Debra: I’m glad to be here on Tricia’s blog and invite you into my cozy office! Okay, I will confess, these pictures are not of my office today—they are of my office a couple of months ago. Today I just finished two back-to-back deadlines so my office is a national disaster area!!! I’ll clean before I start my next book—so next week it will look like these pictures again and the endless loop of clean to disaster will continue.
As you can tell I love yellow, reds and sunshine. My desk is large and when I’m working there is hardly a clear spot on it! I only use a laptop because I move around constantly but even still, my desk is my main hub with all the research material there for easy access. When weather permits I love to write outside. My husband travels with his work and I go when I can so I work on the plane and in the car’s passenger seat a lot! Some of my best lines have been written on a plane, which is the case for my latest release, A Bride for All Seasons. That book idea and first paragraphs were written flying somewhere over the USA. Behind my desk is a cabinet with a photo of my boys as toddlers, my Bible, and writing supplies. On the wall is a wooden cross that was hand-carved by a wonderful friend from church. A stone wall hanging with 1 John 4:19 “We love because God first loved us.” Above everything is the sign that reads, “I love you to the moon and back,” a gift from my granddaughter whom I also love to the moon and back. On the bulletin boards I have more important “stuff.” Family photos first and then notes and reminders, also a note from a reader. I can’t put them all up, but they are each special to me and I keep them all in the red boxes above in the attic area in this photo. They encourage me and remind me who I’m writing my books to.
Photo two shows my nifty table which folds out larger for when I’m editing and need to see my manuscript in chapters. On the table are some of my awards. Booksellers Best, A Golden Quill Award, an Inspirational Readers Choice Award—which is the pretty silver heart trinket box and is the first award I ever won with my first book, it holds other award pins. In the container behind it are my three Carol Award Finalist pins and my most precious awards of all—special cards from my family over the years along with a picture of Bogie, our beloved family pet when my sons were growing up. There are also a couple of toys that have special meaning from when my sons were smaller.
And finally my recumbent bike with the slanted desk for my computer. This helps me to accomplish work and exercise at the same time. And then in the opposite corner my crammed full bookcase sits beside my comfy chair. Lots of books are written in that chair—and more to come!
Thanks for stopping in—until next time live, laugh and seek God with all your hearts!
______________________________
Margaret: Before I give you a tour of my office I must warn you; I consider a neat and orderly office proof of a sick mind. Those of us with CDS (chronic disorganization syndrome) know that nothing attracts the muse quicker than a storm of papers, books, candy wrappers, and Post-its.
Monet helps too, which is why my room is painted Monet purple. The family complained about hearing me on the computer in the middle of the night, so my husband sound-proofed my room with cork. The thing I love most is my balance ball chair, which allows me to sit for hours without fatigue or muscle pain and lets me believe I’m exercising.
On the walls are charts, maps, notes, deadline reminders, and The Writer’s Prayer. I find the prayer to be the most useful. I keep a daily word count on my calendar. Some of my favorite Disney characters keep me company (though someone walked off with Woody). What you don’t see are ALL the bookshelves that make up my research library. Also hidden is the window overlooking the pool, the vertical files and my chocolate stash.
Guess how many books in my library and the person coming closest without going over will win a copy of A Bride for All Seasons. Leave your guess in the comment section below. Don’t forget, you’re only seeing half the library. Good luck! *The winner will be announced Monday, July 29.
*UPDATE* The winner is Martha! The correct answer is 1,213, and Martha guessed 1,205. Congrats, Martha! Tricia’s assistant will be in touch to get your mailing address.
Debra Clopton is an award winning author of sweet, heartfelt, western romance that face life with a smile. With over 2 million books in print, Debra has her first book coming as a movie starring LeAnn Rimes. Margaret Brownley is a NEW YORK TIMES best-selling author and has penned more than twenty-five historical and contemporary novels. Find out more about them here.
I love looking at other writers’ workspaces. Mine, I am sure, will never be suitable for public viewing. I’ve come to peace with that. Now, if my husband could just be okay with that … I suppose he does have a point, since my office also doubles as our guest room, but, c’mon. Chaos breeds creativity.
Okay, my guess for the bookshelves: 1067.
PS: I want one of those chairs. Very cool! Is it height adjustable? Or do you just get a bigger ball? My desk is rather high.
Tanya, my desk is high, too. The ball can be blown up to accommodate most heights. You’ll have to check with the company.
