Part of the fun of this reading club is getting to know your fellow participants.
Say hello, below -- by answering these -- and only these -- four questions.
0.5 What's your name and how do you like to be addressed?
1. What's the best time of day to write -- for you? I mean this in an ideal sense: even if you are swamped right now, imagine your country passed a law that required you to write well for two - hours every single day. When would you schedule those hours?
2. What's one thing that a coffee shop (or public place) needs to have to be a good writing space?
3. We all know where writers get their ideas: while they sleep, a giant animal carries them into the half-real realm of imagination, whether they fish, hunt, and garden for inspiration. You can fact check this -- it's well proven. Question: what giant animal does your dreaming self ride?
0.5 My name is Kevin Cooper, my initials are K. C. I have been called Casey my entire life. Even in school, I think only two teachers out of the dozens I had between nursery school and college ever insisted on calling me, Kevin. So I prefer to be called Casey.
1. As I am now retired, I write when the mood is upon me. I have turned out lots of words in the am and lots in the pm. If pressed to pick, I would pick from midnight till 2:00 am.
2. I am afraid I really can’t answer this as I do not go to coffee shops. I make my own coffee and I don’t enjoy public places, especially now due to Covid. Sorry.
3. My spirit animal an Owl or a Cat. I believe they alternate with the cat having four to the owls’ three turns.
1.
Quenntis
2. ⏳
Late at night when the house is quiet and illuminating clouds feed me the best ideas
3. ☕
Stable table
Refillable/inexpensive/excellent coffee
A comfy chair
Friendly staff
4. ⛅
a white rabbit the size and weight of a cloud
gently taps without pause at my open window
with a well-manicured paw;
and when we fly off together as one body of words,
(leaping as only magical aquarian rabbits can leap)
I feel suspended and supported and loved and free
while at swim in the vastness of a growing imagination
I cannot completely comprehend
and as we quest with our unquenchable curiosity
sipping and slipping lightly between nearby milkable stars
I know I am never alone on the page
for the page is a cloud and the cloud
is a rabbit and the rabbit is Quenntis
tap dancing towards an open window
Delightful, Quenntis!
1. Hello, I’m Bill Porter. Please call me Handsome Bill, to distinguish me from all the other bills.
2. My best time to write is either early morning 9-noon or late evening 21-2400
3. In a coffee shop, I’d like a quiet corner with a comfortable chair, table, and power outlet,
4. I don’t have a giant animal to ride– yet. But with ADHD, I take a 20 min “nap” every so often to let the computer in my brain reset, and that’s when I frequently get up with new ideas.
.5 Jennifer, I like being called Jennifer
1. I write in the mornings and early afternoons.
2. Coffee shops need comfortable chairs.
3. Belgian draft horse.
My name is Holly (she/her).
I write best in the morning, after exercise, breakfast, shower, and my scheduled “morning fun time.” Yes, that is on my calendar, and I am that much a creature of habit. Very occasionally my brain will also try to sabotage me by deciding it wants to write in the evening at bedtime, because brains are inconsiderate that way.
I don’t actually write in public spaces often, but if I do, I find the most helpful things to “have” are a lack of convenient internet, and a lack of my own children being present. Those work wonders.
My dream self rides an intensely curious, somewhat snarky ferret.
lol, ferrets freak me out. I found one, lost, in my yard once. It followed me into the house, as I asked it to for safety, but that long body in a serpentine motion . . . it was super cute, and I loved it, but I wasn’t sad to find its owner for it to go home.
I am a creature of habit too! I’m a teacher so having a schedule is in my blood!
Bette / she/her
1. 10 am – noon and/or 10 pm – midnight
2. dead silence – I always write at my desk
3. a dragon
0.5 Luke Kendall (writing as L. J. Kendall)
1. No special time, so long as I’m awake 🙂
2. No people, plus warmth
3. Hmm, I dream a lot, and often remember some or all of them, but I don’t think I’ve ever dreamed I’ve ridden an animal! My dreaming self either uses Shank’s pony, drives, swims, or flies.
1. Diana
2. early morning or late night
3. comfy chairs
4. an eagle
Hello, I’m Mumu.
1. I write in snatches of stolen time between the pressing concerns of mundane life, between when the yellow moon rises beyond the peak of the squat building across my tower of ivory, to the point it reaches its zenith, when the air is cool, the phones are silent of their incessant chirruping, and the world is but the one encompassed between my ears.
2. A room within which I need not hear the way the world turns. (Silence, solitude)
3. Dementors that suckle the happiness and creativity out of the fertile meadows of my subconscious fly me to lands forgotten by time and memory, until I’m glutted, fit to bursting. And when I wake, the pen is my knife, whetted in the blood and dreams of people whose faces exist only in my head.
Hi Mumu. 2. For me … created powerful and comforting imagery.
Hi everyone, I’m Eileen Joyce Donovan. Just call me Eileen or a she/her will do. I prefer to write in the morning, but sometimes I only find time in the afternoon. I don’t know what a coffee shop would need to entice writers to go there. I prefer the quiet of my home for writing. I’ve never had a dream about riding an animal, but I would prefer a horse.
0.5 Tom!
1. Usually early in the morning, typing on my phone on the way to work.
2. Flat whites!
3. A blue whale.
.5 Leilani or Lani
1. 4:00-5:00 am
2. Be inside my house, IE NOT a public place
3. A copper dragon
My name’s Leilani, too. 🙂
Hi,
1. My name is Diane. I can’t wait to meet ya all.
2. I write at my kitchen table next to the window first thing in the morning. To foster my creativity, I read a couple of chapters before bed.
3. One requirement for a coffee shop to be a perfect writing place is natural surroundings: trees, a lake, and maybe even a blueberry patch.
4. My giant animal is an Elephant as they are powerful and emotional. I don’t remember my dreams, but riding an elephant sounds like fun.
My name is Robert Koehler. Please call me Bob.
Best time to write: Later morning, early afternoon
Coffee shop: Good, strong Americano, plus a jazz only (no vocals!) music policy.
Animal: Wooly mammoth
Chet Baker fan here.
