Chaos E: Books waiting to be read.

Palanca awardee Maryanne Moll lets us peek into her working area. A UP Diliman creative writing graduate, Maryanne is the author of two books and was a fellow at the national writers workshops at the University of Santos Tomas and in Dumaguete.

My work area: Chaos! This is why my little apartment, which I absolutely love, is called the College of Chaos.

In my work area, there is one desk and two smaller tables. One small table is my computer table, and there rules a 12-inch PowerBook G4, which I’ve had for three years, atop a computer stand. I need the stand or else I’d get migraines from stooping while typing. I have an external keyboard and mouse. Behind my PowerBook is a line of books that I have to read. There are a lot! (See photo “Chaos E.”)

To the left of this table is an old shelf that holds my printer, my external optical drive (a Boa that I’ve had for years and which I still use regularly when at home), my paper supplies, printer inks and refills, my CDs of my working files, movie and video CDs, and my “plug center.”

The desk is where I put my 1959 Olympia whenever I need it. When I’m not using the Olympia it’s where I put my pile of work. The other small table is where I handwrite my drafts and eat. When the College of Chaos is clean and the main desk is clear, this smaller table is folded up and stowed out of the way. Right now I am cramming for something. The shelves separate my work area from my sleeping area. These shelves hold most of my books, and my UP notes. As you can see, I need more shelves!

Chaos D: Maryanne has what she calls “Live Files,” or documents she needs for her current projects.

My files are in file boxes, because during the course of a project I need to bring them around a bit. Files of finished projects go into permanent storage as Dead Files. “Live Files,” on the other hand, are all over the place. In piles on the desk, in piles on the floor, in file caddies in my car, and so on and so forth. (See photo “Chaos D.”) My work space clears up noticeably once a project or a chapter gets finalized. Right now, it’s a mess.

Maryanne’s studio is a bookworm’s haven.

PinoyCentric: What can you NOT work without?
Maryanne Moll: Letter-sized legal pads and fountain pens!

What type of music do you play when you’re working? Who are regulars in your CD drive or music player?
Not music but dialogue. While working I prefer listening to videos. My favorites are Friends and Sex and the City. Right now as I type this I’m listening to something from Friends‘ season 3, “The One with the Hypnosis.”

Do you go online when you’re working? Why or why not?
I do! When writing is already giving me a headache I go to PhilMUG and moderate. (I’m a Super Moderator there.) That clears my head a bit. I also go to Neatorama. I looove that site. I don’t go to literary blogs or sites while I’m getting a headache working, because that would be overload. But when I am doing okay, and work is generally a breeze, the literary blogs and sites are wonderful to read during my work breaks. I haven’t been to those sites lately, since work has been toxic. It’s just horrible.

If there’s a window near your work station, what do you see when you look out? How does the scene inspire you?
There is a window but the curtains are always closed. If I do open it, like I used to a couple of years ago, I see the barangay stage and a billboard over Edsa. Not very inspiring, or very inspiring, depending on how you take it. But these days, it’s just a plain green curtain that I see.

What dictionary or stylebook or language reference do you always have on standby?
Strunk & White!

Can you work comfortably in a different setting, for example, a coffee shop or someone else’s computer in another place?
I can comfortably work in a different setting. I have no problem working out of a restaurant or a café, and I’ve been able to accomplish much work in my bosses’ offices. However, I need my own tools of trade. I cannot work on another person’s computer. I need my own PowerBook. And I don’t lend it to anyone, too.

Do people distract you when you work?
When in my bosses’ offices, sometimes the stream of people can be distracting, and they have the tendency to ask me what I’m working on. I suppose I distract them, too, because I have pretty tools. When working at the College of Chaos, however, there is absolutely no one to distract me. Except YouTube.

How do you keep your concentration?
Hmm. This is tricky. I’ve never felt the need to be so intensely focused in my work. I can work even with a jackhammer pounding on pavement right next to me. But I do remember a few times when I’ve needed to concentrate more, and when that happened, I simply worked from midnight towards dawn. The stillness, and the knowledge that most of the city is fast asleep, helped me to focus.

Have you ever written a novel or a story in a different setting (such as borrowing someone else’s apartment or going away to a cottage in the province)?
Only when it’s a very difficult piece and I need my family around me. When I was dealing with difficult and rather “scary” chapters for the history of the PNP Special Action Force, I drove to my mother’s house in Bicol and stayed there for about a month and worked out of two Monobloc tables in a corner of the dining hall.

Photos by Maryanne Moll