Butt Plus Chair

GUEST POST on Literaturely Speaking

Oliver Stone has three words of advice for any aspiring writer: butt plus chair. We take that a step further and add one extra word: butt plus comfy chair. What you sit on can't be understated. Sure, we absolutely agree that much of writing is just sitting down to do it. But if you're going to put in 9 to 5 days behind a desk it helps to sit on something plush and preferably ergonomic. Andrew prefers a swivel chair with a high back, arm rests for his elbows, and lots of cushion for his bony rear-end. Adam prefers the larger, lower to the ground leather chair, one he can squirm about in impatiently as Andrew types; cushy and perhaps even sleepable. When so much of your day is sitting -- or standing and pacing -- but mostly sitting, it's nice to know that what you're sitting upon feels good. So our sincere advice to all those writers out there is don't sit on a hard wood or lie in your bed with a laptop. Let's fight scoliosis and carpal tunnel syndrome with good spinal support and wrist cushions. And after you get comfy, make sure you have a clear outline of where your book will be ending, and what kind of journey your main character will be going on, so you're not simply wasting all that chair time. Spoil yourself. Go pick up that writing chair you've always wanted. Remember, it's tax deductible.