My name is Cara (Flett).
The best time of day for me to write is first thing in the morning, when my mind is still filled with my own stories, and no one else’s.
Every coffee shop needs a corner with an unobstructed view. If I don’t wedge myself into a corner, I whirl like a dervish, trying to take in everything happening around me.
I don’t ride a giant animal in my sleep; I fly. Actually, I soar. Do I know what giant animal I am? No. I only know I’m a frequent flyer, studying mountains and oceans; forests and cityscapes from above, and landing, occasionally, to sun (and sometimes roll) in meadows blanketed in wild flowers.
Sounds idyllic
I love “frequent flyer,” which I see most often in a modern context in credit card ads, used here in such dreamy prose.
My name is Jennifer (she/her).
I enjoy writing in the morning, first thing before I get annoyed with the day.
Also, oddly when I’ve drunk too much as well.
A good coffee shop just has to have space (and outlets by the tables) to be a good space. Oh, and yummy coffee! I’m not too picky.
Dream me probably rides a giant eagle. It can go anywhere, do anything and nobody will mess with it!
My name is Amy, and you can call me Amy. I like writing around ten in the morning but usually write around three in the afternoon. A writing spot needs good coffee and a comfy booth. I travel my dreams wrapped in the protective arms of a thick-furred blue and white yeti.
Hello! My name is Emily (she/her).
My favorite time to write is late at night, when the creaking floorboards are the only sound I hear. In reality, though, I write whenever I can, which is never a consistent time of the day.
I always write at home. But if I wrote in a coffee shop, I would love for it to have a friendly, creative vibe with comfy chairs and lots of space.
Hmmm… an animal to ride into the creative realm? It’s not so exciting, but I think the animal that would best help usher me in would be a playful, curious and very sweet lab.
Hello I’m Veronique
My best times are early morning and mid afternoon.
I don’t often write in public places except for TGV High Speed Train.
I can’t recall any dream when I wake up. But I daydream: I guess something as half an hour meditation in front of the sea. Most of my ideas come from these morning moments.
My name is David de Felice, as in David day-full-LEE-chay. It’s Italian, although I’m Danish/French/Irish. Call me Dave or David.
Best time to write: I’m most productive during the day, but more creative at night. Maybe structure sleeps and imagination wakes. Maybe spirits are aprowl.
Public spaces for writing: ! I don’t know how anybody writes in public! Bravo for your powers of concentration. I’m very fortunate to be living in the woods, on the edge of a conservatory. Many songbirds for all seasons just outside my window, and occasional special guest appearances by deer and wild turkey.
What giant animal: For this book, my dreaming self rides a scimitar cat.
Hi I’m Jen.
I have very weird sleeping habits, so my best writing time is after midnight, sometimes well after, when the house is quiet and dim and I can remove myself from the noise and distractions of the day.
It’s usually too distracting for me to write in public as there are way too many interesting things luring my ADHD brain away from what I’m trying to do. However, there’s an Irish pub in town that’s a rabbit’s warren of small rooms full of leather and dark wood. There are some high backed booths scattered in corners here or there and I’d take over one of those.
My giant animal is a curious rat with a philosopher’s soul, eyes that have seen the universe, and a wicked sense of humor ready to snark on it all. He definitely points out all my typos, and is forever on the hunt for the perfect slice of New York pizza. I don’t ride him but we walk together.
.5 Nancy – but for creative endeavors I prefer to use my middle/maiden name Kelley…I channel my talented family that way (and I’ve never like Nancy…)
1. In the mornings – however I work a more than full week and finding a window is rough.
2. First and foremost – good coffee…then a comfortable chair in a corner where I can people watch as well.
3. An osprey – I love dreams where I fly and I also love the ocean.
Kelley, can you tell that an osprey is nearby the moment you hear it call, even just once? I do. I listened to them so much at the lake, then one year when I came home in the fall, I heard one make one quick cry. I looked way up, and there it was! I had never heard one in the city until just a few years ago!
1. It would be late afternoon.
2. fairly quiet.
3. Tiger
0.5 Although I writer under a pen name (currently J.E.M. Wildfire), I’m Judi Wildfeuer. Either way, call me “Judi.”
1. I’m a night owl, but my best writing is probably mid to late afternoon. After I’ve exhausted my usual procrastination diversions.
2. Is it possible to get undisturbed peace & quiet in a public space?
3. When my dreams include an animal, it’s always a cat. Tabbies, mostly. None of them are big enough to ride on and would take great offense if I tried.
Hi Judi,
I think the dictionary people are considering placing my picture next to the entry for “procrastinator” in their texts. I have been called a “crazy cat lady” for rescuing so many cats. My husband has prohibited me from rescuing any more (we have 5, one is about to turn 21, although she is failing.) We also have a dog (I used to rescue them too), a geriatric Chihuahua who believes she is a Rottweiler. All would strenuously object to me riding them.
0.5 My full name is AnneMarie but I prefer to be called Anne.
1. My best time to write is in the mornings. Second best is late, late at night.
2. In a coffee shop, I look for a table and chair near an outlet where I have line of sight if I want more coffee.
3. I haven’t thought about a dream animal but the first one that came to mind was a bear. So I’m going with that.
.5) Heather…”hey you” is also fine, as long as you wave your arms around vigorously enough to get my attention.
1) Morning.
2) An apocalypse of some sort, as I hate writing in public.
3) A furry dragon.
Miriam
Straight after breakfast
Quiet and privacy
No idea!
1. Astrid
2. Morning an hour, and if I can fit it in, later in the afternoon.
3. A coffeeshop where no one knows me, or asks me what I am writing. In a community of less than a thousand people, writing in a coffeeshop always invites great curiosity, or the assumption that I would rather be chatting in person.
4. A manatee. Confident with a bit of a belly, moving with purpose.
Hello, gruess Dich, Ola. My name is Gerlinde. Now you know why they call me Angie. There also is another Angie in the family and I am not offended if you call me OldAngie. I write whenever I do get a chance. There are no cafes where I am now although in Europe I loved them. I will have to invite a cat to be my spirit animal.
