MY TYPICAL WRITING DAY.... IAIN LOWSON

'SHED LIFE'

Quick bit of background, I guess. I’ve been writing professionally for a fraction under 25 years at time of writing this. In that time, I’ve dabbled in journalism, screenwriting, comics, and many other things. I’ve had successes, been ripped off, and done much of the stuff that this career brings all those who sail in her. Most importantly, it’s what I do to pay the bills.

I work from a shed in my garden. It’s a little log cabin, I guess, added to the mortgage when we first moved here and it was clear that there wasn’t an office space in the house. Having that space, that walk to work (a dozen important steps each day), creates a vital separation for me of work and home. It means I can step away to think, to de-stress, or simply to put work away at the end of the day to enjoy family life, hobbies, whatever, without thinking “Ooooh, I could just pop back and do another bunch of words.”

It’s also where I keep my work library and a big pile of plastic tat that makes me smile.

For the past two decades or so, I’ve been writing for Star Wars partwork magazines for Italian publisher DeAgostini’s UK branch. Official Star Wars Fact File (both versions), Starships & Vehicles Collection, Helmets Collection, the award-winning Build The Millennium Falcon, and others. Although I’ve also work now and then in the games industry and on other projects, Star Wars is my main breadwinner, and my bookshelves reflect this.

My work day is defined by my kids, to a greater extent. As a result, it tends to start when I’ve got
back from walking them to school. I do that because it’s fun to chat with them, and because it gets me up, dressed, breakfasted, and ready to go. When you work from home, routine is impossibly important particularly, if you’re at all like me, when self-discipline is occasionally an issue.

I normally watch an episode of something when I get back home, do bits and pieces of housework, and filter out emails and social media things that don’t need dealt with. It gets my brain working, along with tea. Always tea. I aim to be at my desk for 10am, and that’s when admin happens. I’ve recently started directing short film projects, having hit 50 last year and decided to diversify, and the amount of admin those create is beyond belief. I work through that and any research I need to do before lunch, which tends to be around noon.

After lunch, I write. There are occasions when that starts earlier, especially if there’s a lot to do or there’s an urgent job, but I tend to do my best work in the afternoons. Research usually means a scattering of books and comics, fanned out on the floor behind my desk and chair, relevant to what I’m writing. While the internet is useful for Star Wars stuff, it’s by no means reliable. At all. Much better to check the sources and not be bound by what someone else thought was important.

By 4pm, the family start returning from work and school. I tend to keep working until about 5pm, beyond if there’s a big deadline to hit, and finish up with a review of what needs done the following day so it’s in my head. Post-it notes everywhere!

There are days when that routine changes. I have reading days – I need to keep up with the latest books, comics, and so on. That’s not a choice. That has to be done. Same with the latest episodes of work-related shows, or blu-ray releases of films. With the filming work I now do, there are planning days, building days, and editing days, all at my DP/editor/prop builder/lighting guy Slink’s place. There are also shooting days, of course. Within normal days there are meetings and chats over Skype or the phone, plus days when admin just takes over entirely.

I think that about covers it all. Oh, except my being broken.

I’ve been dealing with anxiety and depression since university in the early 1990’s. Another thing that
‘disrupts’ my routine are very essential self-care times. When you’re self-employed, it’s very easy to be utterly consumed by what you do. That’s why having a physical separation from work is utterly vital. For the sake of your life being more than work. You are a better writer if you are a balanced individual with interests and passions outside of the job. I think that’s true of anyone in any job, to be fair.

For me, I have to be aware of my mood, my thoughts. I know when I have to step away for five minutes, or an hour, or even a day just to prevent myself from crumbling. It took me a very long time to give myself permission to take that self-care time. My work would suffer if I didn’t, as would every other aspect of my life. I’m not happy to do that to my family, my clients and myself.

Now then, that really is everything.




Twitter – @EmbraAgain
Facebook - https://m.facebook.com/IainEmbraLowson
Instagram – embraagain 
Blog - http://embraagain.blogspot.com
LinkedIn – C’mon. I’m not doing all the work for you…