Where would writers be be without chocolate?

I haven't had a bad day. In fact I've had a great day. I've been working on the first book of the new trilogy that my publisher wants delivered next year.

The good thing about having a whole day to work on one thing, is that you can immerse yourself in the world and look for those little tweak and layers that make it all the more real for the reader.

The bad thing is that your concentration starts to lapse about about 3pm. At least mine does. I started at 7am, worked through without pause. Lunch? An apple will do. Don't want to stop the flow.

So 3pm is when I bring the chocolate out. Chocolate and coffee. And then I can keep going for another couple of hours. But eventually, the kids need me to cook dinner and I have to stop. (Home made meat pie, just in case you were interested).

Now it is back to work tomorrow and I have to get out of my book mindset and into my lecturer mindset. Sometimes I wish I could run away to a writing monastery (one where they delivered chocolate and coffee at 3pm!).

What's your idea of writing heaven?

Do your surroundings influence your Creativity?

We're selling our house.

It's been a great house. We've been here 20 years and our children have all gone to the local school and we've been happy in this house but everything is falling apart.

Now that our children are leaving home we're going to do it up and buy a smaller place. And this brings me to what is important to me as a creative person.

Call me shallow, but I love beautiful things. A walk through the art gallery leaves me feeling like I'm walking on air. A piece of beautiful music will bring tears of joy to my eyes. Conversely, a messy house, makes my head feel fusty and I can't think straight until the house is straightened up.

I suspect it is a female gene because my husband seems to be able to walk through snow drifts of mess and still function.

I haven't been able to write, I've been feeling overwhelmed by the house. At one point we had 9 people living here and three sets of furniture, as adult children moved back with their belongings. Now that some of them have moved out, taking their furniture I can see light at the end of the tunnel.

So we are selling our house and I want to live somewhere beautiful, preferably by the sea. I want to feel that uplifting sense of wonder when I walk down the road, catch a glimpse of the sea, see storm clouds rushing in ... you get the picture.

When I was a child I used to capture beautiful moments so I would always have them, like treasures. I still do. And I go fishing through those beautiful moments when I need a setting for a scene.

I feel more creative in a beautiful setting. I feel like I can't wait to get ideas down on paper (or computer screen). Bringing up our 6 children, we surrounded them with ideas both challenging and fun, we watched documentaries, and shared our love of music and art. Will they become creative people? I don't know.

As a teacher in a computer games college I come across creative kids all the time. And I wonder how they will get on in a society that values football players ahead of artists.

Can artists (creativity) be taught or is it born in us? This article looks at the question and answers it in a measured way. It raises the point that if you are living in the back of beyond and no one ever sees your art or hears your music, and you receive no stimulation from other artists, then you will never produce to your full potential. So as parents, the best thing we can do is stimulate our kids and stand back.

Maybe I am shallow, but I want to live somewhere beautiful. I believe I'm more creative in beautiful surroundings, especially, if the dishes are done.

Do your surroundings influence your creativity? Do you have to be sure the bed is made before you can write? Does it help you, if the cat sits on your lap and purrs while you write?