0.5. Bill Stout. I like to be addressed as Bill
1.0 Early in the morning before the rooster make a sound.
2.0 A comfortable chair at a table that doesn’t rock or roll, and a comfortable noise level. Maybe a good cup of coffee also.
3.0 I don’t have dreams that I remember over 2 minutes after waking, so no inspiration from night dreams. Day dreams are a different story, but no animals involved.
Kathleen
mornings
Besides decent coffee, coffee shops can be great sources of material or on some days, too noisy and distracting, so probably would prefer to be home in front of a sunny window . . .and with today’s prices make my own brew. (less plastic and trash)
no animal that I know of visits regularly to bring me story, poetry or life solutions . . . though there was a snake that surprised me in a recent dream which I took as a premonition for nasty nuclear war . . . so better no animals.
My name is Uma
1. I like writing in the morning, get up, preferably do my yoga, and start writing with a cup of tea.
2. Good wifi
3. An elephant, gently takes me high up with its tusks, hoists me on its colourful howdah, makes me see the world from tree tops.
Kathryn, Kathryn
Evenings after 9:00 p.m. as everything settles down
Quiet with no distractions, usually at my desk.
I’ve never heard about a giant animal. Now that I know, maybe the animal will come knocking and my writing ideas will flow more easily.
.5 Susan or Sue for short
1. Writing time is 10:00 – 12:00.
2. I used to write in the library prior to covid. During covid, I would pack my laptop and a thermos of coffee, drive to the beach, park, and write for two hours. I need a place with no distractions.
3. My dreaming ride is a giant jackalope or a great gray owl.
I have never before had reason to imagine a jackalope big enough to carry away a person, but now that I have, I’m terrified…
0.5 Tracy
1. After 7:00 pm
2. Unsweetened Ice Tea
3. Velociraptor
shelarl
–Best time to write: early morning or late at night
–coffee shop-comfortable chair, low murmur of staff/patrons,cheap coffee options
–A large bird with multicolored feathers that sparkle
Hi Everyone! I’m Eric (he/him).
1. My most productive writing time on weekdays is in the mid-morning (9:00 AM – 11:00 AM) after dropping off the kids at school and getting some quick exercise. On the weekends, I’m more flexible and end up with more afternoon and evening sessions.
2. It’s been a while since I’ve written in a coffee shop, but the keys for me are comfy chairs and not being too crowded. Music without lyrics is a bonus, but I can always provide my own.
3. The animals that most resonate with me are an owl and a snake with black and white markings. I don’t like snakes, yet I often dream of them wanting to be close to me. A Native American friend told me snakes have strong life force, wisdom, and renewal associations.
– call me Graham.
– I am best writing in the morning. I fade a little more as each hour passes.
– Enough buzz but not too much. A table big enough for laptop and notebook alongside … and a croissant too.
– A white swan of course, what else? I’m British and a big Bolan fan.
Get it on. Bang a gong.
You’re an untamed youth, that’s the truth, with your cloak full of eagles…
“Enough buzz but not too much.”
I feel that.
1.Penny
2.Between 2-4 pm UK time.
3.Besides great coffee it must have a comfy seat in a cozy corner and the right ambience. I don’t go to coffee shops much, they are usually too busy. I tend to write on my phone a lot. I’m very mobile and flexible, my workspace is either home, or in the car parked up somewhere inspiring.
4.I can’t say any animal has featured in my dreams, but if I could choose to be carried away by one it would be a dragon. A truly massive one, like in GOT. (Bit of a fantasy lover)
Are you certain you don’t want us to call you Penny the Unburnt?
0.5 Hi everyone, I’m Alison. Not Al or Ally please.
1. 9ish to 11ish, while the morning sun is coming through the double doors to my cabin.
2. No background music, and especially not the radio.
3. A dolphin, though staying on could be a little slippery… Or a stag would be magnificent.
Deanna. It doesn’t matter how you pronounce the first ‘a’. Southerners give it an ‘ah’ sound and I’ve lived in the south long enough to rubber-stamp the change.
Over two years ago, I contracted covid which was followed by the long haul version. I began searching for a way to mitigate brain fog. Writing began as a small practice and has continued the same: I write for an hour before work. It is medicine of the best sort. Incremental but successful. I’m 2/3 the way through the first rewrite of a fantasy novel and write a substack newsletter that explores creativity.
Quiet, though it’s never quite quiet. Birdsong and barking dogs accompany the keyboard. Right now, the neighbor’s rooster crows.
Caracals, cheetahs, and leopards. When I’m feeling small, sand cats.
0.5. Jenny – Jen works as well
1. it’s been a while but I did like writing in the mornings – 8-10am
2. comfortable chairs, ample table space, ample outlets
3. a dragon or giant eagle
Hi, I am Rike.
My best writing time would be between 7am and 9 am at my desk at home.
I am not sure if a coffeehouse would be a good place, but I love the ‘Staatsbibliothek’ in Berlin to write and work in: many quietly working students, a lot of desks with a wide view into the library- and all the books and maps I may need at hand….and a small cafeteria for breaks. Perfect!
Does a not so giant animal count? A cute racoon comes and walks me to this secret place, but he is normal sized…..
1. Pia
2. Mid morning when I am home alene and the house is quiet
3. Warmth! Cannot stand if I feel cold
4. A big tiger
Hi, I’m Jan. (J as in Jam, a as in apple; Not John. 😉 ) She/her
Please call me Jan.
I seem to vary on when I write. In the morning, while still in bed. I do a lot of writing by dictating on my phone when I take long walks.
I can’t write in public spaces either. I also have ADHD and get too distracted. So a quiet space, at home, alone, with comfortable seating, whether in bed or a comfy chair, and/or, as I said above, while walking, when my mind most easily seems to wander and want to express myself.
Haha, while I love the idea of some animal carrying me off into inspiration, I haven’t experienced that yet. (I think I will make an exploration of that!) I do have quite clear “memories” of flying when I was a child through the house (most likely being carried by my older brother), so perhaps it will be some kind of large bird.
