Messy or Neat?

"I think if you've got a messy office, you must have a messy mind," he says. "If I walk down the hallway of the company I own, this is the way I want it to look. And I think it makes a good environment for everybody."

Hi Writers,
It's funny how interested writers are in how other writers do their work.

In the August issue of Writer's Digest, we profile four writers in their writing spaces (Vendela Vida, Richard Adams Carey, Lemony Snicket and Lisa Gardner). So I decided to put out a call for readers to post photos of themselves in their writing spaces. To get things rolling, I posted a photo of my home office. I can't believe how much grief I'm getting for having a neat desk.

I wouldn't say I'm all that neat, really, but I do need an organized work space to do my work, otherwise I find myself compulsively cleaning and straightening in order to sit down and write (elaborate procrastination ritual?). I'm kind of a serial neatnik at work. My desk isn't always clean, especially around deadlines, but I do go through some serious binge cleaning every few weeks to keep the clutter at bay.

Well, I was reading the BoSacks newsletter today, and found that I have a kindred spirit in Rolling Stones editor Jann Wenner.

His desire for control occasionally may seem excessive. For example, he insists on neat desks.

So how about your writing space? Tell the truth: Messy or neat?
And please share your own photos on the WD forum.

Keep Writing,
(even if it's in a pig sty)
Maria