How I Write: To Coffee or Not to Coffee

 I wish I could write in the morning. It seems so natural to me that I would drink coffee as I write. And sometimes, I get to do that, but most times, I do not.

Most of my writing is done in the afternoons and evenings. Occasionally during the week, but unless I’m really under pressure to get the words done, I end up doing most of it on the weekends.

I have a full-time job. I work for a small company, from home, as an application developer or software engineer, depending on who you ask. I work for wonderful people that I have worked for off and on for the last 16 years.

So, writing from 9-5 during the week is not feasible, unless I take a day off.

I limit my coffee to mornings. For many years, I’ve struggled with sleep issues, so coffee after noon probably would not aid my ability to stay asleep. I do make an iced tea in the afternoon, but even that goes out after 5pm. No caffeine allowed after 5pm. *Sigh I long for the days when I could drink coffee or a Diet Pepsi right up until I went to bed.

Getting old is not as fun as it sounds.

I love coffee.  I love the smell of it brewing.  I love the warmth of it as I drink it. I love the taste of an impeccably brewed cup. I drink mine black, with one ice cube so I don’t burn my tongue. I love to go to a coffee place with a group of friends and stand at the back of the line.  I listen to them order their non-fat frappes and their caramel latte with half-caf and when it’s my turn, I ask for a tall coffee-of-the-day and watch the barista’s face smile with relief.

Life’s little moments.

So, on a typical writing day, I am either drinking iced tea or water. 

It is just not a ‘romantic’ picture.  Not like the harried author, with a pencil stuck in their hair, and a steaming cup of coffee on their desk. Or a glass of scotch. *shudder

But I think that image is outdated. Authors now come in all shapes, sizes, and ages, and they all drink something different. Watch some #AuthorTube videos and you’ll see everything from ice water to wine glasses to Starbuck’s cups littering the desks. It’s not just a bunch of old men, in their make-shift attic office, clicking away on a Smith-Corona anymore.

Thank goodness for that.

Could I drink decaf?  Sure. And I have. But I have yet to find one with a taste I can really fall in love with. I am sure it’s out there, somewhere.

In the meantime, I’ll stick to my iced tea for my afternoon writing. Ice water for evening writing. And on those infrequent days off when I am at home and can, I’ll sit in my writing room, with a cup of hot coffee sitting next to my computer keyboard.

Either way, I’m writing.  And in the end, that’s all that matters.