My name is Ann. I’m an old British lady living in Arkansas, so I’m usually addressed as ‘Ann’ by my peers or ‘Miss Ann’ by younger people. I think my nickname came up here as ‘afrapp’ and that’s ok too (I am Ann F. Rapp).
Early morning is the best writing time of day for me.
Seats in a well-lit area.
A big white, female kangaroo – I ride in its pouch. Her name is Shelagh.
Hi Ann,
I’m Linda, and I live in Arkansas too. I am a transplanted Chicagoan who spent 27 years in Texas; now happily in central Arkansas. Looking forward to interacting with you.
0.5: Angela
1: Mid-afternoon, which I feel is weird, but I get my best/the most work done between lunch and dinner.
2: Comfortable seats
3: A hippogriff
0.5. Robin Graham, aka Maggie Gray from a previous career. I answer to either, but prefer Robin.
1. I’m retired, so can make my own schedule; I find night the best for writing, anytime after 10 or 11 pm.
2. Don’t do public spaces as a rule, but I’ll occasionally use a library if I expect to need to look up things and/or fact check.
3. I don’t usually remember dreams, but animals feature in my daydreams, commonly an appaloosa or pinto unicorn, a silver dragon, a spotted leopard, or a phoenix.
I am called Judy
I prefer writing in the early morning, an hour after waking up so as to fuel up with coffee
Coffee shop preferences: Ample space between tables / Access to Power outlet / Outside tables / No children
My dream animal is a giant unicorn
Nancy
1. Early morning, 7 am on my screened-in back porch, with a huge chorus of birds.
2. I like my Panera for the open space between tables, tables snug against the wall/windows, decent coffee and, if it’s not busy, I can snag a booth.
3. I have dreams where I am riding a large horse bareback by the ocean. I don’t ride but I love these dreams.
1. Ronda
2. After morning coffee and then afternoon.
3. Not a fan of public places. I need a good firm chair and privacy without interruptions.
4. I imagine an elephant as my inspirational animal. I’m high enough to observe all around my world with time to wander in no particular direction.
0.5) Aphrodite, but prefer “Aphro,” unless you can pronounce my name correctly in Greek. 🙂
1) Very early mornings around dawn and early afternoons are ideal. After that, my brain gathers enough fog to require a lighthouse so that I don’t wander aimlessly in the gloom.
3) I prefer my very private and quiet sunlit study. I’m one of those anomalies who can’t focus in public spaces, no matter what. I’m sure my scowling and hissing are extremely off-putting to other coffee house patrons.
4) I get my best ideas in the shower, while journaling during the pre-dawn hours, and sometimes in my sleep while soaring over mythic realms on the back of a giant owl.
Hi, my name is Linda. Nice to meet all of you.
I don’t have a favorite time to write. I have health issues and sleep is not a regular thing, so on some days I write mid-day and others in the evening. Rarely early in the mornings because I’m typically still in bed.
Pre-Covid, I went to the library at least once a week and sat in a comfortable chair that overlooked the courtyard. I live in a college town and it’s hard to get a seat in the coffee shops. So I sit in my favorite recliner with my laptop, cat menagerie close by along with a snoring dog and a tall glass of iced tea. I’ve tried sitting at a desk but it induces writers block. Comfort is everything.
While I have acquired many ideas for writing from dreams, I can’t say I’ve ever ridden a giant animal in life or in dreams. I’d consider myself solidly in the category of wimps who prefer to live vicariously through others when it comes to anything requiring physical ability and/or courage.
0.5 – My name is Olivia (she/her).
1 – My best time of day to write is mid-morning (right after my morning coffee/silent reading time before the rest of the household wakes up).
2 – Though I don’t get to work in coffee shops often, I love working in public places because I work best with a steady hum of background noise whenever I work at a public place. I don’t know why, but I do some of my most focused work when I can listen in (but not participate in) other people’s conversations.
3 – My giant dream animal is definitely a pheonix… or maybe a dragon… maybe they rotate or a hybrid of the two?
Olivia, it’s been a while since I’ve written while out in public, but I remember that I, too, had some of my best writing sessions at a pub in Portland, Maine in early afternoons. I’d grab that seat in the window, and people might gather near by, but I was rarely distracted.
I’m Annette – Call Me Annette (she/her)
1. Late at night or early in the morning – by nature I’m a night owl, but can’t quite be one like I like as I have little kids.
2. Right temperature, no coffee smell, good desk chair and desk, only rustling and smell of pages of books and cinnamon rolls, quiet ambiance music or nothing or at the public library, but mostly I write at home not in public places.
3. I have a lot of dreams and get a lot of ideas from dreams but don’t have that many animals in my dreams. If any animals, there are dolphins and moose sometimes, but more than that I have dragons, mermaids, sirens, fae – all the fantasy creatures and races since I’m a fantasy reader and writer.
1. Hey, my name is Caroline- people usually call me Caro.
2. Definitely in the morning hours. From around 7-9 am, when my brain is working freshly and the folks in the house in which I currently live are still asleep due to typical Italian working schedules.
3. Silent corner without music and few people, cosy environment, green tea.
4. What comes to my head is a gigantic elephant who I would give the name Bo…
I’m Shelly, without the second ‘e’, but that does not affect pronunciation.
Morning is my best time since I am productive. That means about 5 am. It’s quiet; the brain is awake and alert, ready to start the day.
For any public space to be good for writing, there needs to be no people. That will distract me, although having someone bring a nice cup of tea and a few nibbles would be fantastic!
A leviathan; not quite Moya on Farscape, since mine has lots of portholes through which you can see the many faces of the planetary races and there are too many to count.
Hi everyone,
My name’s Damien, so you can call me that.
For a public place to be a good writing place it would need to be completely private.
And my giant dream animal would have to be Falkor, of course.
0. Calvin Beam. Calvin is best, although I do respond to variations.
1. After coffee and before the day’s stress.
2. Delivery.
3. Clydesdale (because I’d always be followed by a wagon full of beer).
Hi, my name is Michelle and my ideal writing time is 2-4. As public spaces tend to be noisy and visually busy, you will never find me writing in that space as I prefer a calm and quiet space to write in. In the dreamscape you will find me astride a black jaguar moving silently in the shadows until we chose to reveal ourselves.
