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Watch Wall

Just behind the computer in my home office I have a wall that used to be blank. Early on in my career I needed zero distractions from my work, but now that I'm much more comfortable with the daily demands I tried a few things to inspire me, like this idea board for my quilting and textile art to the left of my computer. Having practice and experimental pieces pinned to the board help me think through pending projects when I take breaks. It's also nice to have some sewing up to remind me that not everything I create is for $$$.

Directly behind my computer is a framed photo by an artist I love, and to it I tape pictures of body models for the main characters of whatever story I'm working on at the moment. This not only reminds me of their physical attributes, but gives me a sense of my characters as real people. These two have been quite a lot to contend with while writing over the past month.

To the right of my computer I have a wall calendar that my guy gifted to me last year, on which I write any appointments or notes to myself. I know there are computer calendars I could use but I don't trust them. At the top of the calendar I have clipped my project schedule goals. Crossing off every day on the goals list gives me a great deal of personal satisfaction; for this project I haven't missed a single day (I'm actually a day ahead of schedule.)

I'm not a person who needs endless inspiration -- on the contrary, I always have too many ideas. What I like to look at when I'm in work mode are things that first help remind me that I am at the job when I sit in this chair, and comfort me with the assurance that not all my creativity goes to generate income. When you've worked in the arts for a long time it's important to be professional and stay on task, but also have something for yourself that you don't put out there for public consumption. The balance of both is my Watch Wall.

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