Featurette:

Marcia LeBeau’s THE WRITE SPACE

What inspired you to create The Write Space?

Writing in my home, even if it was a sweet little office with a window, has always been challenging. There was always a corner to be straightened, a bill staring up at me, or the doorbell about to ring. Not to mention, the solitude pulled me outside the house toward any number of things that had nothing to do with writing. Many times the distractions and loneliness overtook the sense of purpose I had for my writing. I knew writers, at every moment of the day, were at their desks churning out work, but I’m not sure I believed it, or I needed to be with them, or something different than what was happening.

I knew that whenever I sat in a room with writers composing in silence, I’d felt a unique power and connection that spurred my writing. Some people might suggest going on a retreat or applying for a residency. Those venues are wonderful, but what happens when you come home? I wanted to make that type of space available every day for writers to, quite frankly, get shit done. Being together and feeling the import of what we do, I think is especially important right now. Although desperate for art, the world doesn’t always honor the actual creative process. Here is a place where that process is not only honored, it’s a job.

With having a space comes all the possibilities for readings and workshops and meetups. I look forward to what’s going to be shared and learned here with the co-writing being the base. I look forward to the connections that will be made here that I can’t even imagine. It’s an exciting time.

What is the one thing you would like writers to gain from participating in The Write Space?

I would like writers to gain a sense of community, validation and productiveness that they haven’t been able to find anywhere else. I’m learning that writers in every stage of their careers have similar hang ups—lack of time and a magnetic pull back into their non-writing lives. Here is a place that’s an office for writing, where you know everyone is taking their craft as seriously as you. If you want to be more dedicated and successful, all you have to do is show up, sit at a desk, and write. The most successful writers are the ones who show up, day in and day out. It’s not a gift, it’s dedication. The best compliment I can hear happens when a writer walks into the space and says, “Thank you for creating this.” We know deep inside this is what we need.

Bio: Marcia LeBeau's poems have been published in Painted Bride Quarterly, Hiram Poetry Review, Rattle, SLANT, and elsewhere. Her work has also appeared in O: The Oprah Magazine. She has been a finalist for the Rattle Poetry Prize and nominated twice for a Pushcart Prize. Recently, her chapbook, The Book of Bob, was shortlisted for the 2019 Wallace Award. She holds an MFA in poetry from VCFA. Marcia is an artist-in-residence in the schools and plays viola in her local symphony. She recently launched The Write Space, which provides creative writers with co-working and community in the Valley Arts District of Orange, NJ.