Mary Van Everbroeck. Call me Mary. Late morning into the early afternoon is my ideal time to write. Windows are what I appreciate the most wherever I write. When he’s available, Falcor, from The Neverending story works diligently while I sleep.
Daniel, I think your comment is well-taken. A perfectly written book, if such a thing were to exist, might tick all the boxes but not resonate with readers. I’m all for honing my craft, but I also want to write something that people enjoy reading. I can’t afford to be a snob about other authors’ work. Bring it on!
My name is Jeanne. I write lesbian romance under JLNicky and science fiction fantasy under JLNich. I will answer to all including JL. The best time of day to write for me is evening hours after 4pm PST. My ideal coffee shope has coffee and tea, and Splenda, and a wingstop next door. My giant animal is a whale, a calm one that swims on the top of waves.
.5 Patricia
1. mornings 9:30 – 11:30 a.m.
2.booth seating with a window view for daydreaming
3. a snowy owl
0.5 Katherine Swailes – prefer: Kathy (pronouns: she/her)
1. 11am to 3pm-ish
2. Selection of herbal teas
3. Elephant!
Monica
1. Mornings, instead of working, of course.
2. A hot chocolate and dessert’s bar.
3. I’m not riding but I have walked with a wolf before.
Hi!
0.5 My name is Mariette and that’s how I like to be addressed 🙂
1. I’m not actually sure when the best time for me to write is. My guess would be early morning but I haven’t often been able to write at that time. I make time whenever I can and that varies a lot.
2. My favourite public space to write is nature preferably in the shade of a tree and a body of water near by.
3. My dreaming self rides an alicorn (unicorn with wings)
Hi, I’m Natascha, lady, girl and writress
1. best time to write is in the evening
2. I just need a table big enough for my laptop and GREAT coffee 🙂
3. I walk, really, I walk into and through my dreams with magic and animals by my side
0.5. Barrie
1. First thing in the morning, while still dark outside.
2. Empty table, comfortable chair, windows
3. It would have to be a huge bird. I like flying in my dreams.
Hello! My name is Kara.
I prefer writing in the evening as that’s usually when my brain can actually be fully engaged in creative thinking. This often means I get my best ideas right before bed and have to scribble them in my tiny notebook!
I need big tables because I love using notebooks and my laptop and just need lots of space. Also, I need some great coffee.
My animal I ride in my dreams is actually a dragon, because I adore fantasy world’s and I’ve had a dragon character that’s stuck with me for years.
.5 Amy (just call me Amy)
1. Anytime I don’t have my children around (usually between 9am and 12pm, but most creative at 4am before people wake up, though I can’t get up that early these days.)
2. Accommodating staff, like minded others co-working in the space
3. A Unicorn
0.5- Angie
1. I write best between midnight and 3 am (right now, this fluctuates)
2.coziness
3. It really depends on who wants to play and what message I need to receive. Right now, Mr. Sea-turtle keeps showing up. Slowly and ploddingly I write this book but I’m confident of crossing the finish line- in time.
1. Cecilia or Celie
2. I prefer to write in the early morning before the house wakes up, and then again after the kids go to school until about midday.
3. I don’t write in coffee shops, too distracting. I write at my desk at home under the skylight.
4. I dream of words or groups of words that express what I’m trying to write but I don’t remember them in the morning. I just hope my subconscious does so that when I am typing they flow from my fingertips. If I was to ride an animal in my dreams it would be a tiger.
0.5: Linda. I’ve noticed there is at least one other Linda here, so I’m commenting as Linda from the Lowcountry.
1. Ideally, I’d get up at 7:00 and write from 8:00-10:00. The day job gets in the way of that schedule, so I try to find small pockets of time and keep a notebook with me.
2. A public writing space needs a sturdy table and a comfortable chair. Iced drinks are optional.
3. I ride different animals, based upon where I want to go in my dreams. A narwhal, a polar bear, an elephant, a hippopotamus, an owl . . . it’s always an adventure.
1. Laurie Jo
2. I wake up about 3 am to creative write, go back to sleep about 5 or 6 am and sleep another two hours, wake up ready to rewrite with a cup of coffee to sip – hand ground French toast, made from beans roasted by local coffee roasters -Chicago has several.
3. Never would be able to write in a coffee shop. It would have to be empty and have a couch.
4. I ride a bird that transforms into other animals, soaring in clouds, dropping down when we are over a sea, becoming a dolphin cresting the waves, a giant turtle as we float along the shore, turning into a black stallion splashing through the water and onto the beach.
.5. Jessica, I answer to both Jessica and Jess.
1. I have two best times to write, one at night, around midnight, and morning when I first wake up.
2. Quiet, very quiet, interesting people to observe, comfortable sitting.
3. A dragon, I’m writing a dragon story right now. Or a giant panda, when I’m slowly pulling words out of the air and feeling like a clown while doing it.
The dragon and the panda reminded me of these beautiful illustrations of the tiny dragon and the panda.
1. Claudia
2. AM after I wake
3. Unicorn
.5 Lois
1. Early afternoon is my best writing time. After exercise and the morning busy work of life is behind me.
2. I like a coffeeshop with a view of nature, but a view for people watching will suffice.
3. I ride a giant unicorn. Their poop doesn’t stink and they are very independent. I don’t need anything else dependent on me right now.
.05. Hi, I’m KT Wagner. Please call me KT.
1. Around 4pm
2. A private room/area that can be booked.
3. A raccoon. 🙂
Raewyn,
Probably in the early afternoon when there’s no chores to distract me.
Lack of music or loud noises.
And last but not least
A fox. Not sure if it actually does but it’s the first thing that came to mind c:
My name is Carol and I am called Carol. (It sounds kind of boring when you put it that way).
I almost always write in the early morning. Early like 5:30 most days. I am retired but I still work and I’m definitely not a night owl so that’s the time with the most “space” for me.
Like several others here, I don’t write in coffee shops so I don’t really know. But I imagine after good coffee, I’d probably want a large enough table to be able to spread out a laptop, a notebook, pens, and the requisite coffee. Yes to the croissant also.
