The folks who write for the New York Times Style section have the distinct ability to make things they write about sound . . . well, stylish. I had a bit of the green eye today when I read (here) about the work habits of some freelancers and other independent types: "For rising tech stars, sharing a Brooklyn loft beats searching for a Wi-Fi signal at the local Starbucks." "140 characters in a Twitter post cannot compete with 26 characters in a Brooklyn loft," the NYT proclaimed.
Co-working requires several individuals to pay a few hundred dollars each month for desk/computer space in a shared environment. Folks who otherwise would be working alone have the companionship and possible synergies of working near other creative people. The ground rules for functioning well in this kind of environment? "1. Show up, 2. Bring some work to do, 3. Don't be a jerk," according to a founder of one co-working space for freelancers. (Read the rest of the article here.)
Of the law profs I know, some folks can get summer writing projects done in their offices. Others prefer a library or the comforts of home. A few folks do good work on airplanes or a mini-vacation. Some make "writing dates" with others (or themselves) at cafes. But I don't know anyone who works in an expressly-designated co-writing space.
Might a co-writing studio work for law professors or other academics who need to write intensively over the summer? Would it work only in large cities, where one could be reasonably assured that the co-writing space would not be filled with the same colleagues one sees at the office? Or would such a project be doomed to fail, because law profs might have trouble with a few of the "rules"? (My guess is that most would not have any trouble with the "bring some work to do" rule.)
I heard rumors a few years back that a few big-name professors did exactly this at a summer vacation rental on the east coast. Then again, they may have just been vacationing with their families, and not actually vacationing.
I've always thought this is a great idea for anyone who works on their own — I keep trying to convince my husband to start a shared work space with his creative and design freelancer friends. Myself, I occasionally get together at a coffeehouse with a friend of mine who is an English professor to spend the morning writing — together, but on our own. It would be great to be able to do this with other law profs.