Inspiration Advice – Tree House Not Included

My favorite place to write is in my tree house writing studio. In my backyard, perched in a sycamore tree sits my children’s old play space. The tree house used to be their favorite hangout spot. My four children would invite friends over for birthday parties, playdates, and sleepovers. They would illuminate their faces with flashlights and tell scary ghost stories late at night. My girls used to dream up elaborate Barbie stories in the tree house, stories of orphans, magical lands, and haunted schools. The tree house has been used for face-painting, games of hide-and-seek, and water balloon fights. The walls are literally soaked in play and story.

When the children outgrew the tree house, my husband and I decided to fix it up for me to use as a writing studio. We added new flooring, shiplap walls, electrical outlets, and twinkle lights around the trunk of the tree.

I placed some of my favorite books on the shelves and bought the cutest bookends. They are figures of a little boy and little girl reading back-to-back. Between them sit books on craft and a rhyming dictionary. I also have a copper owl statue, Sir Thomas Brimsley. I found him in an antique store while on a writer’s retreat. His name was picked by the other writers who were on the retreat with me. Sir Thomas Brimsley rests on a shelf and keeps me accountable for my daily word-count goals, just as my writing partners would.

The tree house sits high enough that it overlooks the nature space behind my house. During my writing sessions, I am often visited by deer, gobbling wild turkeys, random cows, and the occasional coyote. Twice, I have even seen wild boar. These visits add to the enchantment of the tree house. I like to think that the tree house calls to them.

Inside the tree house, I spend my days surrounded by the wisdom and insights of my favorite picture books and all that play my children did. Sometimes while I am writing, I play music and a stunningly beautiful lyric will waft out the speaker. I write all inspiration in various notebooks – whichever is closest to me at the time the muse hits. I have yet to organize my notebooks into intelligible themes. Instead, I buy more notebooks.

I am often asked where I find my writing inspiration. I am fortunate to work in an environment that lends itself to oodles of ideas. Still, sometimes I simply have to open my laptop and start typing. Sometimes, the perfect environment, the best notebooks and the case full of colored pens won’t be enough. Some days, I just have to force myself to put my butt in the chair and work. Writing is hard. It requires consistency and determination. It requires me to take note of the details of life swirling around me.

Believe it or not, some of my best inspiration occurs when I am out in the “real world,” driving my kids to school or in line at the grocery store. 

Sometimes I will be driving, listening to music and I will hear a few perfect words strung together. Where’s my notebook?

Other times, I will eavesdrop on a conversation in the checkout line. You would be surprised by the amount of book notes I type in my Notes App while scanning ground turkey.

Some of my best story schemes are hatched simply by asking my kids how their day went. While I used to want to hear about what they were learning, I now appreciate all the playground drama that they supply me with. Be on the lookout for a sharks-and-minnows-mishap story.

The key to finding story content is to be observant. Stop and look around. Don’t be in such a rush. The world is full of Easter Eggs waiting to be discovered. And, always be prepared because ideas that are not written down have a tendency to vanish into thin air. Write your brilliant thoughts, even when you are tired. I promise, you won’t remember your ideas when you wake up. Trust me, I’ve lost plenty of best-sellers simply by going to sleep. Be sure to have a notebook handy (you should probably buy another one- just in case) or use your phone app. Expect the perfect phrasing to hit you at any point, especially in the shower. Don’t worry. Don’t panic. Just turn up the hot water, let the shower steam, and use your finger to write your thoughts on the glass door.

Although it is lovely, a tree house is not needed to write a great book.

Natasha Tripplett lives in Northern California, where she writes from a tree house perched in a sycamore. She is a Jamaican Jewish American author who is passionate about cultural representation in children’s literature. You can visit her at natashabooks.com.

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Giveaway Information:

You can win a copy of Juneteenth Is by Natasha Tripplett, donated by Chronicle Books. To enter the giveaway, leave a comment about this post by Saturday, April 27 at 6:00 p.m. EDT. The winner will be randomly selected by Stacey Shubitz and announced at the bottom of the post by Thursday, May 2. You must have a U.S. mailing address and provide a valid e-mail address when you post your comment. If you win, Stacey will email you for your mailing address. We will choose a new winner if you do not respond with your mailing address within five days.

4/27 @ 8:50 p.m.: The giveaway is now closed.

Many thanks to everyone who left a comment. Darin Johnston’s commenter number was drawn, so she’ll win a copy of Juneteenth Is.