I love hearing the story of how you are writing your book. (I have to admit I’m a bit envious of the European vacation, though. I haven’t been back since we went to Italy in 2003.) I totally understand your feeling about coffee shops. I love the hustle and bustle and that feeling of being part of a community. I’m an introvert and tend to isolate so it’s good for me to get out into the world.

Good luck with your novel and keep me posted on how it’s going.

I’ve been unintentionally trying different writing locations and even approaches with my first novel, which I’m writing at the ripe old age of 42. I started it nearly two years ago on the overnight newswriting shift at my television station (don’t tell management), writing between stories, trying to concentrate as the scanner squawked police traffic and viewers called to ask why Cagney & Lacy reruns weren’t on. (Viewers always call the news desk to complain about programming, or even to tell us their TV is broken. Don’t ask me why.) I was bleary-eyed and shelved most of what I turned out during that period. I was able to get some basic aspects of the story solidified, however, though little of that effort remains.

I rewrote the TV station effort at home later, on my computer. Just before embarking on a European vacation for a month, my computer broke, and while my draft was safe, I needed to buy a new machine. I also felt guilty that I’d be away and unproductive for so long, so on impulse in the airport lounge I bought a blank notebook just before boarding my plane. I thought, “Yeah, right, how much of this am I going to fill while on *vacation*?!?”

To my surprise, when I returned I’d covered every page, both sides. I also found I liked writing by hand, something I hadn’t done since junior high. Most of all, there was something terribly *romantic* about sitting in the Italian Mediterranean and writing *my novel.* (“Hi, what are you doing?” “Oh, just writing my novel…” “Ohhh, reeeeally!”) When I arrived home, even though I bought a new computer, I decided to finish the rest of draft one with little cheap notebooks instead. The portability and no-worries quality meant I could write anywhere, and not have to worry about a power outlet for my laptop or the fact that someone else might make off with it if I got up to go to the bathroom. Actually the computer I’d bought was a desktop, but even though I planned to get a laptop eventually I still decided to opt for the paper and pen method.

I was dubious I could go back to such primitive methods, having been working on word processors for the last 25 years, but it turned out to be easier than I expected, at least for a first draft, where I feel you can be more free-wheeling and less polished than later on. I’ve since bought a netbook with 10 hour battery life and am writing draft two on it.

Since the overnight newsroom and the Italian Riviera, I do most of my writing in a coffee shop not too far from me. I tried writing at home, in my office, at my big, fabulous desktop with the 26″ screen that can have multiple drafts up at the same time, in utter peace and quiet, but I find it drives me nuts. It’s like trying to breathe in a vacuum. I prefer the bustle of the coffee shop. People come in and go out. There are “the regulars” and always interesting characters parading in and out. (I am near Berkeley, after all!) And of course, it’s nice if you have people to make you your coffee! There’s also an adjoining food court and bookstore, so I can have lunch, enjoy my coffee, and even go browsing at other authors’ works for inspiration if I so need it. And the coffee shop has free wifi–another plus. And since much of my story takes place, coincidentally, in a coffeehouse, it’s an appropriate venue, don’t you think?

I find where you write is *incredibly* important. My novel sputtered along when I was stuck in the house. I wish I’d bought this netbook a lot sooner. But the point is, if you have the drive to write but are having a hard time actually doing the writing, you should examine how you work, and experiment. You might be surprised how it can change you.