things that turn novel writers on

[mesh138]

A confession:

I get turned on when I open my novel in microsoft word and the program sort of chokes, and then takes a good ten seconds to load all the pages. I like watching all the numbers flash at the bottom of the screen. 100 Pages. 200 pages. 300 pages.

Am I a bad person?

Help me.

[SJB]

Interesting.

[aadams73]

No you're not strange or bad :)


Things that turn me on:

Stationary...ahhhh. Pens, pencils, and all other writing materials just make me drool.

[Flapdoodle]

A confession:

I get turned on when I open my novel in microsoft word and the program sort of chokes, and then takes a good ten seconds to load all the pages. I like watching all the numbers flash at the bottom of the screen. 100 Pages. 200 pages. 300 pages.

Am I a bad person?

Help me.

When turn two ideas that have been lurking in the back of the head suddenly find themselves linked into a complete story... Gives me the shivers.

[maestrowork]

Epiphanies = Rapture

[Nicholas S.H.J.M Woodhouse]

a well described pair of legs

[scarletpeaches]

The smell of a new ream of paper.

[aruna]

The smell of a new book

[scarletpeaches]

The smell of a new book with my name on it!

A girl can dream!

[AdamH]

The eletronic whoosh-whoosh of a printer as it converts a story of mine from virtual cyber-text into reality. It's kind of like pulling a cartoon character right off the screen into the real world.

[Nicholas S.H.J.M Woodhouse]

the smell of an old book

and when i get a second hand book and see people's notes in the sides. i love that

[aruna]

The smell of a new book with my name on it!

A girl can dream!

Walking into a bookshop and seeing a whole shelf full of my newest book, and a sign saying "Book of the Week", and readers queuing up all around the corner!

Oh, and what really turns me on is a certain white envelope in my mailbox with my agent's name on the back, and inside is a "payment advice".

[scarletpeaches]

I'm very glad to see I'm not the only person turned on by various smells. My non-writing friends look at me like I'm weird when I flick the pages of a new book and inhale. Especially in public.

[Nicholas S.H.J.M Woodhouse]

oh, i never do it in public....

[scarletpeaches]

I do. I'm shameless.

[SC Harrison]

I get turned on when, after proofing something I just wrote, I realize it still has the same power as it did when I brought it into existence.

[Sheryl Nantus]

walking into Staples (a stationary store) or Best Buy - the laptop section.

*shivers*

I'm such a cheap date.

:D

[brokenfingers]

Author groupies

[maestrowork]

Someone asks for my authorgraph.

:D

[WannabeWriter]

You know what turns me on? When I go to a bookstore and I see a cover for a book by a favorite author, I imagine my own name, novel title, and cover illustration on it. One can dream, right? :)

[kristie911]

Stationary...ahhhh. Pens, pencils, and all other writing materials just make me drool.

I thought I was the only one!

I love spiral notebooks and new pens. I own more notebooks than I could fill in a lifetime.

A trip to Office Max is my second favorite way to spend the day...the best is a day in the library!

[scarletpeaches]

Imagining people sniffing my book one day.

Oh god, that sounds so wrong out loud.

[MarkPettus]

Reading a critique and finding comments in the margin that say, "I love this line," and remembering how I felt when I first wrote the line, and how much I loved it.

Oh, and reading something I wrote and finding that I can still get lost in my own stories.

[Julie Worth]

I get turned on when I open my novel in microsoft word and the program sort of chokes, and then takes a good ten seconds to load all the pages. I like watching all the numbers flash at the bottom of the screen. 100 Pages. 200 pages. 300 pages.

My turn on? That my Writing folder is now approaching one gigabyte.

[scarletpeaches]

My turn on? That my Writing folder is now approaching one gigabyte.

Hail!:Hail:

[goatpiper]

I always smell new books in public. Some books smell better than others, so when I'm browsing around, I'll just open it up and smell it - smack dab in the middle of Barnes and Noble.
Pens get me going, too. I dream of someday owning a very nice, ridiculously expensive pen - especially since I write my first drafts by hand. Then I can lose it and totally flip out over a completely inconsequential piece of consumerism.
Whenever there's a display case with super-nice pens in it, I'll stand and stare. I especially like the cases that have the pens on an electric carousel. So arousing.
Oh yeah...ink is pretty hot, too.

[Julie Worth]

... when rereading something I’ve written, and I’m thrown into a world much richer than I had in mind. And when I make some subtle edit that changes the atmosphere completely. And yes, the smell of new books, and especially that rich aroma of old books. And the marvelous thickness of a manuscript sitting on my dining room table before I ship it out...even though I cheated and used 24 lb instead of 20...

[Sage]

Along the same lines, rereading an old story or a section I wrote a long time ago, & wondering how those words came from my mind. Also suddenly being hit with an idea for or within a story that I know is awesome, especially if I know it's going to pull on the heartstrings of the audience.

[blacbird]

I suspect getting something published would do it. But that's only a suspicion.

bird

[Jamesaritchie]

I'm easy. Fine pens and pencils, journals, notebooks, good stationery. Acceptance letters, royalty checks, Reba McEntire, Dolly Parton, darned near any gal with a North Carlina accent, and redheaded women with freckles.

[Button]

The smell and feel of a new or old book.
Agent comments.
When that novel you started (without an outline) finally clicks and everything is suddenly before you. You can "see" your characters. You can "envision" their entire world.

When everything falls into place.

[Azure Skye]

Writing The End.

Office supply stores....oh the possibilities.

[Pencilone]

Posting some submissions makes me feel complete, and hillariously happy.:)

I try not to think too much what I will do when I'll get my first cheque publishing something written by me. Just the thought sends me shivers through my spine:) . Wow!

The smell of a new book reminds me of my childhood :).

[Vanessa]

walking into Staples (a stationary store) or Best Buy - the laptop section.

*shivers*

I'm such a cheap date.

:D

Me too. Plus I have too many spiral notebooks to count. They are everywhere, in the car, in the trunk, in my book bags, in my laptop bag, on my hotel desk, in my purse, in my hotel drawers. At home, everywhere.

And Barnes and Noble is a HUGE turn on. I spend a lot of time there on weekends.

[HConn]

Pictures of hot women having sex.

[thewritingbug]

Definitely office supply stores and book stores. Plus, the perfect pen and a clean, blank notebook. (as opposed to a dirty one, I guess)

[cattywampus]

What turns me on is comments like these from my students:



She wrote back very quickly. She seemed really nice.
(Christine on 6/5/2005 7:19:43 PM)


Thanks for your prompt help with specific suggetions
(Kashem on 5/30/2005 12:21:46 AM)


THis was so helpful thank you.
(Syd on 5/23/2005 5:25:01 PM)


Susan, you're the best. Everything I hoped for and more. :) I value my allexperts rating as well, but you have earned this. :)
(James on 5/20/2005 3:15:41 AM)


You answer was very helpful and clear. Thank you very much.
(Kevin Allen on 3/8/2005 5:24:20 PM)


Thank you very much for your suggestions and answers. You deserve four 10 points. I will try my best to follow your advice.
(Betty on 1/30/2005 3:05:33 AM)

[Christine N.]

Good reviews :)

Doing a second draft of a story and coming to a part that makes me say "WOW - am I ever brilliant!" (what happened to the rest of it? LOL)

E-mails from agents that say "Please send me more!"

E-mails from agents that say "I'm sending a contract, please let me rep you!"

Phone calls from agents (they only call when it's good news)

OK, so the last two are yet-to-bes.

