Dear All

I started to write my first book.

I am looking for a place (or better an environment) to write my book. If any one is working on a book and would like to share his/her experience and suggestion, would be great.

PS: I am from Bern and would move easily to any place around 1 hours travel time.

Looking forward to hear from you.

Thanks.

In bed, like Marcel Proust.

HTH

That sounds like procrastination!

J.KRowling started writing the Harry Potter books in a local cafe with her baby in a pram beside her.

Anyway, kudos for starting to write a book and good luck!

There are a few people on here who have so they'll probably be able to give you some real advice.

Thanks for quick reply

I partially agree with you that I am trying to delay the things.. I need a strong motivation to stick to writing.. I tried to write in trains (I have GA) .. but still results are not that good.. At home I can't write..

Yes, I will wait from others..

Regards

the train is a good idea if you can deal with the motion. hop on the train now and get writing!

It does sound like procrastination.

Quiet venues - libraries, sparsely populated woods or fields - a picnic and a laptop
Noisy/busy venues - coffee shops, libraries, open mic gigs - to bring inspiration

Good luck!

The first Harry Potter book was written in a café.

But if you want peace & quiet, how about Staylitlle, Powys, Wales?
No mobile phone coverage, then no landlines for 10 days!

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-mid-wales-34125739

https://www.google.ch/maps/place/Sta...9a2c7234eab5e4

Are you writing it on paper?? Surely you want to write at home on a computer.

By the way writing a book is easy - it's getting it published that's difficult...

I'm reminded of that famous Fantoni cartoon in Private Eye.

Two blokes in a pub...

Bloke 1: I'm writing a book.

Bloke 2: Neither am I.

Quite a few literary magazines and general interest sites have explored your question.
The Millions has asked writers to post a picture of their writing space http://www.themillions.com/2012/02/where-we-write.html
Brain Pickings mentions the routines of some writers:
http://www.brainpickings.org/2012/11...tines-writers/

I believe it's best to write whenever, wherever you can, even if it's just for ten minutes. That way you keep your mind working, keep track of work and it's much easier to dive back into the writing next time.

Some prefer the comfort of their home, few only write in serene writing retreats in nature. Others like busy cafes. Notice what feels pleasant and contructive (spaciousness, good light, noise, having a large table etc) Good luck with your writing. Let us know how it goes

Are you outdoorsy by any chance?

I'm not working on a book but otherwise have to write long(ish) texts once in a while. What works for me, as I have a GA too, is to hide in some relatively inexpensive hotel, e.g. off-season in a ski resort or whatever, the important thing are that there must be nearby hiking tracks.


Then the rule is to use bad weather for the writing with the promise that I'm allowed to hike once the sun comes out but ONLY if I got the writing done by then.

Makes me actually love this country's weather patterns

I do not have experience with writing a book, but I found it very comfortable to spend the time in open libraries at Uni. When I needed to learn during studies.

I know only those in Zurich. The best one I thing is the
ETH Baubibliothek
Mo–Fr 8.00–21.00

very nice and comfortable.

Actually that is the easy part, I have now three on Amazon KDP (Kindle direct publishing) and it works like a treat, have a look (DeepBlue C Kindle, bit of self advertising there ;.)
And as for writing one... At home, at night, subdued lighting, in underpants with a cold beer.

Some people prefer not to self-publish, especially if they aren't great with marketing, cover design, proofreading... Lots of publishers out there nowadays. Finding a reputable one isn't very easy, although I find access and waiting time has been improved now that you can email manuscripts simultaneously, as opposed to ten years ago when it was more common to mail them to one publisher at a time.

I have a friend who has published two books. The first was published with a small publisher and he was very disappointed. Firstly the publisher took ages to do anything, the quality of the copy editing was poor and now the book is out he is frustrated at the complete lack of marketing and push. Not surprisingly, the sales were very dismal. The second book he self published (he payed for profesional copy editing and layouting) and he says its actually doing better than the first. One good and low cost way to self-promote is to do readings in bookshops. He also distributed free copies to libraries which may not help sales but it helps to get read.

Glad to hear your friend had a positive experience self publishing. My personal favorite publishers are Melville House, Ashland Creek and Grey Wolf, which I believe are categorized as independent publishers.
Some writers make millions by self publishing. I think fifty shades of grey started out as a self published book through publishing on demand channels? When making the choice between self pub and publishing through a third party, you have to consider the type of your work (commercial, literary...) and whether it is financial or critical success you want (not mutually exclusive of course.) When you are shopping your book out there it's easy to drown in predatory publishers, vanity publishers and inexperienced publishers. Definitely helps when you are part of a writing community and benefit from other writers' experiences, or if you are on your own, there are online sources like Pred-Ed (http://pred-ed.com/peba.ht), though it's impossible to list all publishers at the rate they are popping up.

Pity it didn't stay "self-published" too

Amazing. That made my day.

Unibern - we have a writing/thesis/study group going on at EPFL, need to have it regular again after hols, newcomers are welcome. And got AG, so could alternate places. Trains are great for some, in fact, in terms of time management strategies, offers blocks of measured time, etc.

Are there any self-published authors around in this forum?

Including research papers?