Thanks for your guess. Your number has been noted.
I guess 1364 !
Your number is noted!
I love the slanted desk for the excerise bike!
My guess is 999 books.
CherylB1987@Hotmail.com
Thank you Cheryl the desk and bike are favorites of mine. And work extremely well together for me and my writing!
Great post! I want this book! I’ve heard great things about it. Those shelves are looking like mine. I’m going to guess 875,
campbellamyd at gmail dot com
Amy, isn’t it good to know that we don’t have sick minds?
I am guessing 1170!
Wow – That’s a lot of books. My guess is 933.
I guess 979. Pray I’m right.
I guess 1,100 books! 🙂
Love your offices! One of these days I hope to have my own…half-writing, half-genealogy!
My guess is 1125. 🙂
Thanks for stopping in everyone! Margaret I had to pack all my books in boxes after Chuck and I married. But as soooooon as we build a house next year they are coming out and I’ll have my bookshelves back. I miss my books!
Ladies,
Thanks for the tour of your offices. They look very cozy and a place where creative writing can flourish. I loved seeing them both. Margaret I love your book organization skills. I don’t feel so unorganized now 🙂
My guess on your number of books is 777.
To both of you ladies, thanks thanks thanks for your books.
Delainie
Gosh, I didn’t even know I had organizational skills!
Thanks Delainie,
Thanks for reading our books!!!! We couldn’t do this without our wonderful readers. All of you ladies rock!
Love your offices! My guess is 1201. Thanks for the chance to win! Have a great day!
Thanks Beth!
I want your chair! Plenty of room for me and my boys (cats). Although, I’d never get any work done. I’d be in the chair reading all the time. I’m guessing you have 383 books in your library. Keep writing!
LOL Cynthia, It is so comfy that its one reason I have to get on my bike. I want to curl up and go to sleep on it. And you notice its right by my bookcase 🙂
The ladies at the front desk at me dentist office use those chains… I don’t think they even have the back support on theirs. It looks much more useable with the back on it!
My guess is 879.
Patty, I’ve used a balance ball for exercise for about 10 years its great for crunches etc especially if you have lower back problems (at least it is for me) but I’ve never been able to use it as a chair like Margaret and others I know do. lts a great idea though. I didn’t realize they used them in offices like your dentist. That’s interesting, must mean they really work.
The only problem I’m so used to sitting on a balance chair, I can’t sit for long on a regular chair.
I guess 400 books.
That balance ball chair looks very comfy. I have Fibromyalgia, so sitting at the computer hurts. I don’t think I could get my husband to agree, though. Just so wonderful to get a peak into the world of authors. That is a really neat idea to be able to have your laptop while riding the bike! Look forward to reading the book.
Martha thanks! LOL I’m about to go use the bike right now. It works great.
Great tours of your offices! That balance ball chair is so cool! I am guessing 320 books.
Brittany McEuen
Thanks Brittany!
Fun post. Love seeing rooms in other people’s houses.
My guess is 562 books….whew that’s a lot to count! Fun contest. Thanks for the opportunity! Linda
Thanks for stopping in Linda!
I love the behind the scenes information! I also would love to have those bookcases!! My guess is 1250.
Thanks for stopping in Donna! Yall have me just as curious about who is going to guess the correct number of Margaret’s books!
I love, love, love seeing where authors do their writing. It is such a nice little insight into the process. Both of these ladies are amazingly talented!! Thank you for sharing!
As for my guess, I am going to say 724 books.
texaggs2000 at gmail dot com
Thank you Britney! and thanks for stopping by.
I’m guessing 1,175.
980 books.
Wow! That is a lot of books! I’d guess around 550.
I love your work space Debra! It’s beautiful! 🙂
I love your books, thank you for sharing your writing and encouraging me and making me laugh! 🙂
My guess is 892. Thanks for sharing and the opportunity to win!
My guess for the number of books in your library is 438. I love your books. You’re a great author.
My guess is 954
827
I’m guessing 1,592 books in Margaret’s library. I like the purple on the walls.
If I had a slanted desk on my exercise bike like Debra, I just might use it more often. One can always hope!
Thanks for sharing your offices with us. I’d love to win this book. Thanks for giving away a copy.
Wow, keeping track of all these numbers is a challenge. I just found out we’ll announce the winner tomorrow. So keep guessing!