My dreaming self rides on the back of a giant turtle.
Good morning (fav time to write.) I’m Trish (she/her). I like to write in libraries but nothing is open @4 AM. I love water, do my best creating while swimming as a dolphin.
.5 My name is Stacey (she/her)
1. I seem to focus best in the evening. I would pick 7 to 9 for my 2-hour time slot.
2. The number one item I would need in a coffee shop is a power outlet.
3. A gentle bear carries me through my dreams. Offering uptight bear hugs when events get overwhelming.
I’m a Marilyn but prefer Lynn. 1. I like early morning best after a cuppa and having written out some gratitude pages to start my day with an up mood. 2. a public place for writing would have to have some secluded, private places and semi-quiet. 3. The animal that visits my creativity is a burly monster who vacillates between being fierce and cunning to cuddly and witty.
I’m Ziona (pronounced Zeeona), (My pronouns are she/her).
Best time of day for me to write is mid-morning to early afternoon.
A coffee shop or public space would need to be quiet, like my own house. I guess I could write in a library, but haven’t because Covid.
My dreaming self would ride a pegasus, but only if he/she were willing to carry me. We could fly if we wanted to, or gallop across sunsplashed meadows pausing to smell wildflowers and admire the glinting, silvery stream that winds through it.
Nate – Nathan works too, but Nate is preferred
1. Best time for me is early am, but that isn’t possible, so I’m adapting to early evening.
2. A good view of something – traffic, a lake – something moving.
3. Octopus to scoop me up and twist me around.
0.5. My name is Helen. In my writerly life I go by the surnames of my two maternal great grandparents. They work together surprisingly well.
1. I write 8 – 10am (AUS time)
2. I haven’t tried out a coffee shop but I know the ideal one for inspiration – overlooking the waters of St Vincent’s Gulf – gentle waves, swimmers, dogs cavorting on the beach, nattering locals – this is a spot for people watching.
For writing I prefer quiet, immersive periods in my study where I have everything I need.
3. I would very much like a giant animal to be my dream partner. It would be a sleek, black horse. She would know my inner thoughts, and I hers, and we would fly to places unknown to anyone but us.
Published name: A. Roger Hammons Jr.
Friends call me: Roger
I like to write in the early mornings or late at night—the quiet parts of the day—but I can write almost any time.
Coffee shop needs a comfortable stable tabletop and preferably a comfortable chair. Not much else (except coffee)!
Based on my current work-in-progress, I believe it to be an enormous giant manta ray. I suspect it changes from project to project.
0.5. Adán Nada is the name I sign my writings. Adán is my name.
1. Late at night, before going to sleep or not going to sleep at all.
2. A chair and a table. The rest can perfectly change, but I appreciate good lightning and the magic that enters through a window.
3. A ram, with its unsettling but beautiful horizontal pupils that observes widely everything that surrounds him.
Debra or Debi (she/her)
1. If I don’t write in the morning, it probably won’t get done so that’s when I schedule it. But I often get inspired in the afternoon and evening and make notes for the next day’s writing.
2. I really need quiet (or nature sounds) to hear myself think so I would look for a coffee or pastry shop with outdoor seating where I could position myself against a wall and not be exposed to hearing too much of other people’s words. Since I live in the country I would have to drive there and back which usually sparks new ideas (especially after coffee). I should try this more often!
3. Hard to say. I dream of tigers sometimes, but they’re usually chasing or clawing me so they might be my Inner Critic. I’d much prefer a friendly gazelle.
Lol…”Inner Critic!” Mine is a hyena, because my inner critic is always laughing at me!
.5 Peggi
1. very early morning or middle of the night, when the world is asleep
2. an interesting cast of characters
3. a walrus, my power animal
Hi, everyone,
0.5 Marc
1.0 9:00 a.m. – 11.00 a.m.
2.0 If I were to write in a coffee shop, or public place, I would hope for excellent coffee, a comfortable chair, an electrical outlet, and a strong Wi-Fi signal
3.0. Although it has not yet appeared to me, I imagine my dreaming self would ride a magnificent tiger
0.5 – My name is Allison. However, Alli is fine.
1. The best time to write for me has been in the mornings around 11 o’ clock.
2. Very comfy chairs.
3. A black and red dragon
0.5 Walt
1.0 I’m trying to train my muse to start at 9AM every morning. (But she’s stubborn…).
2.0 Pretty much write at home (too many reference books…I write in the 11th century). But in general: good wifi, classical music or jazz (no lyrics), and a good dark roast.
3.0 Not sure I have an idea animal. But if I did, it would likely be a coyote (…the trickster…).
0.5: I’m Hope Douglas. Just call me “Hope.”
1: In the morning, starting at sunrise.
2: A table in front of a picture window with a view of a city skyline at dawn.
3. My animal is a lion, like Simba as an adult in the Lion King. (Note: I get my ideas in the shower).
Hello everyone!
My name is Anita.
1. Best time of the day to write for me is in the morning, before my kids wake up
2. In library (I don’t drink coffee, so I don’t visit coffee shops), all I need is a desk where I can face away from others towards a window or even a wall (for fewer distractions)
3. Never rode an animal in my dreams, but if I’d ever ride one, I hope it will be a dragon.
0.5) Sherry (she/her)
1) Mornings are definitely my best time to write. Ideally, it is before checking social media, news, email, etc. because I can easily lose hours in a rabbit hole if I’m not focused <– happens more times than I'd like to admit.
2) My favorite public place to write is at a local library, preferably in a study room with great wifi. I need very low distractions and these rooms are usually tucked away in the back. They have tables and a whiteboard. Bonus if I'm allowed to bring in caffeinated beverages. My local coffeehouse is now a cellular store and I miss it terribly.
3) What giant animal would my dream side ride? Duh, a whale because why not? The adventures would offer dozens of story ideas : )
1. Cathy (she, her)
2. Enough table space, ideally a small table to myself, so I can have piles around me.
3.. Just before I wakeup, most involve flowing water, undulating waves, and houses.