Office supply? Oh, man, don't get me started. I love that the Staples brand stuff is so... cheap! I stay away unless I absolutely need something, or else I get myself into trouble.

Back to the OP - yes, I like watching the numbers on the bottom climb too :)

[azbikergirl]

Chocolate, a nice ride in the twisties on my motorcycle, and that picture of Arnold posing nude on the internet.

Good reviews :)
Oh yeah, that, too. :banana:

[jen.nifer]

A confession:

I get turned on when I open my novel in microsoft word and the program sort of chokes, and then takes a good ten seconds to load all the pages. I like watching all the numbers flash at the bottom of the screen. 100 Pages. 200 pages. 300 pages.

Am I a bad person?

Help me.

Hmmh... maybe I should create 300 blank pages within my WIP word document...

[Tiaga]

My naked muse winking and taking me on a journey.

[triceretops]

An agent/editor who says that they love this story and want to take it to the next step and advise me how to re-write/edit it. I know at that time, I'm in the ball game and it's time to step up and knock it out of the park.

Tri

[Elincoln]

Someone sending me a message telling me how much they enjoyed my work and want to read more.

And I can't enter a Staples with a Credit card. Cash only and only the amount needed to buy what I have to get. Otherwise.....(shivers)

[maestrowork]

Fan mail.

Someone pre-ordering my book. ;)

[PrettySpecialGal]

The smell of a new book

Yeah, me too. Nothing like it in the world.

Except maybe honeysuckles in the spring. bees and all.

[PrettySpecialGal]

Good reviews :)

Doing a second draft of a story and coming to a part that makes me say "WOW - am I ever brilliant!" (what happened to the rest of it? LOL)

E-mails from agents that say "Please send me more!"

E-mails from agents that say "I'm sending a contract, please let me rep you!"

Phone calls from agents (they only call when it's good news)

OK, so the last two are yet-to-bes.



All of them are yet- to- bes for me. Can't wait for that first time, though...

[maestrowork]

Winning an award, like the Pulitzer Prize... ;)

[zarch]

Jeez, this is sort of like coming out of the paper-loving closet. I thought I was the only one who liked the smell, feel, look of new paper. All kinds of exotic paper! Resume paper! Envelopes! Stationary! I like the way old books smell, too. Also, office supply stores and the office supply aisles of regular stores...I like to just look at pens and pencils.

But paper, oh my goodness, paper really does the trick. I love paper.

[zarch]

Oh yeah, and winning the Pulitzer would probably be pretty cool, too, I guess.

[stormie]

The Staples catalogue. Have to have the hard copy. Online doesn't quite do it for me.

Knowing that I'm nearing the end of writing my novel. (No, wait, that makes me sad. I hate parting with my characters, and that I'm only going to see them in the rewrites. Or when the thing is published.)

Anything chocolate next to the keyboard.

[azbikergirl]

Having writers who read my short stories on the OWW tell me they love my writing, ask where they can buy my book, then ask if they can interview me for their weblog.
Writing instructors I admire telling me I'm a good writer.
Other aspiring writers telling me my critiques are helpful.
Other aspiring writers in my crit group asking privately for my thoughts on their writing because they know I'll pick it apart mercilessly.
Coming up with the perfect sentence to communicate what I mean.
Putting up a white board in my living room.
Watching a character develop his own free will and use my hands on keyboard merely as a means for his own self-expression.
Falling in love with a character I made up and knowing I'm going to meet him some day.


:ROFL:

[TeddyG]

I'm easy. Fine pens and pencils, journals, notebooks, good stationery. Acceptance letters, royalty checks, Reba McEntire, Dolly Parton, darned near any gal with a North Carlina accent, and redheaded women with freckles.

I'll take the redhead with freckles and a couple of pens...and some checks...
you can keep the rest!

[My-Immortal]

Someone coming up to me and quoting a line from my book back to me...

Black ink PILOT G-2 '07' pens or more recently Black ink Pilot NEO-GEL '07' pens (I prefer the PILOT G-2 '07' because of the soft grip but after months of carrying them in my back pocket I've had to replace jeans because of the holes - though I still wear the jeans when I'm writing).

New notebooks for new projects.

Finding old notebooks with tons of character sketches, plot lines, settings, snippets of dialogue. (while packing the last time I found an unopened box from the last move and found a couple dozen missing notebooks - it was like Christmas and birthday rolled into one box! LOL)

The smell of books / bookstores. I've had that one for years. Hmmmm...you'd think they'd find a way to put that into a perfume/cologne - I'm sure there would be a niche market for that. :)

Very hot showers and washing my hair. (usually when I'm stuck on some sort of plotting issue I find the answer while washing my hair)

Dictionaries.

[Sage]

Having my friend ask me when I'm going to send her the story I've been working on. When I tell her it's not finished, having her ask me for a "cookie" (which turns out to mean that she wants a small piece of that or another story I've been working on, please).

[Jamesaritchie]

I'll take the redhead with freckles and a couple of pens...and some checks...
you can keep the rest!

Well, as long as you leave me Dolly, I'll still have a couple of things that turn me on.

[ANNIE]

Well, as long as you leave me Dolly, I'll still have a couple of things that turn me on.

Hmmm, I am a redhead with freckles, but I am also happily married!
My turnons;
Barnes and Nobles- paerticularly the three story one in Balitimore!
Any officie supply store. My husband thinks I'm strange because I could spend more money at a staples than at the mall on clothes and stuff- I'm an easy keeper

[TeddyG]

Hmmm, I am a redhead with freckles, but I am also happily married!
My turnons;
Barnes and Nobles- paerticularly the three story one in Balitimore!
Any officie supply store. My husband thinks I'm strange because I could spend more money at a staples than at the mall on clothes and stuff- I'm an easy keeper

Great ..finally find a readhead with freckles who also writes..and of course she is happily married...ain't that a bummer!!!

[azbikergirl]

After finding a lump on my dog's face and having the vet tell me it's probably cancer, putting my dog through surgery to have it removed, and then having the vet call me to say it was benign! WOO HOO!!!

[Tiaga]

I'll take the redhead with freckles and a couple of pens...and some checks...
you can keep the rest!

ah OK his name is Wally he's not much of a looker but he can dance like there is no tomorrow!http://absolutewrite.com/forums/images/icons/icon12.gif

[AncientEagle]

darned near any gal with a North Carlina accent, and redheaded women with freckles.

As a North Carolinian, I agree with your appreciation of the accent. But I am married to a redheaded woman with freckles and a GEORGIA accent. So the only thing more I need to turn me on is ...well ...nothing I guess.

[WerenCole]

I am also particularily fond of that Barnes and Nobles in Baltimore. . . I am finding it strange and eery with this Staples fascination that has seemed to grab all of you. What really turns me on though is the writing itself, getting caught in a world of my own creation and adding flesh to it, giving it teeth.

Red heads ain't bad either, but I prefer a girl with a New England accent. I can't stand southern accents (which is too bad considering I live in Va) and I the "word" y'all. . .

Weren

[mkcbunny]

Post-Its.
Rainy days.

[AncientEagle]

I can't stand southern accents (which is too bad considering I live in Va) and I the "word" y'all. . .Weren

Thank you.

[maestrowork]

Coffee shops with great vibes.

Fascinating, flawed characters who insist on speaking to me in my head...

Finding a piece of information that opens a flood gate to my story... (also scared of that)

[underthecity]

Two things:

I do love the smell of an old book, but even better is the smell of an old bookstore. Not a NEW store, but an old store stocked with really old books. It's a magical place. (There's an old bookstore in Cincinnati called Duttenhoffers that's like this.)