I’m guessing 528 books! I loved looking at both writing desks and areas.
Blessings!
Judy B
judyjohn2004(at)yahoo(dot)com
My guess is 934…jackie_tessnair@yahoo.com
Hmm, that is a lot of books… I am going to say 573 books! 😀
My guess is 985
I really loved getting a peek of your writerly(not a word I know :p ) world. I love yellows and reds too for decorating.
My best guess for number of books on your shelves is 1,347
winterrose(at)comcast(dot)net
550 books
I already won a copy of the book, “A Bride for all Seasons” but anytime you would like to clean out your bookcases our church library would love to be on the receiving end.
Thanks!
Janet Estridge.
982 books. 🙂
My guess is 717 books.
My guess is 767 books. Tricia, I love your books, especially the Seven Brides for Seven Bachelors series. I will be looking up Debra Clopton and Margaret Brownley and reading their books. Thanks for the chance to win.
I’m gonna say 550
My guess for the book is 432. What a fun giveaway.
My guess is 1,009! 🙂
I love your bookshelves… looks like mine… packed with wonderful adventures!
I would guess 468 books. Maria Thomas. Plainfancy4@yahoo.com
Ooh, a very fun giveaway! Debra and Margaret, thanks for sharing your space with us. Tricia, thanks for hosting these fun ladies.
My guess is 368 books.
Blessings,
Andrea Cox
andrearenee2004@yahoo.com
I’m guessing 512. Your library looks like mine. My excuse is that I’m a librarian. Sigh. kristiedonelson(at)gmail(dot)com Thank you,
I guess 1012.
My guess would be 1001
thingsilove79@hotmail.com
Love the books. I’m thinking 2156
Ummmm im going to say 359, i would love to win one of your books
Shirley B jcisforme@aol.com
I guess 1130 books
Love books and seeing others with large libraries. My guess is 2350! Thank you. Can’t wait to see how many you have.
1288
999 and room for one more, just like the Haunted Mansion.
My guess is 1,059. You have a lot of books! I do too so I understand.
I would guess 775.
689
816 books
susanlulu@yahoo.com
My guess is 624 – I could always use another book to add to my shelves – thanks 😉
I am guessing 420…..that is quite the library you have there. Thanks for sharing your office with us all!
Keep guessing! Tomorrow will tell the tale!
I will guess 2609. I love browsing libraries. I could do it all day long.
I guess 2.7K. I have about 10 bookcases full at my house–too many to count.
I will guess and say 1138.
My guess is 502. I love books!
Hi! it looks a lot like my book shelf! my guess is 837
1925 books LOve books!
WOW y’all keep guessing! I can’t wait to see myself. I want to guess too Margaret lol I’ve written down a secret number for myself so when you announce it I can see how close I’ve come 🙂
I love both offices for different reasons; one I wish I had, the other is more like me. I am guessing 785 books. Thank you!
I bet you wish you had Debra’s. I do, too, but I can only write in chaos!
My guess is 1015. Love the book shelf, although after working in a library, I am almost OCD about having the book all line up properly, lol. It would be nice to just have them helter skelter sometime. Keep up the good work on the writing!!
1070 is my guess.
Your bookshelves look full like mine! My guess is 834. I would love to read “A Bride For All Seasons”. Thank you for offering such a great contest!
I love looking at writing spaces!! 🙂
I am going to guess 900.
My guess is 1008 books are in your library. I love the color of the room it looks like it would give you a ton of energy and keep you happy!
That’s a lot of reading!!!! My guess would be 1948 books (I take it that’s only a portion of your shelves/books you have showing. JudyF
962 – though surely there are more than that!
My guess is 1000 books.
My guess is 448 books
Love seeing where you write. My guess is 1598
1503
795
I think 762 books.
1100 books – thanks for the glimpse inside your writing studio & the giveaway opportunity!
832 books ~ I’m so used to having arms on my chair(s) I’m not sure I’d be able to balance well on your chair, although I may have to consider trying it once.
