Famous Authors and Famous Words by Eden Monroe

 

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Famous authors and their famous words … and the unusual places in which they were written.

It was interesting to discover where some very well known authors chose to tap their genius, and a few might surprise you. From the confines of a coffin to a luxurious Victorian bathtub complete with fresh fruit, the jewels of their imagination were polished to perfection.

For most authors, famous or otherwise, the best place is the quietest place, while others find their muse in the midst of everyday commotion – some even seek it to start the flow of their creative juices. For me it was the silence and sweet smell of a summer haymow. That’s where I wrote my first novel, Dare To Inherit, and I was certainly not alone while there. Watching nearby with curious intent was a whole sisterhood of barn cats of various sizes and descriptions. However it could only ever be a short-lived writing space because when the fields begin to ripen the mow is quickly restocked - with no room for authors.

A café was the now famous choice of J K Rowling while creating a good portion of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. And Dame Edith Sitwell prepared for her day’s writing by lying, until inspired, in an actual coffin. And how about Sir Walter Scott? One of his most famous poems, Marmion: A Tale of Flodden Field, came about while riding horseback in the hills not far from Edinburgh, Scotland. Said the much-celebrated bard himself: “I had many a grand gallop among these braes when I was thinking of Marmion.”

As I Lay Dying is the epic Southern Gothic novel by one of the all-time greats, 1949 Nobel Prize in Literature winner, William Faulkner. It was written in a most surprising place, a power plant, where Faulkner was working as a supervisor during the night shift. And the incomparable Maya Angelou wrote in rented hotel rooms where she created her magnificent brand of magic. British spy novelist John le Carré often wrote while riding trains, while Gertrude Stein, American writer, poet and playwright, equally inspired by motion it seems, put pen and paper to good use in her Model T.

Charles Dickens usually chose a more traditional spot to write some of the best literature ever written, classic novels such as The Pickwick Papers, A Christmas Carol, David Copperfield and more, and that was while sitting at his desk. In fact his own desk and chair were so vital to his creative process that he’d have the pair shipped to him during extended absences from home. For Virginia Woolf, considered one of the foremost modernists of the Twentieth Century, it was a much-loved old armchair in a basement storage room, and Agatha Christie’s legendary mystery plots were sorted out while sitting in a large Victorian bathtub - eating fresh plump apples.

Stephen King is said to have used the laundry room in the family’s doublewide trailer during the early days of his writing career, at least that’s where Carrie was written on a makeshift desk wedged between the washer and dryer. And Charlotte Webb’s E. B. White often chose his own busy living room with his family around him to write his masterpieces, pointing out: “A writer who waits for ideal conditions under which to work will die without putting a word on paper.”

In addition to a particular space, there were also favourite writing times preferred by many famous authors. It’s said that Hemmingway was inspired by the first light of morning. For Mark Twain, who wrote every day, it was after tucking away a generous meal at the breakfast table that held him until it was time for dinner. During the intervening hours he wrote, and if his family should need him, “they would blow a loud horn and he would come.”

George Bernard Shaw also liked to write during the day and presumably only when the sun was shining. To accomplish that he chose a most unique setting to create his Pygmalion, a custom-made rotating hut in his backyard. The why of such a contraption is simple, Shaw liked to write while sitting in the direct path of the sun and the rotating hut accomplished that.

Every author knows what suits them best and they instinctively gravitate toward that. Personally I like to lose myself in the world I’m creating, and ideally with no interruptions. Unfortunately even one interruption can put the brakes on a delicious creative flow. Sometimes it stops it altogether if the interruption is prolonged, although it’s something that we as authors must routinely rise above. Other times of course nothing can stop the rush of a good story when all we can do is work at breakneck speed to capture it as quickly as it’s coming to us. I sometimes write in longhand and such was the case with Storms in the Valley, book two of the Emerald Valley Ranch series. That story told itself, I was just along for the ride. All I had to do was get it down on paper and I still remember my pen racing across the page, enjoying the story as it unfolded.

The sounds of nature, such as wind, birdsong, the hooting of an owl or the scream of seagulls, rain, thunder, a babbling brook, ocean waves breaking on a pebbled beach, and on and on, are not interruptions at all but rather an accompanying natural orchestra that can help set the scene. In some cases there can be a little too much nature, such as a young bear stretched out under the deck of my tiny cottage on a hot afternoon. That’s where I went to write, and as it turns out it’s also where the bear went to sleep, so I left quietly and so did the bear at some point.

I named my tiny cottage that sits by the side of a lake, Birch Petal, nestled as it is in a stand of handsome white and yellow birch trees. Michael created this space for me - a little think tank where I could write, and many years before that he’d actually built the beautiful three-acre lake itself. The view from the Birch Petal deck never failed to inspire me.

No matter where writers may write - or when, all authors aspire to be famous. It’s the storyteller in us, and the audience we seek to entertain. And no matter the level of our success, most authors write for that one special someone in their life. I wrote for my beloved Michael.   He will always be my inspiration, an enormous and integral part of my journey as an author. He was a knowledgeable resource, an indispensible critic and always, my greatest champion.