[Sharlow]

I'm thinking of picking up a rail pass and seeing the country and at the same time writing for that month. Has anyone here ever done that? I don't write well at home, and there's been a lot of stress in my life and I'm torn about going. Feels a bit irresponsible with the economy going to hell these day's. I don't know, what's everyone else think?

 

[Kenneth Rosenberg]

Sounds pretty good to me.  If you can afford to take the month off, maybe it will recharge your batteries.

 

[Sharlow]

Sounds pretty good to me. If you can afford to take the month off, maybe it will recharge your batteries.

That's what I was thinking. been a rough 4 years and I feel like I'm finally starting over. Still on a fence at the moment.

 

[thejosh86]

I think it sounds awesome, and you could conceivably write a book about seeing the country by rail while writing a book.

 

[Raybrite]

Sounds like a great idea. Does the train bounce around a lot? You may have a problem with that. I would love to do something like that.

 

[Bryan R. Dennis]

Years back, I lost a job that paid pretty well. I was in dire straights: Bills, mortgage, a family to support, few job prospects. The first thing everyone told me to do was hit the head-hunting firms and find another job as soon as possible. Instead, I took a road trip to San Francisco. Man, I had the time of my life! Everything worked out in the end. I found another crappy job and I don't remember that period of unemployment. But I'll never forget that trip to SF. A gift that keeps on giving, the experience produced a lot of stories, not to mention warm memories to hold me over whenever I hit patches of turbulence.

Hope my experience helps. 

 

[Jeff Kay]

Yes! If you can pull it off financially, I say go for it.  New experiences are enriching and invigorating.

 

[Alchemy]

Writing on a train sounds very funky to me. I'm sure you'll get some great ideas. The distance might give you some valuable perspective about things at home too.

 

[swolf]

Or, you could skip the pass, ride the rails like a hobo, and become another Jack London.

 

[Jon Olson]

It sounds fun. I think whether or not it will help depends on what you're running from.

 

[Chris Northern]

Choooo choooooooo!  

I hope that clarifys my position.

 

[Mel Comley]

Sounds like a fab idea to me, I'm quite envious really. 

 

[Gina Black]

I *love* writing on the train.

 

[Cheryl Bradshaw Author]

I say GO FOR IT!  Some of my best ideas came from when I was away from home.  I have also had inspiration to write other novels when I've been away - there's something about traveling that has always cleared my mind, and I bet you would enjoy it immensely.

 

[jnfr]

I am completely pro-train, but then I love road trips generally.

 

[par2323]

I am so jealous!  I love train travel and I especially love reading on the train.  Never tried writing, but it sounds heavenly.

Best wishes,

Patricia

 

[Emeline Danvers]

Do you have a wife and/or kids?  Then yes, it would be irresponsible. You don't leave family for a whole month. (Someone out there may flame me for that, but I'm totally pro-family.) But if it won't cause an undue burden, a week or a weekend would be fine.

No wife/kids?  Go for it!!  When you're single, that's the time to do the crazy stuff that you can't do when you're tied down.  Wish I'd had the money to do more when I was single.

 

[felicityheaton]

Hi!

I can't see you having a problem with writing on a train. I used to work in London, which was an hour's commute by train, and I wrote or worked every day on the way in and the way back from work. Train's these days tend to have power outlets for you to use, and I'm figuring that's the same everywhere as I've travelled in Europe and seen the sockets.

I found it much easier when there was a table, but that's only because I like to have a printed outline / scene notes / bios on hand as I write so I don't have to flip screens between my writing and my outline and scenes. Editing is much easier as you can do that with the computer on your knees.

A netbook would be good for it as they're uber lightweight, small, and have long battery life if you treat them right.

The downside is that you're not going to be seeing much if you're writing whilst travelling, unless you're only interested in seeing the places you stop at rather than scenery along the way.

Felicity Heaton

 

[R. H. Watson]

I've always gotten my best idea while riding on a train. I think it's a combination of the steady rhythms, and the view. Everything, cities, factories, homes are all oriented to present their best faces to the street. On a train, you see the backyards of the country and what's been hidden or thrown out back there.

 

[matt youngmark]

I'll tell you that I used to commute from Tacoma to Seattle every day by train, an hour in each direction, and I wrote the vast majority of Zombocalypse Now on that commute. The commuter train had some seats with tables and outlets on the upper deck -- it was the most productive writing year of my life (and if I hadn't moved to Seattle to be closer to work, I probably would have written three more books by now)