Hi!
My name is Xenia, I am from Germany but I looove reading English novels and I got 98% of my writing education from English resources. Sometimes I also enjoy writing English prose as well, haha.
1. I best write in the evening after work or directly in the morning for about an hour.
2. Sunlight through the windows <3
3. Just a beautiful, swift white horse – or a wolf, maybe.
Nice to meet you all!
0.5 Helen.
1.0 Mornings when my brain is just recovering from a night’s dreaming
2.0 A big enough table, a half comfortable chair and enough space for the background noise to stay in the background
3.0 A monstrous cloud creature that changes and morphs as I ride it.
0.5. Neil
1. Morning, 7:00 am, is my formal time, but I find things pinging into my head all day, and I have to write them down. This is awkward when it happens in the shower, which happens often.
2. WiFi, mind you, I don’t normally write in coffee shops. I prefer an outside table in a small Spanish bar.
3. I’m flying, not sure what it is because it’s me.
Rebecca (“Rebecca”/”she”/”her”)
The subtle vitality of the early morning hours (3:00 a.m. to 6:00 a.m.) are my best writing hours.
The one thing a coffee shop needs to be a good writing space is interesting stuff to look at: from a window with a view, art on the walls or just opportunities for intriguing people watching.
I’d like to request a giant lion to carry me into the half-real realm of imagination because it takes a lot of courage to be a writer.
Hi, my name is Rhea and I go by that name–ree-ah. Lovely to meet you.
Best time of day for my writing early early morning and late night.
Can’t write in a coffee shop or public space except for a library. Noise is distracting, movement is distracting. I set up my own space conducive to writing.
My dreaming self rides the Kraken selecting with its many arms anything that sparkles for its nest and when it sleeps I crawl down to grab a few sparkling things to put together for a story. So far I haven’t been caught by my dangerous dream pet.
My name is Jaime Velez. My ideal time to write is the morning 8:30am, but do to work schedule, I typically sit down to write between 7-9 pm. I prefer writing in a quiet space or with soft music playing in the background, so it needs to have one of those. Walks along the beach gets my creative juices flowing.
Hi, everyone, I’m Rashida.
My favorite time to write is in the morning between 6am and 8:30am. In fact, my ability to string sentences together exponentially decreases as the clock approaches 9pm.
My ideal public writing space must have a corner or nook where I can sit and feel that I’m out of sight while in the perfect position to covertly observe everything happening in front of me.
My dreaming self glides through warm bodies of water on the back of a giant otter.
😉 I look forward to reading, sharing, and learning with you all.
My name is Teresa and you can call me Tess. I’ve tried being consistant for ages at different times of the day. Now I write in the mornings between 8:30 and 10:30 (with an accountability buddy) and feel a real sense of accomplishment every day because I don’t want to poop our even when the urge is strong. Coffee shops are too noisy and distracting to me. I don’t use them. I like my own little writing cave. I cannot conceive of my dreaming self riding a giant animal mostly because I don’t remember 99% of my dreams. 🙂
0.5 Vickie for those who remember how to spell it; if not, I prefer Victoria
1. First thing out of bed
2. Corner table and hot tea in real cups
3. Black lab-collie mix breed or a friendly horse
1. Maggie
2. That magical time when late night turns to early morning.
3. It must have solitude, except for an invisible servant who keeps my coffee cup full of hot coffee.
4. My dreaming self rides a giant black cat, who becomes a mini house panther during the day.
Maggie, I do like your image of a giant black cat who becomes a mini house panther!
Cathy Counts
Hello! I’m J.R. Bournville.
For my two hours of writing time, I’d choose midnight to 2am. Or preferably two one-hour sessions, with one 1–2am and the other at 8–9pm
Easy access to necessary amenities are probably top my must-have list. Being disabled, one of my most pressing concerns when out of the house is finding an accessible WC.
My dreaming self is doubtlessly sat astride a dragon.
My name is Melissa
The best time to write for me is in the early afternoon, when my brain is still awake but on low idle and has had enough experience for me to draw from.
I like a warm atmosphere in a coffee shop with pleasant conversation in the distance and a great Vanilla Chai Latte to sip.
When I sleep, a sleek ephemeral ghost fox carries me off ; )
Ooh, Melissa, your “sleek, ephemeral ghost fox” carrying you off is an enchanting image!
Cathy Counts
1. Sharon
2. Morning is best for me between 8 and 1. If I’m on a roll, this could extend into early afternoon
3. Wi-Fi (for quick research), comfy seating, electrical outlet, good coffee and plant based milk, outside space for when weather is nice
4. Not sure, but it must fly.
1.Susan
2.early morning
3.i have never written in public places
4. I haven’t met my animal guide yet!
Hi, my name is Mike Ruel. Call me Mike, only my mother calls me Michael. The best time for me to write is first thing in the morning. I’ve struggled with this recently due to job pressures. A coffee shop should have space of the laptop and should be reasonably quiet, not distracting. I love the visual of a giant animal dropping ideas on me, but that isn’t how it works for me. Snippets of conversation, current events usually trigger ideas for me.
0.5 Michael. “The dread overlord!” (Kidding, Michael or Mike is fine)
1. Early afternoon, between 2-4pm local time.
2. Agree strongly with an earlier commenter, music okay, but instrumental only (no words, or speaking). I have a fairly rare condition where I cannot read or write when I can hear talking. I cannot tune-out conversations, even if there are several going on at once, I hear them all.
3. Have never thought about this, so I am going to go with my first instinct and say a flying horse.
1 Hi I’m Erin
2 best time to write is early in the morning before the world crashes in and steals all my creativity.
3. Quiet.
4. A panther. A silent stalking grand shadow cat.
Hello! My name is Danielle, but you can call me Dani.
The best time of day to write for me is in the morning after I have clocked in at work, unfortunately. Between the hours of 8 am – and 10 am, I always have the sudden urge to write, but I have to work on numerous emails instead.
Cleanliness, tasty drinks, comfortable seating, and quiet music playing in the background (preferably classical or jazz).
