This is my last Nobody Writes It Better post for 2009, and this has been one helluva strange year for me. We’ve moved our entire household twice. (And yes, each move was every bit as painful as you might think.  >:-/ ) But now I’m unpacking into a large home office and experiencing fresh glee every time I come across something I love. Given that this is the week after (American) Thanksgiving and these items definitely inspire my gratitude, I thought I’d share them with you.

My Favorite Home Office / Writer’s Office Things:

1. Bookshelf Space.

Okay, so I can only fit three of my seven bookshelves in here along the wall. That’s because the second wall has all my desks/tables/surface area, the third wall is all sunny bay window, and the fourth side has two doors (bathroom and closet), a ginormous lateral filing cabinet…and a built-in bookshelf. Hooray for home builders with taste. (And for the husband who let me snag the master bedroom for my business office!)

2. My Amazon Kindle.

Great for uploading manuscripts to proof AND for downloading fun books. I’m currently reading Jana Oliver’s Sojourn and George Carlin’s Last Words.

3. Sunshine.

See aforementioned bay window. And one side of it looks out over the Sierra Nevadas. Now see aforementioned thumbs-up to husband.

4. Feline Assistants.

No writer’s office is complete without at least one. Especially if that one is skilled at “helping” me unpack.

I have to admit this is a pretty darned great setup.

What would make this space perfect?

1. Better heating. It’s only 63 degrees in this room in the mornings, thanks in part to those bay windows. For a former Georgia Peach, that calls for drastic measures. I’ve installed a space heater near my ankles and have a pair of gloves with USB-powered heating elements. Seriously.

2. A super comfy recliner for reading. Probably located next to the bay window. (I could always drape an electric blanket over it. )

3. A real desk, instead of my “slab of wood on top of two short filing cabinets” plus folding card tables setup. Still, surface area is surface area. And with a clutter monkey like me, it’ll all be used soon. And meanwhile, at least I have a couple of really good desk chairs.

You probably have ideas for a perfect writing, working, or reading space. What do you want in yours?

I am a Kindle gal.

I didn’t used to be. I loved paper books. Didn’t everyone? How wonderful it was to curl up with a well-loved, 3-D, real book. I turned my nose up about the electronic versions. Who would want to read books on their computer? I spent enough time on mine as it was, thankyouverymuch, and had the sore butt and nearsightedness to prove it.

And the thought of reading a book on an even smaller screen, backlit glare and all, gave me a pre-emptive headache. None of the e-readers I’d seen held the least of my interest.

And then the Kindle appeared in November 2007.

Oh, believe me, I ignored its siren call…at first.

But as a hardcore Amazon slut, I couldn’t avoid it. The image was right there on the Amazon home page. But I had a spine of steel jello, so six months after it appeared I finally considered getting one. After all, it was expensive ($359 at the time). But I kept hearing good things about the Kindle. That it was a whole different technology than the usual device screen, and reading on it was much easier on the eyes than a computer screen. (Very true, as I can attest from staring at a computer screen as I type these words.) That the Kindle was…fun. A pleasurable experience.

Woah. Really? Ebooks? How?

I glanced at the floor-to-ceiling bookshelves cramming my office, then peered over the stairway to the ones lining our living room.

Hmm. You mean I could store everything I wanted to read on this handheld device…and carry it with me without needing a gigantic suitcase and a back brace? I could someday move all my belongings from one city to another without taking up half the U-Haul with books?

I sucked in my breath, gathered up my savings, and bought one just to try it out. Yeah, that’s it. Just to try it.

I was a goner as soon as it arrived. The original Kindle was ugly homely unique, but the aesthetics didn’t bother me. I’m a practical girl. I downloaded the samples of several new-to-me Amazon books (you mean I can read part of the book to see if I like it before I buy it? Sign me up, Sparky!) read a few, and promptly bought one.

I devoured the book. Lois McMaster Bujold’s The Curse of Chalion. A superb fantasy, and one of the things I loved most about the experience was that after a few pages, I didn’t realize the Kindle was there. I was reading.

For the first time, I didn’t need bookmarks; the Kindle always saved my place. I didn’t need a bookweight to hold open the pages as I ate or brushed my teeth, and I didn’t have to push the bookweight around just to read the whole page. (Yeah, so I’m hardcore reader. Bet you are, too.) And even when I was flossing, I could nudge the “next page” button with my elbow and keep reading. Ha, try that with a paper book!

I was hooked.

When the original Kindle sold out before the Christmas season in 2008 and the Kindle 2 was rumored from several sources, I took a deep breath and listed my Kindle 1 on eBay. It hurt, but I did it.

I auctioned off my K1 for more than I’d paid(!) and plunked the money down on a K2 pre-order. I had to wait until February of 2009 for my newest delight to arrive, but it was worth the wait. It goes everywhere with me, and heck, so does the Amazon store, thanks to the free Internet on the Kindle.

I don’t buy paper novels any more. Really. It’s all e, unless the publisher is behind the times and offers no Kindle version. In that case, I might buy a book I’m desperate for, but I’ll hold a grudge.

I do still prefer some things in print. Anything I’m likely to take a ton of notes on — writing books and the like — I usually buy in p. And I wouldn’t buy a book of beautiful color photographs for the black & white Kindle screen. But you’re unlikely to find any available, since the publishers already know that.

Is the Kindle 2 perfect? HECK NO. It’s still expensive and I can only read the book I bought on the Kindle or an iPhone (which I don’t own)…unless  I do something illegal with the book’s file. I can’t share my book with anyone, unless that anyone has a second Kindle bought on the same credit card. And no one can buy a Kindle book for someone else as a present. (Amazon wish lists everywhere are suffering, I tell you.)

But will these restrictions last forever? I doubt it. The Kindle was fated to be challenged by younger competitors bearing shiny new features. There have been an explosion of new e-reader announcements in the last few months, and just yesterday, Barnes and Noble announced its own contender, the nook. The nook (yes, B&N spells it with a small n) will even let you “lend” your B&N ebooks to other people for two weeks, and they can read them on a variety of devices.

Am I worried that the Kindle will lose out? Nah. Competition’s generally a good thing. I figure Amazon will have to keep up, so I eagerly await the next Kindle generation. No doubt it will be even cheaper than the current price ($259). Within two years, I bet there will be a Kindle under $99.

And if Amazon drops the ball with innovations, well, my next batch of savings may go to some faster, hotter young e-reader. There will be plenty to choose from, and with the E-Reader Wars heating up, more features are on their way for less moolah.

So ’scuse me while I go dive into an ebook.

How do you feel about ebooks and ereaders? Do you have an ereader you love, are you putting one on your holiday wish list, or will you be one of the last paper book holdouts? Spill it.