Mike "Pops" Klumpp

Like Tolstoy, I like to write in the marketplace. My marketplace is invariably a coffee shop. And, since I am a trekker of the globe, there is some familiarity and holiness in Starbucks.

In New Orleans, I write at Cherry Coffee Roasters on Laurel. I love the vibe and the coffee. However, in my current location, there is nowhere refreshing that supports a vibe that is consistently conducive to my needs and is non-corporate. Being an anarchist, I generally shy away from any club mentality or ethos. However, Starbucks is my exception.

Today, I am working on Tanglewood again. I am in a mode of transferring data from paper to screen. This effort at digitalizing not only brings the writing into a contemporary shareable medium, it also affords me opportunity at my first re-write.

I dislike rewriting. I dislike the work involved and the tedious process of reading my own work for a second or third time. Tedious, not because I find my own work tedious, but tedious because it is less exhilarating than the initial work of creating. I love the work of creating.

Before I ever go to paper or digital file, poem, play or prose, I have worked an idea in my head and my emotions rolling it around until it is completely breaded and ready for the fryer. I want the work to be fresh and energetic. I want it to contain spontaneity and never seem contrived. But I also want the work to be meaningful before I give it audience.

Everything I write is meaningful…to me. But not everything I write is “meaningful” in a way that deserves a larger audience. Any audience, deserves my best work and not just a vomiting of my soul. Therefore, I owe it to the audience to “check my work” before I post. Going from paper to digital forces me to endure that process.

My adventures at Starbucks today have afforded me time to bring the saga of Tanglewood one step closer to being a book. The mental hospital that burned, the surviving box and the world inside the box are all being systematically prepared for your enjoyment. The distractions inherent in the environment keep my ADD from ruining my productivity. There is just enough random energy to afford concentration.

Where do you write? What are your routines for productivity? Are you audience aware? Wanna chat with Pops about it? You can. Comment here or email Pops at goaskpops@gmail.com .