Belinda Jeffrey

As a part of the 2010 QLD Writers Centre Blog tour, I’m blogging here about my writing space.

I was gong to post a picture of what is technically my study though, after moving into a  town-house, this is just a little corner in a garage among everything else we have to store in there. It houses the mad mess of ideas and research for my novels, plus the paints and paper, ribbon, boxes and ’stuff’ for artistic endeavors, should anyone feel inclined, and the washing machine.

My preferred writing space, though, is a small table at Gloria Jeans at Indooroopilly Shoppingtown. Yes, I know, it’s not the most ‘ambient’ of places. It has no atmosphere, it’s opposite Woolworths and it is just a re-claimed space in the middle of the mall. But it’s where I go everyday to write (when I can).

The advantage of this particular place is that there is a constant background noise that cocoons me into my own thoughts. Too much quiet around makes my own myriad of other thoughts seem way too loud. Hmm. I feel like chocolate, damn I fogot to hang out the washing. When was that electricity bill due? Too much noise, like music, has me tuning in and singing along, that’s me in the corner, that’s me in the spotlight losing my religion. But with a constant level of background noise, I forget where I am and everything else except the novel I have in front of me. Oh, and the coffee is good and the staff know me. It’s the small things. People drop by for a chat, and it’s not far from home.

By current novel, Big River Little Fish, was mostly written here and it will be published by UQP in September.