the
characters in Cotton Hill that will keep the pages turning until late in the
evening…” ~ Mysteryfile
“Shames’ novel is an amazing read. The poetic, literary quality
of the writing draws you in…” ~ RT
Book Reviews
“Readers will want to see more of the
likable main character, who compassionately but relentlessly sifts the
evidence. Convincing small town atmosphere and a vivid supporting cast are a
plus.” ~ Publisher
Weekly
“A KILLING AT COTTON HILL enchants with memorable characteres and a Texas backdrop as authentic as bluebonnets and scrub cedars. A splendid debut by a gifted writer who knows the human heart. Definitely a candidate for both the Edgar and Agatha Awards for Best First Novel.” ~ Carolyn Hart
"Terry Shames offers readers a wonderfully-told tale that
kept me turning pages… what kept my interest more than anything was the
writing. It was absolutely superb." - Lee
Lofland, The Graveyard Shift
Terry Shames grew up in Texas. She has abiding affection for the small town where here grandparents lived, the model for the fictional town of Jarrett Creek. A resident of Berkeley, California, Terry lives with her husband, two rowdy terriers and a semi-tolerant cat. She is a member of Sisters in Crime and Mystery Writers of America. Her second Samuel Craddock novel, THE LAST DEATH OF JACK HARBIN will be out in January 2014. Find out more about Terry and her books at www.Terryshames.com.
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