And I'm gonna have to do a little bit of self-aggrandizing here. What turns me on is creating a book I know is fantastic. While I was midway through writing my most recent book I realized it was going to be really good. When I was finished, I had the feeling that what I created was something truly special and not only entertaining and educational, but potentially of social relevance as well. We'll find out exactly how when it's released.

That to me is a turn-on.



allen

[September skies]

Writing on rainy days - I love that more than anything.

Bookstores - the smell and feel of old books, new books, any books.
Especially going to Powells in Portland, Oregon. Anyone ever been there? It is the most amazing bookstore ever - takes up a couple of blocks. Old books are on the shelf next to new books - so you have a choice of either book.

And fan mail. I love that! At the newspaper, having the editor stop by my desk and hand me letters or they'd come by emails and phonecalls - I would smile all day.

[scarletpeaches]

Well, as long as you leave me Dolly, I'll still have a couple of things that turn me on.

You fancy cloned sheep? :Shrug:

Fascinating, flawed characters who insist on speaking to me in my head...

I get that all the time. Sometimes they tell me to kill kill kill...Mostly they say, "Write, write, write." ;)

[Jamesaritchie]

You fancy cloned sheep? :Shrug:



;)

I might, if they have the same, uh, attributes the other Dolly displays so well.

[Jamesaritchie]

I am also particularily fond of that Barnes and Nobles in Baltimore. . . I am finding it strange and eery with this Staples fascination that has seemed to grab all of you. What really turns me on though is the writing itself, getting caught in a world of my own creation and adding flesh to it, giving it teeth.

Red heads ain't bad either, but I prefer a girl with a New England accent. I can't stand southern accents (which is too bad considering I live in Va) and I the "word" y'all. . .

Weren


Y'all just need to get over that in a hurry. I can't even drive through North Carolina without falling in love at least twice. I go to a McDonald's, and instead of hearing "Y'all want fries with that" I hear, "y'all want to make wild, passionate love while you're waiting?"

[kristie911]

Hmmm...makes me wish I had a southern accent. ;)

[Jaycinth]

I used to love office supply stores. That was before I owned one (1989-1994) It is a post traumatic thing now, I can barely walk into one. But I do get warm tingles whenever I stroke a nice thick ream of 24lb Cranes Crest. OOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHH. ( Excuse me a moment)

Ok! When a reader returns part of a manuscript with sassy comments that point out grammatical and spelling errors in a funny way. ( He sat with the cat eating cake..."Oh girl he was so hungry in the last paragraph and now he's feeding his cake to a cute ol cat". or He had ben running.."Yeah girl, than Ben had best run faster too.)

I guess you'd have to be there. Where's my 100% cotton 24 lb off white paper. MMMMMMMMM oooohhhhhhhhhh Crane's Crest... AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH

[hoyateach]

My biggest writing turn-on is being in the groove, pounding out the pages, losing track of time and living my story as I write it down.

[henriette]

-the dusty smell of an old book
-finding an old book with the pages still together and having to slice them apart with a letter opener in order to read the juicy goodness inside
-stationary from florence
-gold leaf
-inscriptions written in fountain pen and ink inside an old book
-old photographs and ephemera

but the sexiest of all? an old fashioned library with wooden shelves up to the ceiling and a ladder on wheels. humina humina!

[Maryn]

Winning an award, like the Pulitzer Prize... ;)When you all win that Pulitzer, there's something important to remember: Mad magazine.

The father of one of our kids' friends won a Pulitzer a few years ago, and he spent some time with the current issue of Mad at hand, because anyone who submits a photograph of a current Pulitzer Prize winner holding Mad gets a free one-year subscription.

This guy made a point of visiting school libraries and the branch libraries in the poor part of the city, with a disposeable camera in the car. He remembered very well that at a certain age, most kids just love the kind of humor in Mad, and he wanted kids to have access to it.

Neat, huh?

Maryn, who has to finish her novel before daydreaming this big

[underthecity]

anyone who submits a photograph of a current Pulitzer Prize winner holding Mad gets a free one-year subscription.

Cool. I am definitely keeping this in mind. :)

allen

[NeuroFizz]

Finding an original edition, 1885 book I've been citing in my research since I started in the research business (and throwing out my yellowed photocopy), then discovering the Introduction contains a lengthy treatise explaining to anti-vivisectionists that the work is worthwhile AND the lowly animals don't feel pain. Intros like this give a window into the scientific-public interactions of the time, and make for interesting comparison with some of today's problems in that area.

The book: Jelly-Fish, Star-Fish and Sea-Urchins, Being a Research on Primitive Nervous Systems by G. J. Romanes

I know it isn't related to novel writing, but one never knows when an interesting idea for an historical may pop up. In fact...

[SeanDSchaffer]

Any writing machine that has the name 'Underwood', 'Royal', 'Olympia', 'Smith-Corona', or 'Compaq' printed somewhere upon it.

A hard-copy manuscript as thick as a dictionary (preferrably one I have written).

A ream of fresh printer paper.

My office, its nice office chair, and a big 14-cup pot of fresh stovetop-percolated coffee to go with it.

:Coffee:

[Jamesaritchie]

Any writing machine that has the name 'Underwood', 'Royal', 'Olympia', 'Smith-Corona', or 'Compaq' printed somewhere upon it.



:Coffee:

Ah, yes. All major turn ons.

[Maryn]

I had a turn on yesterday...

Doing something completely unrelated to my WIP when bam! a good idea, or the solution for a problem, appears in its entirety. This happens only if I'm doing something so mindless my thoughts wander, but it still doesn't make me want to wash dishes.

Maryn, who remembered to turn off the water before racing upstairs to jot down the idea

[mdmkay]

I would have to say that new legal pads and good pens top the list (I'm expecially fond of pens from drug companies). I dream of the day when I will be able to afford the expensive pens. Compliments on my work, and fantasies of being a well-known, frequently-published author. (sigh, someday).

[katrinka]

A confession:

I get turned on when I open my novel in microsoft word and the program sort of chokes, and then takes a good ten seconds to load all the pages. I like watching all the numbers flash at the bottom of the screen. 100 Pages. 200 pages. 300 pages.

Am I a bad person?

Help me.
Is that what the program is doing? Loading? I'm always biting my nails (with fingers crossed) and hoping this will not be the day my computer crashes.

[Lenora Rose]

I had a turn on yesterday...

Doing something completely unrelated to my WIP when bam! a good idea, or the solution for a problem, appears in its entirety. This happens only if I'm doing something so mindless my thoughts wander, but it still doesn't make me want to wash dishes.

Maryn, who remembered to turn off the water before racing upstairs to jot down the idea

Oh yes.

Showers, Washing dishes, handwashing clothes -- that's where the ideas hit you. Something about getting wet, I guess...

(No, not like that, you sickos, you!)

[Maryn]

Is that what the program is doing? Loading? I'm always biting my nails (with fingers crossed) and hoping this will not be the day my computer crashes.I meant to suggest this to the OP, and your message reminded me.

When a really large document opens slowly, you may be using up most of your RAM (random access memory). Moving around within the document can also be sluggish because your RAM is maxed out. Sometimes you can type 15 or 20 characters and they don't appear as you type them but all at once, because of your RAM.

Yeah, I don't really know what it means either, but that's what the Computer Kid said and she was right. Again.

