Create your space!

The spaces that we create for ourselves are extensions of us. They show people what our interests are, what habits we have, how often we clean or declutter. There is a really interesting study from Samuel Gosling where he got complete strangers to guess people’s personality types just based on their bedroom. The strangers were right every time about how the person behaves, lives, their interests and habits! The spaces that you create for yourself are as much a part of you, as your thoughts and deepest secrets.

When creating my poetry book, ‘Soul Notes Poetry’, I wrote exclusively from my bedroom in my mum’s house. It is a tiny box room, with just enough space for a single bed, a small wardrobe and a desk. I treasure my bedroom greatly. Living with your family can mean a lack of personal space; that’s why I made sure to make my bedroom the most ideal space for me to be creative, alone and navigate my teenage years a bit more introspectively.

My space definitely influences my writing

or maybe my writing influences my space… Looking at my room, you can see my writing in here. From nature, nostalgia, romanticism and other themes throughout my poetry being very visible in the space.

Ways in which I’ve cultivated my ideal space can be broken up into three different categories!

1)    Personal items that regulate my moods

Now, I’m a poet- so of course I’m a bundle of emotions. I often self-regulate and self-soothe through looking at old memories from scrapbooks, photographs, letters and journal entries. Whether it’s my basket full of books people have made for me, or an illustration of me and my girlfriend (that the illustrator of my book, Ella Fradgley, actually made for us years ago!) I really treasure being surrounded by items that bring me comfort. This is very much inclusive of my childhood teddy, Emily Lion, too. She rules the space.

2)    Habitual Items

I am definitely a creature of habit. I love routine, organising my day and making sure I know where to divide my time. So, to ensure that I feel most productive and organised, I have a calendar at my desk, a weekly planner and my journal. I fill these in every Sunday and use Sundays as my reflection day. Making sure that the things you want to make a habit of are close by, helps keep you accountable. It’s hard to ignore a task when it’s right in your face!

3)    Practical supplies

This may seem obvious but making sure that I have the supplies to be creative and get my writing done is super vital. The process should be just as enjoyable as the end product, so I love using stationary that makes me happy! These supplies are things I use every day to jot ideas down or to ensure I enjoy creating as much as I can.

While my desk in my room is the heart of where everything gets created; it isn’t the only space that I write. I always have my phone on me to type up an idea into my phone notes, or I’ll have a scrap piece of paper to write down something that inspires me. Inspiration can strike anywhere. If you are waiting to create something based on having the ‘best’ place to write it down, you will never get anything made. Ever.

You can write and create anywhere, but if you are lucky enough to have access to a hard surface like a desk, a few pens and a notepad- you are already there! If all you have access to are the wonderful ideas in your mind and a notes app on your device, you have everything you need. Not everything has to be perfectly laid out and aesthetic. You can make your creative ‘space’ from anything you have available to you. Making sure you are in the right headspace is the first step, so take a deep breath and remember that you are all that you need.

Now get creative