Traveling to Write Our Books

I don't travel to seek ideas for books: all my ideas come from my own ordinary life.

I don't travel to research my books: they all take place close to home.

But I adore traveling to write my books. That is to say, I adore writing in Other Places.

There is just something so magical and stimulating about writing Somewhere Else. I write more and better when I'm not lying on my couch at home. Or at least this is what I tell myself to give myself permission to arrange to write on the couches of my writer friends.

I love writing in cafes, preferably on a snowy day, sipping hot chocolate and nibbling on a pastry.

I've taken myself on the bus from Boulder to Denver to write in beautiful Union Station, preferably with a jaunty elf to keep me company.

There is no lovelier place to write than in the Denver Botanic Gardens.

My favorite recent writing stint elsewhere was sitting cross-legged on the floor at the Denver Convention Center, when I was speaking there at this year's Pop Culture Con. I finished writing the last two chapters of my latest book under the gaze of a curious Big Blue Bear.

So if you're feeling stuck, or sad, or just in need of an extra jolt of joy in your writing life, go write somewhere else. Take yourself out on a writing date. All writers need writing treats!

Oh, and here I am in my most exotic writing spot to date: seated on the Great Wall of China.

Who wants to come on a writing date with me?