She suggested that for something I know will be huge--a novel, a blog or journal, whatever--I give it a folder and break it into parts within the folder. Currently I'm doing chapters as documents within the folder, and I've got a few subfolders of related research, each aptly named. I'm thinking of adding another subfolder for 'housekeeping'--word count per chapter, stuff I need to look up, facts I've established and where, like that.

On my old computer, I saw slow-down at about 50 single-spaced pp. This one lets me go into the 80s or 90s, but it still slows when the document I'm opening is big enough.

Try breaking it up. You may be glad! And you'll be really, really glad you backed it up when and if your computer does some day crash. I lost my first novel that way. (Luckily, it was crap!)

Maryn, font of second-hand information

[katrinka]

Sometimes you can type 15 or 20 characters and they don't appear as you type them but all at once, because of your RAM.
***And I thought it was because I was a fast typer. <G>
When I work on big projects, I usually start out by giving its own folder, then each chapter is one file. Saves time in trying to find the sections I want to rewrite. I know I really need to back up. I've been keeping my fingers crossed so far. Thanks for the reminder.
Marie

[blisswriter]

I thought I was the only one!

I love spiral notebooks and new pens. I own more notebooks than I could fill in a lifetime.

A trip to Office Max is my second favorite way to spend the day...the best is a day in the library!


Aha! There must be more of us then.

I too love paper and pens. I go to the dollar store and buy those little 6" x 9" notebooks with the beautiful colors and designs. Then I take them home and add them to my collection. :)

I also like to buy the composition notebooks and spirals too. I've found some spirals (both notebook and steno size) that are made from a beige-ish recycled paper with green lines. Something about that paper really turns me on. I bought every one I saw in the store. Mmmmm...

I like lined, 3-ring notebook paper too. I usually get it from WalMart by the ton when it's on sale for 20 cents a pack. A good bargain on paper turns me on too. :banana:

[maestrowork]

Ah, yes. All major turn ons.

I love my computers... BUT, there's nothing quite like my electric typewriter... oooh, that thing was so sexy... so VERY sexy.

OK, I also love my tablet PC. I promise it I won't cheat...

[SeanDSchaffer]

One thing that really used to turn me on as a novel writer was my Grandma Martien's old Underwood Standard upright manual typewriter. I'm told she learned how to type on it in high school, back in the 1930's. She has kept it in immaculate condition, and it works perfectly.

:Sun:

[katrinka]

Aaaah yesss! I love pens and paper. Nothing makes me want to write more than piles of blank notebooks. The thicker the better.

Marie

[arrowqueen]

I feel towards my ten reams of paper and 1,500 envelopes the same way a miser feels towards his hoard of gold. Mine! Mine! All mine!

[huggy4ever]

I feel towards my ten reams of paper and 1,500 envelopes the same way a miser feels towards his hoard of gold. Mine! Mine! All mine!

I like your quote in your signature! Chocolate turns me on! LOL :)

Seriously, reading writing books! :)

I love to get a new set of colorful pens!

[Jamesaritchie]

I feel towards my ten reams of paper and 1,500 envelopes the same way a miser feels towards his hoard of gold. Mine! Mine! All mine!

I know what you mean. I have my own, walk in supply closet. It's filled with hundreds of notebooks of all sizes and shapes, three ring binders, padfolios, legal pads large and small, ink pens, pencils, mechanical pencils, automatic drafting pencils, pencil sharpeners of all types (hand, battery, and plug in), plus ink cartridges, envelopes, reams of printer paper, stationery, etc. The rest of the family calls it "Staples Two." Trouble is, they want to shop there for free. But it's mine, dang it!

[maestrowork]

I can't go into an office supplies store... just can't. So many things... so little time. 1000 envelopes? 2500 mailing labels? Pens... and more pens... and they sell PDAs, too?

[SeanDSchaffer]

I can't go into an office supplies store... just can't. So many things... so little time. 1000 envelopes? 2500 mailing labels? Pens... and more pens... and they sell PDAs, too?


I think what really gets my goat is when I have to go into an OfficeMax and only buy one item! I'm like, you've got to be kidding me. I go into a place like that, buy my one item, and then drool over everything else on their shelves for the next hour or so before I remember I have other errands to perform.

Those Office Supply stores really turn this writer on, all right. Just like a thousand-watt projector bulb.

:Sun:

[PeeDee]

This entire thread is solid and substancial evidence of why my wife will almost never go out with me in public. I do all that stuff. I love the smell of books. We have a used bookstore in town that's entirely hardwood inside andfull of old books. And they have an ancient Royale manual typewriter on display. And original first additions.

Or, the sight of my manuscript printed out. Or published. It suddenly goes from Microsoft word saying "120,000 words" to actually being a beautifully thick stack of paper with my effin' name on it. It gets no better.

Author signings. Love them. To death. Inspires me beyond belief. (Don't tell your favorite author that watching him sign turns you on though.)

Heck. Pick something. Anything writer/reader related pretty much does it for me.

[alanna]

walking into Staples (a stationary store) or Best Buy - the laptop section.

*shivers*

I'm such a cheap date.

:D

When I have time to kill and I'm downtown, I wander the aisles of Staples. The writing untensil aisle, the notebook aisle and the printer paper aisle have especially wonderful smells. When I see that they have 100% recycled paper on sale, I get giddy. :)

[expatbrat]

I can’t join you guys on your stationary fetish. I can’t stand the sight of my own writing, it is messy, leans too far to the right (perhaps because I’m left handed) and the spelling is atrocious.

I love my Acer. She is beautiful, large screened, the keys feel fantastic. We can go anywhere together, she slides easily into my backpack and she radiates this lovely warmth where my forearms rest against her silver casing. When my fingers glide across her keys it feels as I would imagine a masterful pianist feels creating music… and if I spell anything wrong she just goes right ahead and fixes it for me. You can’t find friends as good as that. Acer – I love you!



Oooh, and hubs legs and butt are damm fine too. And his eyes... arrh, newly weds, so cute.

[Novelist in Paradise]

You do know how to use Outline View in Word, right? The reason I ask is because I'm surprised how many people don't. It's very handy for a novelist, because you can write chapters as individual files, and then link all together with Outline View -- you can make changes anywhere in this master file, such as Find and Replace if you get tired of all those "Ted said"s and want to change Ted's name to Bill, and when you save, it will automatically update all the individual files.

There's still bells and whistles to Word I don't know.

[Mike Coombes]

My turn-ons:

Seeing books by people I know in bookstores, and rearranging the shelves to give them better exposure (I was caught in WH Smiths recently moving Martha O'Connor's book from number 36 to the number 1 slot).

Reading something I wrote ages ago, not recognising it and thinking "Wow, did I write that?"

[expatbrat]

I've had people quote me to me before. That is pretty cool. I wouldn't call it a turn on, like it's not up there with Rugby players legs and butts, but it is cool.

[Manxom Vroom]

What a great thread. :D

I love Cross pens and manuscript boxes. I like the way paper feels warm for a few seconds when it comes out of my printer, like it's alive. I love my personalized return address labels.

As I reader, I love it when the spine of a brand new hardcover book creaks with the first opening.

[KTC]

Falling into a sublime moment...when you forget who you are and where you are. When all that you are is writing. And coming out of that moment and realizing that you just had it. It's like watching the liquid bubbling on the spoon.

[Manxom Vroom]

Falling into a sublime moment...when you forget who you are and where you are. When all that you are is writing. And coming out of that moment and realizing that you just had it. It's like watching the liquid bubbling on the spoon.

