Where is the cheapest place a writer can live?

I'm not really tied to much where I am. Sort of looking for a change, but financially I'm quite restricted. Where can I go and live off of next to nothing? Where do all the struggling artists live?

 

I'd say the woods, although you'd have to ditch the laptop.

If you really want to save money you could plant you own food, make your own cloths... and then write a book about it.

 

I live with my grandma- don't have to pay a dime of rent! Just my internet, which I was the one to get so fair. I'm such a spoiled sponge now.

 

I thought the standard place was Mom's basement.

 

Rent's cheap in Mexico.

 

I think you need to figure out what conveniences you need, and what you can do without.

You also need to decide what risks you're willing to take.

There are lots of places in the developing world where you can live really cheaply, but they won't necessarily have the conveniences you'd expect, coming from the developed world, and they may not be as safe.

Staying in North America? Find somewhere with a lot of poverty. Brutal, but true.

 

Detroit has whole neighborhoods that have been abandoned...

 

Try Alaska, they pay you to live there (though I believe the heating bills are a bit high).

 

I heard about some programs to encourage artists to live there, but it might be too urban for me. Maybe I'll look into it a little more. I just don't want to be in an area of high crime. I have nothing of real value, but I want to feel safe.

I was kind of thinking more along the lines of the Catskills or Vermont, but I don't really know those places well. They just look pretty and peaceful. Maybe I can find some old barn to rent or something like that. I was wondering if I might be able to get something real cheap in the VT ski lodging off season. I don't know if they stay open year round. I've started the process of getting rid of my things so I have less to take with me wherever I go.

Thanks for your thoughts on this, everyone. Let me know if you have any more ideas or how you go about finding rentals. Craigslist seems to have gotten very expensive.

 

I used to work with an engineer who made really good money, but wanted to save as much as he could. He lived in a trailer he bought for $4,000.00. The thing is, his space in the trailer park, including power and plumbing, only cost him $190.00 a month. Damn cheap rent.

 

Are you wanting to stay in the US? That'll be an important factor, I'd think.

And is this meant to be a year-round thing, or just for the summer? An old barn in VT might be okay in the summer, but in the winter...?

 

South Carolina

 

I once read a book written here