We talk a lot about how some senses contribute to the writing process. The music playlists we listen to as we power through revisions, the pinboards we gaze at to visually inspire our WIPs, the chocolate we savor to help us deal with bad news, even the way our fingers feel tapping the keys (and the way our backs feel after slouching in a desk chair for hours while drafting). But there’s one sense that I feel like gets neglected in discussions of the writing process, and that’s smell.
Smell can be an important and influential part of the writing process. I’ve started incorporating scents into mine, and I swear it’s not related to neglecting laundry so I have more time to write. (I’m a freak who likes doing laundry, actually.) When I sit down to work on the first draft of my WIP, I use the smells of specific candles to get me into the atmosphere of the story. My current favorite? A cedarwood and rosewood blend that I think smells like a barrier island in summer, hot pine needles and driftwood and the Atlantic. Whether the candle objectively does or not smell like that is besides the point; when I burn it while I write, it connects me emotionally to the place I’m traveling on the page.
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| My current favorite candle. |
Not every story is told in a place that smells like flowers, though. I’m not suggesting you make your desk area smell like sulfur if you’re writing about hell. But I do suggest CB I Hate Perfume, which has some fantastically unique scents, like In the Library, a “warm blend of English novel, Russian & Moroccan leather bindings, worn cloth, and a hint of wood polish,” or Walking in Air, which was inspired by Balanchine’s The Nutcracker. (Uh, I think I need At the Beach 1966. I love the smell of Coppertone. Happiness in a bottle.)
Bath and Body Works also has a line of candles out now that includes French baguette and macaron blends, to which I say: I WANT. It’s enough to make me think that the next project I work on needs to involve French bakers, so I can make my writing space smell like bread and cookies all the time.
And then there’s good old Demeter Fragrance Library, which has the normal (almond; mulled cider), the cool (paperback; New Zealand), and the just plain weird (earthworm; dregs, as in the bottom of a wine barrel; and turpentine).
Obviously, you don’t need a delightful or weird potpourri to write. But sometimes a little ritual, like lighting a candle or spritzing a room spray, can help you get into the mood of your story. Or it can help you unwind and let the words flow.
So, have I convinced you to get into aromatherapy for writers?
Yes. I believe you have. Now to get to the store…
This reminds me of a friend who rants that there is almost never music in books and when there is, it is always central to the story, never just a little tune on the side.
Oh, man, if my writing space smelled like bread all the time, I’d probably be too tempted to eat all the time… sounds way too yummy! I usually have coffee going when I write, and the smell alone is enough to give me a good jolt.
Hmm…Blogger seems to have eaten my comment, so you may get this once or 100 times.
The scent of earthworms – ew!
I love to write when my husband has made Earl Grey tea – bergamot puts me in a happy writer trance.
I have terrible allergies and you’re making me sneeze! But a hot cup of green tea is my ritual – I can’t seem to write without it. I’m heating up water right now which is why I’m taking a blog break. 🙂
@Kristin: I am a highly allergic person, but luckily not so much in terms of candles and scents! (The dust covering my bookshelves–that’s another story.) I do buy candles from Whole Foods though, and I think the lower amount of synthetics in them helps keep me unstuffy.
Tea is another writing ritual I love. Cupping the mug helps hands tired from typing.
I almost always have candles lit at home. I tend to by the homey cinnamon/vanilla sorts of scents, but I’m very tempted to try out a few news ones based on the links you so generously provided. I’m sure my husband and our bank account will thank you. 🙂
I never thought of this! I should pick a candle scent to go with my new WIP when I start writing it. I can see how the smell could bring you back into writing-mode once you get used to it.
I LOVE including scents in my writing. Appealing to all the senses really brings setting and scene to life.