Amtrak's Plan to Give Free Rides to Writers

Inside Amtrak's (Absolutely Awesome) Plan to Give Free Rides to Writers, article.

This is cool, hope it spreads to Europe. (Though we don't have the same long, empty stretches that characterises mid-US. To get a long train ride in Europe, you'd pretty much have to cross several countries.)

A bit over 20 years ago, I read an article about writing on a (then-nascent) laptop in cafés and such, and though it took years before I could afford even a used Laptop (quite pricey in the nineties), I really loved the idea, and have ever since. You are out of your home or office, so you are sort of "out of yourself" and away from your daily duties and procrastination methods, and have more free attention. (Especially if you have the discipline to turn off the cell phone and email/chat.)

And in a café as in a train, you're in a relative safe environment still, so you can concentrate on writing, yet in a mildly stimulating environment, which takes the edge off the "white page paralysis".

And I think a train may be an even better idea, since you are more "trapped" in a good way. You can't just walk out and go home in five minutes, so you might as well go with it and write.