Yep, that's the best literary high of all, no doubt about it.

[Andre_Laurent]

Pens... oh how I love them.

[Anonymisty]

Y'all just need to get over that in a hurry. I can't even drive through North Carolina without falling in love at least twice.

Dang, sugar, that's such a sweet thing to say! ;) But have you heard a good SC Lowcountry accent yet? Make you weak in the knees.

[Jenan Mac]

Doing something completely unrelated to my WIP when bam! a good idea, or the solution for a problem, appears in its entirety. This happens only if I'm doing something so mindless my thoughts wander, but it still doesn't make me want to wash dishes.


Oh, absolutely!
I was fixing lunch for the kids yesterday and, mid-sandwich, suddenly realized why one of my characters has to die. I knew he had to, but he'd been fighting me over it-- and in the middle of a turkey-and-swiss I had a reason for him to. An hour and a half later, G was dead, and the kids finally got lunch.

Not that they cared. They were in the middle of a Star Trek episode, anyway.

[Jenan Mac]

...notebooks of all sizes and shapes, three ring binders, padfolios, legal pads large and small, ink pens, pencils, mechanical pencils, automatic drafting pencils, pencil sharpeners of all types (hand, battery, and plug in...

My husband has the coolest electric eraser (for hand-drafting). I'm madly covetous, but he uses it for work and won't share.

[Jenan Mac]

Dang, sugar, that's such a sweet thing to say! ;) But have you heard a good SC Lowcountry accent yet? Make you weak in the knees.


My daughter learned to talk in Charleston. When we moved away, her kindergarten teacher had the devil's own time convincing her that her brother's name (James) did not have two syllables.

[smiley10000]

Definitely an old books and library person.

The scene in Disney's Beauty and the Beast when he shows her the library drive me wild every time... just imagine all those books!!!

:e2kissy: 10000

[CatzEyez]

Aha! There must be more of us then.

I too love paper and pens. I go to the dollar store and buy those little 6" x 9" notebooks with the beautiful colors and designs. Then I take them home and add them to my collection. :)

I also like to buy the composition notebooks and spirals too. I've found some spirals (both notebook and steno size) that are made from a beige-ish recycled paper with green lines. Something about that paper really turns me on. I bought every one I saw in the store. Mmmmm...

I like lined, 3-ring notebook paper too. I usually get it from WalMart by the ton when it's on sale for 20 cents a pack. A good bargain on paper turns me on too. :banana:

I think i am in heavan when i open the boxes upon boxes that i have with all the three ring sprials with the origanal versions in pencil

nothing makes me smile more than seeing what I have written fadding with time.
Or just remembering the telltale coffee spill that lines the edges of the pages
I don't know maybe i am old school, but hand written seems so relaxing and intimate

[DamaNegra]

My turn on:

"Your novel has just been accepted for publication in *instert name of big publisher here* "

[Soccer Mom]

I love resurrecting this thread! Good to know I'm not the only one addicted to Staples.

Dropping of the kids at school and coming home to a pot of fresh coffee and my computer when I know I don't have anyplace I need to be. MMMmmmmm. Oh, and chocolate. Must have chocolate with coffee. mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

[TrainofThought]

The intimacy of a writer’s words...Then a cold Sunday morning arrives; I’m under the covers while brewed coffee drifts into the bedroom. It awakens the intimacy and my own words begin to flow. Now that is a turn on.

[CaroGirl]

Bookshops and libraries turn me on. I love finding a book on a library shelf that I've been wanting to read but couldn't afford to buy (I'm too lazy to reserve).

I love starting to read a new book, the unknown story stretching before me like a road that travels past the horizon. I love starting to write a new book/story (same feeling as above).

[stephblake24]

sights and smells in a bookstore are a huge turn on...coffee, ink, paper...YUM

[Siddow]

Reading over my first draft and coming upon a great scene that I don't remember writing.

Ten-cent spirals at Wal-Mart.

Flash drives.

When I wake up too early in the morning and have a couple of hours to myself before the rest of the house wakes.

New books in my mailbox.

[Papa'sLiver]

The smell of old, musty books.

Getting into the groove when I'm writing, and time just falls away, and it's only me and the page.

That first whiff of Scotch when the bottle is opened.

[Jaycinth]

When my beta reader smiles while reading.

[Steve W]

Reading something I've written and thinking it's so good I wish I'd written it!

[Jamesaritchie]

Dang, sugar, that's such a sweet thing to say! ;) But have you heard a good SC Lowcountry accent yet? Make you weak in the knees.

Well, as a matter of fact, my wife has some nieces in the South Carolina low country, so I try to keep a low profile on how that accent affects me. But I swear those gals can cuss a man out, and make him feel good about it.

[Anonymisty]

My daughter learned to talk in Charleston. When we moved away, her kindergarten teacher had the devil's own time convincing her that her brother's name (James) did not have two syllables.

*laughs* When we moved to SC, my sister was almost two, so she learned to talk with a Lowcountry accent. It used to drive my father crazy when she pronounced the number that comes after three as "Fo".


But I swear those gals can cuss a man out, and make him feel good about it.

*smiles brightly*

[LimeyDawg]

Sitting down with a few hours to write and running out of time before I run out of story...
"Is THAT a novel in your pocket!!":Jaw:

[ChunkyC]

There's a second hand bookstore in my town that's got books piled in the aisles like the slushpile at Tor. I love that place, I could live there.

I work in an office supply store, so I'm kind of spoiled. I love fresh paper too, even the cheap stuff. You can put WORDS on it! The boss has caught me more than once sniffing a ream of paper as I'm fanning it before putting it in the copier. I do engraving too and the first time I had to engrave a thousand dollar Mont Blanc pen I nearly passed out. It was GORGEOUS. I almost hated to engrave it.

Thank all the gods I didn't make a mistake.

Biggest turn-ons so far for me are:

1 - when I opened up the box and held a copy of Stories of Strength in my hands for the first time. My first, and so far only, piece of fiction in print. I quite literally cried.

2 - the first time someone I didn't know stopped me on the street and told me they really liked my newspaper column. I don't think my feet touched the ground for the rest of the day. It still happens from time to time and it still feels awesome, but nothing like that first time.

I should add, since the question was for novelists ... I could die fulfilled if I could repeat those last two with a novel sporting my name on the cover.

[Elizabeth Slick]

I get my high from a long night of writing- one where I sat still for six solid hours and wrote and edited, in a trance. I truly lose all sense of time. An hour could be a minute. THAT is how I know I am supposed to write. I love waking up in the middle of the night, suddenly remembering all my new work that I created. I LOVE that!

[MidnightMuse]

The smell of a bookstore, especially the old collector editions. The feel of a leather bound copy of anything Mark Twain wrote.

The nirvana of seeing, in a sudden flash of clarity, the entire plot and dramatic ending of the story you're fleshing out.

The giddy feeling you get in the pit of your brain when you've just realized a new character is being born in there and wants to come out and play.

But the best high for me is watching someone read anything I've written and laugh, smile and cry at all the right places.

[Cath]

The feel of a fountain pen in my hand, the flow of ink across the paper, the feeling of achievement when I finish a page and start a new one.

I can spend hours choosing the right fountain pen, the shop assistants think I'm nuts.

[NightWynde]

Let's see...


