Anna Bradley: Do you want to be nosey?

HAVE A LOOK AT ANNA'S WORLD: After the success of last month's post where I showed you around my writing room, I am delighted to tell you I managed to convince fellow Regency author Anna Bradley to show us hers! So here it is, in her own words...

Weird and Wonderful – a Peek into a Writer’s World

A month or so ago, Virginia gave you all a peek into her writing spaces with her blog "Do you Want to be Nosey?" I found a link to her blog on Twitter and immediately sent her a note saying, "Of course I want to be nosey!" Snooping is part of what writers do, after all. Virginia was kind enough to invite me to share my own weird and wonderful writing world with you, so here we go. For those of you who read Virginia’s original blog, be forewarned: her house is a lot neater than mine!

My Writing Partner

Before we go any further, I’d like to introduce my writing partner. This is Barkley. He’s 7, and he an Old English sheepdog. Cute, right? He’s the perfect partner, too, because he never offers any writing critique or scolds me when I don’t meet my word count. For the most part he sleeps all day, though he will occasionally rouse himself to follow me around the house if he thinks I might be persuaded to give him a treat. He does have eyes under all that fur, in case you were wondering!

Channelling Jane Austen

Have you ever been to the Jane Austen House Museum in Chawton, Hampshire? If you have, then you’ve seen the desk where she sat and wrote her masterpieces. My own desk tiny desk is a 20th century piece of American furniture so it looks nothing like Jane’s, but I still call it my Jane Austen desk because it does have a bit of a magical writerly vibe to it. I don’t use my laptop on this desk, but I do sit here sometimes with quill and parchment (i.e. pen and paper) and make notes on scenes or write outlines.

Hiding Behind the Grape Vines

I know what you’re thinking: how can she possibly work here with all the grape vines trailing everywhere? Well, it takes some effort, but I do regularly tuck myself into this space on my front porch, especially in the spring and early summer, before it get too hot. The grape vines actually work to my advantage, because they shield me from view of my neighbors. Now my neightbors are lovely people—don’t get me wrong—but they do like to chat, and I don’t always have that luxury when I’m struggling to meet a deadline.

The Ugliest Chair in the World

I hate this chair. It’s a relic from my husband’s bachelor days. We’ve been married for 18 years, so it’s old and decrepit—you can see how worn the seat cushion is! Alas, Mr. Bradley refuses to part with it, so here it sits in my master bedroom. As much as I detest this chair, I’ll admit I do sometimes plop down here if I need to read or research a particular aspect of a book. At least if I’m sitting in it, I don’t have to look at it!

The View

My only consolation when it comes to the ugly chair? It sits right next to a window, and this is the view outside that window. I want to lie and say this gorgeous garden is mine, but unfortunately my yard has a lot fewer flowers and a lot more weeds. My neighbors are master gardeners, and I have them to thank for this view.

Grande Sugar-Free Vanilla Latte, please

Everyone in the Pacific Northwest is addicted to Starbucks—it’s an ugly truth, and we all have to accept it. I am as weak-willed when it comes to my sugar fre vanilla lattes as the next person is, so it’s only right that I include a shot from my local Starbucks. I come here quite a bit to write, especially on weekends, because they have great coffee I don’t have to make myself, and my kids aren’t here! I usually bring my laptop with me, but on the day I took this picture I was going old school with a pen and a pretty notebook.

My Couch is my Desk

Finally, my confession. Unless I’m channelling Jane Austen at the tiny desk in my bedroom, I don’t write at a desk. More often than not you can find me right here, on this couch. Yes, it’s an ergonomic disaster, and it does sometimes lead to neck and shoulder problems. I do have a real desk, and yet I still find myself here for the better part of most days. The bookshelf next to the couch has all my beloved writing craft books and my resource books on 19th century British history, and I love having it right at my fingertips. That shelf also has pictures of my children when they were babies and naked in the bath, but don’t tell them I mentioned that!

And there you have it—a peek into the (not so glamous) life of a professional writer!

Thanks for showing us all your writing space Anna. You are right, that chair has seen better days!

Anna writes steamy, sexy Regency historical romances. Her new book, “A Season of Ruin,” comes out on August 2, 2016, from Berkley.