in my office

What’s in Your Office?
By Jennifer Blessing

I came home from a long day when disaster struck. The strap on my very new just-got-for-Christmas purse broke. Unhappily, I began to hunt down a substitute from the depths of my chaotic closet. I no longer change purses with each pair of shoes – leaving full-time employment for motherhood cured me of that. As I hunted for something suitable that had not yet been given to Goodwill, I worried more about roominess than cutting-edge fashion. You see, beyond holding the requisite wallet, keys, and cell phone, my purse serves as my writing office on the go. For me, this has conveniently facilitated my passion for writing. Much like my childhood idol, Harriet the Spy, I take my tools with me when I am out and about.

As any stay-at-home mom knows, that phrase belies the truth. I’m rarely home. The grocery store, the playground, sundry errands, play-dates, and the like often keep me far from my laptop, my post-it notes dotted with ideas, and my comfy writing corner. Yet, as I traverse across town, I can’t help but mentally work out plots, try out new dialogue, and debate characters’ names. I have found myself standing next to the sale on overripe bananas when just the right phrase sneaks up on me. The dialogue I overhear on the playground or at the mall food court often fuels ideas for characters and settings. On the return trip, I try to synthesize the thoughts that have freely danced around my mind during my errands.

Rest assured, I don’t literally drive and write. The real risk from these mental exercises is losing the ideas that my short-term memory is desperately clutching. While the human brain is well designed for memory, the current round of ABCs belted loudly by my backseat drivers often overloads my neural networks. Hundreds of good and bad ideas have jumped ship and littered my path back home. I will admit to only one instance of retracing the roads in order to recall that near perfect plot twist I dropped along the way.

Hence, I have developed my beloved traveling office. As I have become serious about driving myself to be published, I have taken to carting a palette of tools with me. The goal is to successfully string together a smattering of moments to add to the hours I have to write. Experts say that if you can’t exercise for one straight hour a day, then you should work out for 20 minutes three times a day. I say seize one block of 20 minutes to exercise your writing muscles.

What does a traveling office consist of? My core elements include:

• My library card – This is clearly the most valuable item in my purse. (I’ve practiced that answer in case Oprah ever has the opportunity to ask me.)

• Pens, crayons and lipstick – I must have at least three different writing instruments in my purse or I feel ill prepared for anything.

• A mini-notebook – I’m now on my fourth notebook in the last few months. I have a favorite brand, compact and with a built-in rubber band. While paper seems obvious to carry as a writer, it does serve multiple purposes. A flip through my current notebook reveals the start of this article (scribbled during my son’s speech therapy appointment), the first chapter of my ICL book assignment, old “to do” lists, and several pages of my children’s drawings.

• A digital voice-recorder – After my roomy purse, this was the best Christmas present ever. While I admit to recording the most precious knock-knock joke session between my 4 year old and 2 ½ year old, I have also managed to capture some great inspirations. I am able to drive and talk into it rather easily. Then I can write out these “notes” later. I have found that recording actual sentences and paragraphs is not my style. But I can gather fragments of notes, ideas, and phrases that are stuck in my head.

Beyond the must-haves in my “office”, space is occupied by a rotating set of items depending on what I’m working on that week.

• Upcoming theme lists – I often print out upcoming theme lists for magazines and cart them around with me. They serve as inspiration at the playground (or as drawing paper for the kids while waiting at the doctor’s).

• Assorted magazines – I admit it. I bring my own copy of Highlights to the waiting room. Rather than read decades old issues of Golf and Forbes, I get a little research done. And if I’m reading a slim YA book, I’m likely to stash it in my purse too.

• Drafts of articles – Sometimes I prefer to take a red pen to my work, rather than rely on the delete button.

• Current issues of Children’s Writer – I like to glance at the Marketplace section especially when we’re at story-time at the library. Then I can make my way over to the magazine racks to check out those mentioned.

My passion for writing constantly beckons me to sit in that cozy writing nook, while my eager children tug me out the door in search of adventure. With my office slung on my shoulder, I’m happier as a mommy and writer knowing that the two worlds are not incompatible. And after purchasing a needle designed for leather, my traveling office is back up and running. Thank goodness, because the tiny black clutch I found was not going to work at all.

Jennifer Blessing is a Mac computer fanatic and believes an iPhone would be an excellent addition to her traveling office. While her loving husband supports her writing habits, he has yet to be convinced of the same.

This page last updated on 01 April 2008