Paper Mate Write Bros Grip pen in purple (I got these on sale, bought about 100 of 'em. Great for notes and rough drafts on the go)
My book bag (I've had this bag for about 3 years now and I still love the way it smells)
Any office supply store (paper in bulk? Oh help me! Pens by the hundreds? Walls and walls of printer ink? Talk about heaven)
The smell of a bookstore (old or new, I don't care)
Antique typewriters (especially pre-QWERTY)
Going to buy an antique typewriter for an unbelievable price from an individual seller and finding that the original owner was a writer (now deceased) and all of his writing books were for sale at $10 a box. Granted, this has only happened once and a lot of the info was out of date, but the writing tips were still valid.
Whenever school supplies go on sale. Walls and walls of notebooks and markers that smell like grape soda!



Sidenote: For all those guys who like gals with southern accents, when I was five I lived in Alabama so whenever I get really ticked off I sound like an Alabaman. Does this count? Otherwise I have a mish-mash military child's accent.

[allion]

Some of mine:

An IBM Selectric typewriter - bam, bam, bam go the keys! You know you're typing when that thing sounds like a machine gun. I have two old IBM computer keyboards that make a similar noise. Heavy, made with actual metal. Will hang onto them like grim death.

My favourite season is coming - back to school time. All the lovely new pens and paper to discover. No, I shouldn't buy any more. Yes, I probably will.

Fountain pens and ink. Lots of ink.

Getting a marvelous flash of insight on my novel when about to go to bed and I end up writing past midnight, and I don't feel tired. That is bliss.

Karen

[Varthikes]

Seeing the story I've been working on finally slipping out of the printer on hard paper and binding it and holding it in my hands. One of the best ways to end a day...

[bylinebree]

I must be weird, because it's still men that turn me on, not writing materials. ;)

But when my fingers fly on the keyboard, my mind goes into mystical right-brain mode, and I can see, feel, hear and taste my characters -- that is a pretty close second.

[Josie]

Oh my God, these things you all mention are all a few of my favorite things!!!.........including men:e2writer:

[Cath]

LOL, hmmm, hubby or a fountain pen?

Ah, I suppose hubby wins, but only just...

[Soccer Mom]

My favourite season is coming - back to school time. All the lovely new pens and paper to discover. No, I shouldn't buy any more. Yes, I probably will.


Aaaargh! I haven't bought school supplies for my kids yet. What are the odds that I'll come out of the store with only the things on the list. Hah!

[ChunkyC]

An IBM Selectric typewriter - bam, bam, bam go the keys! You know you're typing when that thing sounds like a machine gun. I have two old IBM computer keyboards that make a similar noise. Heavy, made with actual metal. Will hang onto them like grim death.
Oh, yeah ... I learned to touch-type back in the early 1970s on old IBM typewriters at my high school. I love that typing sound so much that I use a little program called "Noisy Keyboard (http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file_description/0,fid,22738,00.asp)" on my laptop that makes that sound when I type. Someone here pointed it out a couple of years ago and now I can't live without it.

[IrishScribbler]

The smell of a new book

The smell of an old book....I love the smell of libraries.

[Roger J Carlson]

Oh, yeah ... I learned to touch-type back in the early 1970s on old IBM typewriters at my high school. I love that typing sound so much that I use a little program called "Noisy Keyboard (http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file_description/0,fid,22738,00.asp)" on my laptop that makes that sound when I type. Someone here pointed it out a couple of years ago and now I can't live without it.Back in the IBM PS2 days (whatever happened to the microchannel bus?), one of the selling features they stressed was their postive click keyboard, where you actually heard and felt the click just like the Selectrics. It actually was a pretty good feature.

[IrishScribbler]

Stationery stores are a big one for me, too. I love getting office supplies. Not quite as much as I love books, but if my fiance brings me home a new journal, well.....:LilLove:

[IrishScribbler]

Sidenote: For all those guys who like gals with southern accents, when I was five I lived in Alabama so whenever I get really ticked off I sound like an Alabaman. Does this count? Otherwise I have a mish-mash military child's accent.

I'm a military brat, too, but I've lived in Tennessee, Alabama, and Mississippi, so I'd say I have a bit of a Southern drawl when I'm angry, too.

[popmuze]

I'm very glad to see I'm not the only person turned on by various smells. My non-writing friends look at me like I'm weird when I flick the pages of a new book and inhale. Especially in public.

I used to edit a glossy magazine and that's what I looked forward to every month--when the new issue came in and I could sniff the pages. (And we didn't even use those perfume inserts that the ladies magazines have).

Also, in Microsoft Word, I like to look at my novel in the print view, because it looks more like it would as a finished book.

With my published books, when I'm in a bookstore I like to take copies from wherever they're hidden and move them up to the front and leave them with all the "Hot New Arrivals." (The next day they're always back where I got them from).

[Elizabeth Slick]

Wow, so you all still write with pens???? I can not seem to do that now and never do. I type all of my writing, from beginning to end. I must be weird.

[Thomma Lyn]

Add one more book sniffer to the list. Mmm, they smell so good, whether hardbacks, paperbacks - just give me a book, and I'll sniff it.
I also sniff reams of fresh paper. I fan 'em in front of my face and inhale... ahhhh!
Runaway, full-steam-ahead inspiration while getting down my first draft, going so fast that my typing fingers can barely keep up.
Not being able to turn out the light to go to sleep because I have to keep adding new ideas and connect-the-dots concepts to the notepad I keep on my nightstand.
Getting droves of ideas in the shower, while driving, or while exercising and having to do frantic mnemonics to keep 'em all straight until I can access a notepad.
On editing and polishing, finding all kinds of cool stuff in my novel that my unconscious stuck in there while I was frantically typing the first draft, then weaving together the threads into something powerful.

Oh, I have a southern accent, too - good grief, with a blog called Tennessee Text Wrestling, how could I not? ;)

[Josie]

No, I don't write with a pen, only sometimes, when neither of my computers or my Alphasmart happen to be near.

Ah, yes, fresh smell of a new magazine....mmm mmmmhnhn

Once in a while, less and less all the time, a book I take out from the public library will smell of smoke, hack hack. Funny how I don't notice that until I get it home. So I spray it with some old perfume I don't use. Works!!! I do hope the next borrower likes the scent. :)

:D
Cheers

[allion]

Back in the IBM PS2 days (whatever happened to the microchannel bus?), one of the selling features they stressed was their postive click keyboard, where you actually heard and felt the click just like the Selectrics. It actually was a pretty good feature.

And it's why I cannot find a keyboard made today that I like. None of them have the right feel. Most feel too flimsy and cheap. I want to have that click click feeling, probably because I learned to type on that beast of a Selectric.

I need clickage! I know, not a word, but it could become one.

Karen

[Red Shonja]

I love second-hand books and the treasures they sometimes contain. I've found a bus ticket from 1942, a love letter and a hand crotched bookmark, all in second-hand books. It's like finding a tiny part of someones, long forgotten life...

[CaroGirl]

I love second-hand books and the treasures they sometimes contain. I've found a bus ticket from 1942, a love letter and a hand crotched bookmark, all in second-hand books. It's like finding a tiny part of someones, long forgotten life...
Now that is interesting.

[Nashelle]

Are we weird people because we love stationary? I have always loved paper and pens etc since my mother bought me a post office set when I was about six. I love walking around stationary shops jsut to be among the items.

(I also love housewares - cooking utensils and such like but that's for another forum!)

[CaroGirl]

Stationary shops are much better than shops that keep moving around all the time. They're darn hard to find.

[Anonymisty]

Wow, so you all still write with pens???? I can not seem to do that now and never do. I type all of my writing, from beginning to end. I must be weird.

