In honor of Thanksgiving (in the US), share something you're grateful for. Specifically, something that helps you do your work as a writer more effectively, efficiently, or joyfully.
I'll be honest, it was quite lovely brainstorming for this post. Rarely do I take the time to sit down and make one of those "gratitude lists" that therapists and other enlightened folks are always talking about. I found my smile growing wider and wider the more I scribbled down...
On the list: new notebooks, writing playlists, good books, research hours, train trips, red wine, Scrivener, a supportive community, incentive snacks, my laptop, and the feeling that I have a process that works...most of the time.
But one little word on the list tuck in my brain, warming me up with fond memories and writerly vibes. So, on this week of Thanksgiving, I'd like to share how grateful I am for...cafés.
There's just something about the smell of roasting beans and the hiss of steaming milk that gets my creative juices flowing. Whether it's my familiar neighborhood spot, a busy establishment in the heart of Manhattan, or a new discovery made while traveling, I love settling in at a little table, sipping something hot and caffeinated, and getting down to work. Bonus points if you're surrounded by other writers, of course!
To the café around the corner where I regularly escape for a dirty chai and a change of scenery...thank you!
To the café in Minneapolis that fueled me toward a deadline two weeks ago with salted bourbon brown sugar lattés (pictured below)...thank you!
To the café in London where I hid frustrated tears behind a cappuccino after a particularly stinging rejection, followed by a fast-and-furious writing session that reminded me why I do this work in the first place...thank you!
To the café in Brooklyn where I spent many an afternoon people-watching, worrying I was being criminally unproductive over multiple PSLs and coffee cakes, inadvertently finding inspiration for one of the most unhinged and charming things I think I've ever written...thank you!
Maybe it's the ambiance, maybe it's the escape, maybe it's the "little treat culture" that millennials like me are so prone to indulge in...but I'm so grateful for the hours upon hours I've spent huddled over little tables, sipping hot drinks, laboring over rough drafts. I can't think of anywhere else that provides that special mix of distraction and focus, caffeination and calm. No other place makes me feel quite so productive, creative, or joyful!
(Except, perhaps, a laptop-friendly wine bar...but that's a different post!)
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