I haven’t fallen off my chair yet!
oh, come on that shelf looks bare….mine are crammed two deep on each self and setting on the floor and stored in boxes….I literally have a room full of box with books packed in them. I wouldn’t even know where to begin with counting my books. ;P I say 543…
ABreading4fun [at] gmail [dot] com
Margaret! You should see my office right now! It is a mess. I have to clean after each book lol or I couldn’t get in there! Funny story–when I married Chuck I left my big house and office and moved to his house with him and his two sons. The house was smaller and no place–absolutely no place for me to have an office. We tried for a year for me to share his small office. But Chuck’s business requires him to be on the phone a lot and so I was struggling with no place to really nest–and spread out–and to have silence also. Sooooo we bought a metal building and moved it into the back yard and then finished out the inside. Now I have a hideaway that I can go to away from everything. lol but a writer has to have a lot of stuff when creating a book and boy do I !!!
When I first started writing my office was the kitchen table and the rule was, no one could eat until mom finished her chapter. I was still writing on a typewriter and when I messed up a page, I pulled the paper out, crinkled it into a ball and tossed it into the air. During the Northridge earthquake, the light over the table shook and all these balls of paper fell down.
My guess is ‘not enough’! Ok, how about 1156? LOVE your office — what a peaceful place to write.
Susan, I agree. My husband bought me a Kindle hoping to solve the book problem. eReaders are okay for fiction, but reseach books require hands on, a marker and Post-its.
The part I can’t believe is that margaret KNOWS how many books she has. You counted them?
My grandson agreed to count them for me, but only if I took him out for a Big Mac.
Margaret you just nailed the thing I don’t like about Kindle books. I love flipping through a favorite book and re-reading scenes. And that is such a slow process with a Kindle. A book I really love…..I HAVE to own in in book form not eform. Or it never gets moved into a ‘favorite’ column.
Mary, eReaders were designed by men who I believe read differently than most women I know. I don’t see my husband stroking a book or flipping back and forth. He reads a book from beginning to end and that’s that.
Me, I have to study the cover, flip back and forth, reread scenes and mark favorite passages.
My guess is 1111 books!!!!!
You’ve counted them ALL? Lol…what fun. My guess is 1123. Hope I even come close 🙂
Very interesting…..more than the number, I am wondering what all of the topics are??!! My guess is 572.
Connie, I write western historicals so the books are mostly about the 1800s. They are organized somewhat according to category. You’ll find books on states, territories, clothing, transportation, civil war, women’s rights and professions.. Unless you love the 1800s you’d find my library boring.
My guess is 861.
Gosh..thought my ‘library room’ was full!!! I’m going to guess 825…
Love your cozy office…and yes looks like you have a lot of books….I would guess 2,192….babyruthmac16ATyahooDOTcom
iam guessing 658!
Haha! Awesome giveaway! 🙂 I guess 1,001!
284 is my guess!
796 is my guess…
My office looks like yours. My guess is 1200
I guess 525
My guess is 859
I love your chair and the cork on the walls is genius! Great post. My guess on the book count 910. Happy Writing!
I’m guessing 1016 — I’d hate to count how many books are in my house and I’ve gotten rid of a lot of them quite awhile ago.
I’m going to guess around 1,254 books!
jennydtipton(at)gmail(dot)com
I love seeing somebody else with the same book issues as myself! 🙂
Book issues? I love it!
Yay! Someone that has a library full of books that looks like mine!!! I love it! I am not sure if you are only counting what we see or the shelves of reference books too! If it is what we see my guess is 876, if it is with the reference books, I guess about 1205. martha(at)lclink(dot)com
Actually most all are reference books!
My guess is 1961 (it’s a very good year… LOL). Love both offices… mine is definitely on the messy side! 😉 Margaret, I think you got the better end of the deal with paying your grandson a Big Mac… that was quite a job!
My grandson will do anything for food!
😀
My guess is: 1230
Thanks for the tour of your offices. I like to try and understand the process as I’m trying to get into the writing mode. I guess that your shelves are like mine and crammed but I didn’t see that many on the shelves. I guess 2351.
I like the writing desk on your exercise bike & the ball chair~ great ideas. I’d guess you have at least 1290 books. 🙂
I want to say there’s 1100 books.
Ahh, “a clean desk is the sign of a sick mind”, words to live by! A plaque that has often graced my desk area! I love being surrounded by old friends, good books and the written word, even on old barn siding…heck, I have conversations going on all the time, real and imagined! Happy Writing and Reading! My guess 1114…blessings! 🙂
Ta, ta! Drum roll please! WE HAVE A WINNER!
The correct number of books on my office bookshelves is 1213.
Martha was the closest without going over at 1205!
Congratulations Martha!
CONGRATULATIONS Martha!