Then I'm weird, too...I can't stand writing longhand. Give me a lovely ergonomic keyboard every time!

[alanna]

I write poetry by hand, but for longer works I use the computer if one is available. If not... ::shrug:: As long as I have a print-out I can work from that. Words on the page count to me whether they are in my hand or on the screen. Of course, there is something delicious about reading your work hard copy...

[bylinebree]

LOL, hmmm, hubby or a fountain pen?

Ah, I suppose hubby wins, but only just...

Oh, the bad places my mind went with that one! (sorry)

Another turn-on: wandering around office supply or furniture stores, fantasizing about how I'd furnish my office if I had one. New gadgets. Pant!

[C.bronco]

A signed first edition with a personal note. Only have those in poetry though.
That and the sound stock cars make when they speed by on the track.

[janetbellinger]

black fountain pen ink that is still wet and shiny on the page.

[unfabulousxox]

The Smell of new books, sheet of paper, new school supplies, buying new electronics (laptop stuff, new memory cards for my digital camera, getting stuff for my ipod), Getting an idea that leads to more, and more, and more, lol.

[pickman]

Seeing my name in print.

So far, this has only happened in magazine articles and the occasional short fiction. But if I were to see my name on the spines of books lining the shelves of Waterstones, the experience would be truly orgasmic. So I would imagine.

[PeeDee]

It's a certain feeling I get, when I'm writing fast. There's nothing in my way, nothing to slow me down. The words are pouring out faster than anything, so fast that my arms are cramping, but I don't notice because I'm enitrely lost in the story. After a while, I get a bit light-headed and dizzy (I'm probably not breathing properly). It feels like I'm sailing and high as a kite, lost in my own story.

It's a perfect moment, which usually ends when the cat throws up or something. I adore those moments. I wind up sitting there, sweating, half an hour later having written 2,000+ words I'm really proud of.

(but if not that, then I adore the smell of a used book shop)

[arrowqueen]

Seals and sealing wax. I've got half a dozen of them, aquired over the years.

[PeeDee]

What about cabbages? Kings?

[arrowqueen]

Cabbages tend to go off if you kept them too long and Kings are a bit thin on the ground these days. Besides, where would I keep them? Would they want caviare? Silken sheets? A retinue?*

I'm not made of money, you know.

* The kings, not the cabbages. Cabbages are fairly undemanding.

[PeeDee]

Cabbages are fairly undemanding.

Are you kidding? You could spend half a lifetime boiling the stupid things.

So speaketh the man who will not, so long as he live, eat cabbage in anything for a salad or good southern coleslaw, so help him God. (And if you put pineapple in my coleslaw, for that matter, I shalt kill thee)

[drevil915]

The smell of a new ream of paper, definately, I could sit there and inhale that all day.

Various book smells really turn me on:

New book smell

Paperback book smell

Hardcover book smell

Old book in your attic smell

Library book smell

Antique shop book smell

My list could go on and on.

regards,

doc

[Jamesaritchie]

Are you kidding? You could spend half a lifetime boiling the stupid things.



Nah, takes just a couple of minutes. But steaming is better. Tear into decent sized pieces, put 'em in a big pot, add one inch of water, cover, steam for twenty minutes. Sprinkle on just a bit of pepper. Great eating.

Better, try this recipe. It's Heaven on earth: http://homecooking.about.com/od/beefrecipes/r/blbeef156.htm

[LeftUnsaid]

Finding the most perfect pen is quite the turn on, especially if it is a particularly attractive pen.

Resaving the titles of my chapter files in capitol letters after completion. For example, while I'm working on the chapter it gets saved in lower case: chapter fourteen. But upon completion I'll resave the file name as: Chapter Fourteen.

Loving things I have written and forgotten about is also a turn on.

And coming up with out of place one liners that create their own little niche in the story.

[DeborahM]

I love rereading after a final edit and feeling the tension, surprises and feeling pleased with the final climax, and getting the same crying jag or goosebumps I had when I wrote it.

Mmm, the smell of a bookstore or library and in an office supply store, finding that perfectly balanced pen for your hand.

Oh Oh, savoring melting chocolate in my mouth while resisting the temptation to bit down or chew it. There's a restaurant in a little village SW of Paris, that makes chocolate bites only for their customers. It's orgasmic! Godiva wishes they could come that close!

[calieber]

when i get a second hand book and see people's notes in the sides. i love that

I once got a book from the library with someone's marginal notes ... if by "notes" you mean "rewriting the text to be less clear."

[Lady Cat]

Old libraries, old books, old book stores . . . but if you really want me to go crazy, take me to Staples!

The smell that fills my home office when my laser printer is churning out page after page of my work.

the smell of freshly printed pages
the smell of ink
the smell of erasers
the smell of correction fluid (even though I don't need it anymore)

God, I'm easy!

[athena_biddy]

I love the school supply asile at Walmart.
Getting new notebooks and pens

I'm sure I will cherish the first time I see my name in print

[Raphee]

Hearing about success stories of new authors. Now if only i could be one of them.

[vrabinec]

The naughty pleasure of sneaking off early from work under the prestense of visiting a client to go home and write.

Plugging a "cool phrase" I've jotted in my notebook but never thought I'd find a use for into a story and having it fit perfectly.

Sitting down to write a scene I've been procrastinating on because I thought it would be stale and having it miraculously turn out to be one of my favorite scenes.

Finding a book of turn of the century photos of the obscure city in which some of the scenes of my turn of the century WIP take place. (This one had me doing a version of the Cha-cha in the middle of Borders)

Finding that smoothly flowing pen I thought I'd lost.

Making myself cry over the last scene in my novel several times before it became familiar enough for me not to.

Sharing travails with the fraternity of writers.

[IrishScribbler]

The smell of the library at my alma mater. It's an old college (est. 1846), and still has volumes from the late 1800s (some of which I've rescued from being thrown out!), as well as new books. That smell, mixed with the smell of hot ink and paper from the printer, a light coat of wax on the floor.....ooh! Drives me wild!

[Anonymisty]

Suddenly knowing what the next step in my novel should be (or finally figuring out how to make that difficult scene work. The one that's been driving me nuts for days/weeks. Bliss, I tell you.)


Any trip to a bookstore. Or, if I can't get out to the store, an Amazon box on my front step when I get home from work.


Fountain pens.

A lovely hot cup of coffee when I get started writing for the evening.

Getting to say the words "my editor" and have it mean a real person. (That one makes me giggle every time.)

[Yuallica]

black fountain pen ink that is still wet and shiny on the page.

Yes! And 200 page, A4 narrow lined notepads... along with the smell of most books and notebooks of course.

[icerose]

Fresh paper, gel ink never fail pens that are like 5 bucks for two of them. I hate the price, but dang, I can't write with much else! The rolling ball pens like the precise v5 from Pilot is really good too.

Books, old new, doesn't matter, I love books.

Libraries, because of all the books.

A quiet house with all the chores done, the kids asleep, the spouse happy and a good chunk of time to do whatever I want with. I love those rare moments, especially with a sweet mix on my mp3 player of various sound tracks set to repeat.

A good hot bath where I can just think.

A brain storming session.

Acceptances or really good rejection letters are always good too. :D

[Live2Write]

When my flash drive tells me I have no more room to store my writing. ;)

[Sean D. Schaffer]

What turns me on as a novel writer these days, is a thick manuscript, my Royal manual typewriter, and my antique writing desk and chair.

