Image is from This Old House Magazine, Desk Set, April 2006.

Having a view to inspire you as a writer is one of the more sought after aspects of a home office. This cozy writing space is in the middle of a Portland forest. The office is sparse with a pine desk and alder floors just waiting to hold your laptop or tablet as you create your masterpiece. The large casement window draws you to the forest outside while the rich red walls and wooden built-in shelves surround you like a warm blanket. It is the perfect place to relax and let your words flow.

This home office inspirational image is from “Better Than Ever”, This Old House magazine, April 2003.

This lovely tiger maple secretary with the glazed windows and old-fashioned cubbies caught my eye. The writing space is small, it is one that you would need to do your writing either in a paper notebook or via a laptop or tablet, but the cabinet has deep storage drawers for hanging files on the bottom and display cabinets on the top that make it quite functional. It rests in a room, off of a hallway adding value to a small space. The clean lines of the space are very appealing and when not in use, you could close the secretary to hide whatever clutter develops there.

Would you be comfortable writing in this space? Let me know in the comments.

This home office inspriation image comes from “Desk Job,” This Old House magazine, December 2001.

This is not a fancy office with beautiful furniture and lovely windows to look out of. It is a compact desk in the middle of the kitchen. It is a place where you could pick out recipes from your favorite cooking program or work on a novel while overseeing what your family is doing. Some of us write better when we are surrounded by activity, be it at the local coffeehouse or surrounded by those we love. Is this an office set up that would work for you as a writer? Let me know in the comments.

This Modern Home Office is from “The Timeless Home,” This Old House magazine, March 2002. It is a 10×10 space in the central area of the house, between the kitchen and the living room. It is designed to be a place to dump the afternoon mail or to organize your shopping list before going out to do errands. I also view it as a great family writing space. You have a great view of the yard via the bay windows to watch over your children or to gain a view of the outside to refresh your senses, the built-in cabinets would hold all your research materials and papers out of sight, and there is a nice spot on the floor where your computer tower could rest comfortably. While many of us use laptops these days, there is nothing wrong with a desktop setup. I use one myself!

While this office was designed a decade ago, it still has many great ideas to inspire your own writing space at home.

There is something about a red, fantasical office that pulls me in. My own office has red accents, from a red rose print on the wall, the crimson malden filofax on my desk to my red office lamp. Each piece strikes a personal chord within me. This office called to me its rich red walls and contrasting white trim. The distressed wooden desk, the antique typewriter and the yellow roses all gave this a slight Victorian vibe. Then I noticed the golden chandelier overhead and everything zinged. One of the reasons why I enjoy reviewing writing spaces is because it gives me more ideas on how to improve my own space. I hope it gives you ideas as well.