Guest Post – Fiona Robyn and Her Writing Space

Where do I write? The first question that comes to my mind is, “what I would classify as ‘writing’?” I’m working on a fifth novel, but what with weddings (mine) and still-quite-new companies (Writing Our Way Home ) and moving to a new area of the country (the Malvern hills) and starting my therapy private practice from scratch again, I must confess that it’s not getting regular attention.

I do all kinds of different writing during an average day. I notice something properly, write it down, and add this ‘small stone’ to my daily blog . I blog for Writing Our Way Home about paying attention, the things I learn, the things I struggle with. I write a weekly inspirational newsletter. I write articles for sites such as tinybuddha and Eric Maisel’s World Salon (and this one!). Not to mention tweeting, dealing with poetry submissions for my blogzine, replying to email, etc. etc. etc.

I do this kind of writing all around the house. We have an office upstairs, but in the summer I’m more likely to be found in the conservatory with my cats and the sunshine. If I could see the screen better, I’d take the lap-top into the garden with me…

But when I’m engaged in longer pieces of writing (including writing essays for our e-courses) I retreat to the room in the photo. We use this room both as our shrine room (we are both Pureland Buddhists) and my therapy room. This is our ‘public’ room, where people come to see me, and so we have kept it deliberately minimalist. The bookcase is full of therapy and Buddhist books, and I find every object in the room beautiful – the woven rattan lamp, a picture given to me by Kaspa, even the simple IKEA chairs.

This room also contains our shrine with our big golden Buddha, which we meticulously gold-leafed when we first moved in. It feels good to write accompanied by his presence. I can light a candle before I settle down, gaze at the light dappling the floor for a minute or so, and then dive into delicious words…

Fiona Robyn is on a mission to help people connect with the world through writing. She runs Writing Our Way Home with her husband Kaspalita, where you can read her free book about Lorrie with pea-green eyes and take their writing e-courses. She is very fond of earl grey tea and home-made cake.