Final response – I would love to ride an owl, preferably a talking Northern long-eared owl, who invites me to his home for tea. We sit by his fireplace in two comfy armchairs as the rain gently falls outside, and he tells me adventurous stories of his past. I think his name would be Mortimer.
0.5 Nicole
1. I think maybe the two hours before bedtime would be my choice.
2. A decent bathroom? I need to know that I can stay there for a long time with no reason to leave.
3. Beagle
1. Hailey
2. Crack a dawn
3. Just the right amount of bustle: too much and you can hear everyone else’s thoughts – too little and you can feel the barista’s eyes.
4. A kangaroo – a cozy ride.
hop hop hop
1. Lisa
2. Late at night or in the early morning, when the house is quiet and I can day dream ideas up.
3. A steady table, good cheap drinks, friendly staff and a nice corner to tuck myself into.
4. It depends, I’ve flown on dragons and Pegasus, but I’ve also climbed trees with squirrel shifters to stay with them in their tree top abodes.
.5 Kate
1. Early morning or late night
2. A constant hum, unpunctuated by sudden loud noises
3. Capybara
Linda, but Say LEENDA that way the Spanish pronounce it, as my dad’s family was Puerto Rican.
Writing time for me is anytime as I am retired now.
I like Barnes & Noble because when I want a break I can search through the home decorating magazines to see what is new.
Call me Chelle, please.
Either mid-morning, or late evening.
Plug-ins you can reach from your table.
Comfortable chair.
A place that’s semi-private. I like to not be too much in the middle of things, or where it’s too noisy; but be able to watch people for a while when I need a break.
A fish of some kind, that dives into the water where it’s deep and murky, or sun-shot with brilliant colors; and the leaps out again into the air and light.
0.5. Richard
1. 1:00-4:00 p.m.
2. quiet
3. a tripplepotamus!
What’s a tripplepotamus? I’m imagining something like a triceratops, but a hippo…
0.5 Tina
1.0 The first hour after waking up in the morning.
2.0 When I’m in a coffee shop or public place, I only journal, no serious writing.
3.0 a flying white horse
My name is Eileen but I prefer to be called by my nickname “Sunny”. My creative time is usually late at night but that can vary as everything else in my life. I am not a routine type of person but fly from one adventure to another. I love writing in a nook far enough away from the chatter and clatter when I’m in a coffee shop, with a table large enough to provide space for putting everything I bring. I prefer a quieter space with light conversation or music in the background. I don’t like total silence, and find when I’m home I like to listen to YouTube focus music on low. It seems to spur my creativity. This is a recent discovery. After the wildfires in California, we had a small fox that would come lay on our deck swing (my favorite place to write), wrap its tail around in front of her, and nap there. We live in Florida now but I often wonder what adventures that fox got into during the night! I wish I could have snuck off and followed her. Who knows what tales she could lend?
Hi, I’m Katie (she/her).
I love writing in the mid-morning, once the sun is up and the house is quiet.
A coffee shop needs great, cozy lighting and really good coffee.
My animal guide will forever be Falkor, the flying luck-dragon.
0.5 I’m Tamara (she/her)
1. What’s the best time of day to write — for you?
I have no writing routine at all…I get an idea and then write for six hours a day for a month, and then I don’t write for a week straight. I sometimes write instead of grading assignments during my prep period (I get everything done eventually, don’t @ me). A lot of the time I dictate into my phone while I’m doing a daily walk.
I honestly can’t imagine sitting down to write for a stretch every day, whether I want to or not.
I’m doing “Story a Day May” this month, and I’m slogging through, even though it’s only day four…
2. What’s one thing that a coffee shop (or public place) needs to have to be a good writing space?
A place to plug in my laptop! Lol…It’s so old, I’m lucky if the charge lasts for an hour or two.
3. Question: what giant animal does your dreaming self ride?
It depends on what I’m writing…most recently, I was absorbed into an amorphous aether beast, which, shooting sparks from one end and steam from the other, carried me through the city’s electrical wires to a time that never was.
My name is Síle, Irish for Sheila and pronounced the same way.
I write best in the evening but would love to be a morning person!
Coffee shops need comfortable chairs and quiet corners.
My dreaming self rides the waves on the back of a blue whale.
0.5 My name is Brook but my preferred nickname is Birdie (and I plan on it being the name I publish under).
1. I like to write in the quiet hours of the evening.
2. Comfortable chairs, wi-fi, wall to my back. For me to write well, I have to feel relaxed (noise optional).
3. My nickname gives away the animal. I like to think of my muse as that bird that guides my unconsciousness into the inspiration where the ideas spring up.
.5 Amy (she/her)
1. Best time of day: morning, but not too early. After breakfast and with coffee.
2. Public space: I haven’t tried a public space since Covid and that seems so long ago now… I would say Wifi, a handy electrical outlet, and booths with high backs so I can avoid being distracted by other people. Free refills, real half and half. A safe enough place where I can leave my laptop unattended while I use the restroom after drinking too much coffee. (Sorry, that’s way more than one thing.)
3. Hmm. I’ve never personally had that dream. I have had plenty of ideas arrive fully formed in the night without benefit of transportation. I think I would be quite terrified riding any animal in a dream and that it would scare the creativity right out of me. I had a hard enough time with a trail ride in Yellowstone.
If I had to choose an animal, though, as a thought experiment, it would be otherworldly, comfortable, trustworthy, and wise, vaguely reminiscent of Aunt Beast.
0.5 Hi, I’m Eunice.
1. I prefer writing in the morning when my imagination is nice and fresh, although I often end up writing in the afternoon and early evening
2. A quiet corner where I can observe people from a far, a table with a good height so I can type in comfort, and affordable coffee and pastries
3. I never thought of a giant animal taking me away to idealand (currently I get a lot of my ideas in the shower), but if there was one I believe it would be a dragon… or a wolf… or a horse (I guess either one of the three, depending on which corner of idealand I’ll be headed to that night 🙂 …)
Christine
1. 10am. I’d love to write all day, but have a full time job so have to write in the evenings. My perfect time is 10am to noon.
2.Tea
3. I’m addicted to horses so it would have to be a giant horse.