In bed
Most mornings I wake up with words. The night before, I have usually fallen into bed zombie-like, but some strange alchemy happens while I sleep. First thing, I scramble for a notebook, or my laptop to get the words down before they flutter away again. In this way, breakfast becomes lunch and I often find I’m still in my pyjamas at 4 in the afternoon but work has been done! So, in my dreams is the first place I find words.
Noelle Harrison by Chloe Martina Salvi
Listening to music
When I write a book, I want it to be a sensory experience in tandem with the telling of a story. It is through music that the atmosphere, tone, and rhythm of my novel emerges. Soundtracks align with different books. For my new novel The Gravity of Love, it was Tracey Chapman’s iconic first album in 1988. I listen before I write as I am doing household chores, but the music infuses me. I turn it off. In silence, I put the words down.
At an exhibition
Art has always been a huge love in my life. I did a degree in History of Art, and worked for years in art galleries in Ireland, as well as writing art reviews. It has never failed to provide inspiration. Whenever I am feeling drained, I take myself off to an art exhibition and feed myself with visual stimulation. It doesn’t matter whether it is a medieval triptych, or a contemporary film installation, I always find narrative in what I am looking at.
Up a mountain
Walking is another way to work through ideas. My writing schedule usually incorporates a daily walk. When I lived in Norway, I was able to step out my front door and literally walk up a mountain. The challenges of hill walking was great for building focus and drive. If I can climb this mountain, I can finish my book. I’d chant inside my head.
While practising yoga
The practice of yoga is an essential part of my life as writer. Not just in terms of helping my body stretch out from sitting at a desk for hours, and for anxiety, but also for sparking creativity, and building focus. Yoga also helps me to get things into perspective and make sure my life is balanced.
In airports
Any journey (apart from cars) is great for writing. I particularly love working in airports. No problem if my flight is delayed, as I’ll find a corner where I can set up with my laptop. Words also come from people watching, and human interaction in motion.
On dog-sits
Displacement in someone else’s home is a great place to write. I have recently begun to dog-sit and find it a perfect writing retreat. Solitude, so no strains of being someone’s guest, yet you have the added stimulation of being in unfamiliar surroundings, plus you have plenty of dog-walking opportunities.
In the library
The obvious place to find words. I love wandering the aisles in History, Biography and Art, pulling out big books, and flicking through them to catch ideas. Being in a library, gives me the same feeling of sacred reverence as sitting in a cathedral, but with the added bonus of being able to take out a notebook and scribble some words. I love the respect for silence. The peace.
Through nature
Nature has always been the best way for me to find words. When I travel, I always write a journal. From the landscape, stories emerge. This was how it was for my new novel, The Gravity of Love, inspired by the red rock deserts and big skies of Arizona. I love contrasting landscapes. Thus for my next book I have visited the snowy tundras of Northern Norway. A complete contrast to arid Arizona.
In landscapes where I belong
It was my Irish home, which inspired me to write my first novel, Beatrice, and Ireland never ceases to bring me words. Right on the western edge, facing the wild Atlantic Ocean is where I feel most at home. This landscape has inspired the journey of Joy in The Gravity of Love.