Also, a well-written story with short chapters to read when I'm not writing, turns me on quite effectively, as well as good music to write by.

[janetbellinger]

You know what would really turn me on? A telephone call from an agent or publisher, offering me a contract. Sorry, nothing else will do. I will not be tempted by a substitute.

[Ms.Write]

My writing turn-ons? An email from an editor asking to buy a story (yes, it happened, but it was a short story!) Handling the writing materials at the local stationery story - folders, pens, paper, ink cartridges - as well as drooling over the laptops (I have a desktop but am considering buying a laptop to write outside the house).

[lfraser]

Books. Lots and lots of books. Some really nice wall-to-wall custom-built shelves to put them on, with glass doors. A big comfy leather easy chair and ottoman beside the fireplace in the living room, to read in. And a nice cup of herbal tea.

[janetbellinger]

That would turn me on to an nth degree.

My writing turn-ons? An email from an editor asking to buy a story (yes, it happened, but it was a short story!) Handling the writing materials at the local stationery story - folders, pens, paper, ink cartridges - as well as drooling over the laptops (I have a desktop but am considering buying a laptop to write outside the house).

[Gabriel]

The thought that something I love to write will one day be read lovingly.

[DWSTXS]

A confession:

I get turned on when I open my novel in microsoft word and the program sort of chokes, and then takes a good ten seconds to load all the pages. I like watching all the numbers flash at the bottom of the screen. 100 Pages. 200 pages. 300 pages.

Am I a bad person?

Help me.

Me too..........EXCEPT when those numbers reach 1240 pages.....and I'm horror-struck with the realization that my first novel is long enough for 3 or 4 novels......and NOW I have to edit all this mess?


LOL

[Josie]

Ah, book fantasies... :e2BIC:

I too love to watch the page numbers scroll up when I ask the computer to open a specific wip....I'd nearly forgotten that...thanks.

You see I broke my right elbow in December and the days have been tough------but getting better.

My love for reading novels has saved me. Now I'm almost ready to go back to writing...well, I have started some

Cheers, Josie:)

[jessicaorr]

Lets see, some of the things that turn me on and put me in the mood to write are:

Opening my indigo iBook
Opening a new package of Pilot Precise V5 Extra Fine pens
Opening a fresh pack of legal pads
Reading about other writers' successes on AW
Reading a well crafted story
Looking at my writing shrine (Yay saints of writing thread for the idea)
The smell of a new book
The smell of an old book
OK, the smell of any book
The coalescence of a few good ideas into one great idea
Hearing the tappity tappity tappity of the Noisy Keyboard (http://www.leeos.com/noisy_keyboard.html) program on my Dell (I need to find an analogous program for my mac...)

But the thing that really gets me in the mood: putting my daughter down for a nap :D

[Charlie Horse]

A steaming cup of organically grown fair trade coffee waking me up while I wait for my 10 year old computer to launch my WIP.

Oh, and hot chicks. I like them too.

[akiwiguy]

I get a bit of a thrill when the courier van arrives and it's my Amazon.com package.

[ACEnders]

Mmmm...a fresh sheet of paper, a pen that writes nicely (I of course have my favorites), my laptop, and the excitement of getting a new book - and by new I mean it can be new, it can be old, as long as it's new to me.

Oh! Another one - knowing I have the entire evening to myself to either read or write.

[Madison]

Reading my history book...watching a tragic war movie...reading the last sentence I wrote and liking it...reading a crappy book and thinking, I can do better!

[wayndom]

Giving a novel to a beta, who gives it back to me the following day.

"Oh, you didn't like it?"

"No! I was up all night until I finished it!"

Happened twice so far (though not with the same novel).

[wayndom]

What turns me on is creating a book I know is fantastic. While I was midway through writing my most recent book I realized it was going to be really good. When I was finished, I had the feeling that what I created was something truly special and not only entertaining and educational, but potentially of social relevance as well. We'll find out exactly how when it's released.

That to me is a turn-on.

allen

Which reminds me of something someone (that I knew?) once said:

You can think you're great and be wrong, but you can't be great and not know it.

I'm also a photographer, and I couldn't count the times I thought I got a great shot, but didn't know until I saw it. Then there are those shots you know are terrific the moment you press the shutter button...

[wayndom]

A steaming cup of organically grown fair trade coffee waking me up while I wait for my 10 year old computer to launch my WIP.


Stick with that 10-year-old. I was just thinking I should post in the "things writers hate" thread, "Windows Vista."

[Paichka]

Opening wikipedia. My last two story ideas came from surfing the Wiki. I love me some wikipedia, I do, I do.

Green Mountain coffee, in Hazelnut, Rainforest Nut or Caramel Vanilla Cream. Or Coffee Fool coffee in African Cinnamon or Vanilla Macademia Nut. To be drunk from my amazing stoneware coffee mugs that DH gave me for christmas, instead of jewelry because who wears jewelry in the desert, honestly. Coffee mugs (big, heavy, glazed...mmmm) are perfect.

Reading someone else's amazing book. One downside, I'm a natural mimic (I pick up accents almost unconsciously when I'm talking to people), so sometimes I find myself imitating other writers in my WIP. That's when I have to delete everything I just wrote because Guy Gavriel Kay is not writing my WIP. -I- am writing my WIP.

Office supplies. Oooooh I love office supplies.

Man I could go on all day, but I won't. I'll drink my coffee instead. Fun thread!

[Shweta]

Stick with that 10-year-old. I was just thinking I should post in the "things writers hate" thread, "Windows Vista."

Ha. Something this writer loves: Ubuntu. Works, and doesn't crash.
(Ubuntu is a Linux distribution)

Also: seeing my story in print! :snoopy:

[Kallex]

A comfortable chair and a good keyboard that almost clicks.

[Maryn]

Seeing the "I" key's markings worn off yet another keyboard. I write in first person. That's a lot of writing.

Maryn, aware some people dislike first person

[Prawn]

I keep a chart with the daily word count for my WIP. That turns me on! Here's some porn:
12/23/2007..........1251
12/24/2007..........2539
12/25/2007..........3551
12/26/2007..........4582
12/27/2007..........5687
12/28/2007..........6689
12/29/2007..........7758
12/30/2007..........8806
12/31/2007..........9838
1/1/2008..........11008
1/2/2008..........12332
1/3/2008..........13774
1/4/2008..........14823
1/5/2008..........16005
1/6/2008..........17021
1/7/2008..........18083
1/8/2008..........19089
1/9/2008..........21098
1/10/2008..........23153
1/11/2008..........25239
1/12/2008..........26244
1/13/2008..........27246
1/14/2008..........28253
1/15/2008..........29571
1/16/2008..........30625
1/17/2008..........31638
1/18/2008..........32663
1/19/2008..........33669
1/20/2008..........34712
1/21/2008..........36005
1/22/2008..........37130
1/23/2008..........38255
1/24/2008..........39256
1/25/2008..........40270
1/26/2008..........41275
1/27/2008..........42348
1/28/2008..........43402
1/29/2008..........44405
1/30/2008..........45488
1/31/2008..........46491
2/1/2008..........47566
2/2/2008..........48622
2/3/2008..........49645
2/4/2008..........50651
2/5/2008..........51656
2/6/2008..........52716
2/7/2008..........53718
2/8/2008..........54885
2/9/2008..........56016
Note that I've done my writing for today!

[Hopcus]

I love the last page of a chapter and the first page of the next, but what really turns me on is when I am all finished and I string the chapters together. For the very first time it is actually a complete book.