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Sources of Inspiration

Sources of Inspiration: My Characters

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Sometimes I fall into a funk where I just don’t want to write. I’ve learned that a major source of inspiration which can drag me out of that funk is my characters.  Recently I’ve been dealing with some harrowing events. Writing has been a challenge. Even caring about writing, which is so crucial to my well-being, sank into a murky depression.  My characters can pick up and reflect this depression. We’re very lucky, those characters and I, that there are others drifting in my imagination (or paddling and keeping afloat in the murk), willing to grab hold of the sinking … Read more

Sources of Inspiration: The Dark

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I’ve always imagined things in the dark, seen shapes taking form in the pitch black. I had to learn to allow my eyes to adjust, to see what was really there, picking out what was familar to quiet my imagination. Ever since I started working on Stealing Myself From Shadows and other stories, I’ve shut down that particular reassurance. To create a place where objects, monsters, mythical creatures, people lost to all but memory, and ideas themselves could manifest from, I’ve been tapping into my imagination, letting myself see what lurks in the dark, to try and translate it into … Read more

Sources Of Inspiration: Taking Action

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One thing which always fails is to simply wait for inspiration to come and find me. I’ve waited for months, even years, feelings the stories solidify inside me, unsure how to let them out while hoping for the right moment.  There has very seldom or ever been a right moment. If one comes, it’s when I’m taking some kind of action. If I want to be inspired, to get ideas, to do something with these ideas, I need to do something. Get up, move around, and think. Take a walk and consider what I want to write. Empty the dishwasher. … Read more

Sources of Inspiration: Creative Coping with Criticism

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There are two ways I’ve found I can creatively respond to criticism, particularly painful criticism.  One is if I feel there’s any truth in the critic’s words, I think about it, see if it’s something I can fix. I keep an eye open for that something in my future works. I see if I can pounce on the flaw, rewrite it, transform it into something better, thus using the criticism to make my work better.  Two, I image the critic’s words, the shape their mouth makes while the angry words are coming out of it. I visualize how the words … Read more

Sources of Inspiration: Sorting Out the Clutter

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My imagination sometimes feels like a jumble of clutter in an attic. I’ve got so many ideas, so many stories in progress. Some of them get shoved into a back corner for too long, buried under other ideas. Sitting there, forgotten, they gather dust. How do I clean up these lost stories, make some progress on them?  Creating reminders helps, doing things which remind me that these stories are there, waiting for me. When I blog, I try to fill them with reminders of a particular character, a particular story. More and more, I’m using them to focus on my … Read more

Sources of Inspiration: Painting a Portrait of a Character With Words

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Something I marvel at in other writers is their ability to bring a character to life in a few words that artfully weave their way into the plot, drawing attention to that plot as well as the character without distracting the reader.  This is an art I’m told I’ve improved in. I can’t tell you how gratified I am whenever I get a compliment on my description. I’ve struggled long and hard to better it. I do have a tendency to become fixated upon eyes. Eyes are one of the first things I notice about a person when I see … Read more

Sources of Inspiration: Organization

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You may be laughing at this title. What does organization have to do with inspiration? A lot more than I thought. How I arrange things, whether or not I have a file open on my laptop, what that file is; all of these matters make a big difference is whether or not I work on particular project or not. Seeing the file prompts me, gets me going, reminds me to work on it. Where I place my notebook or file helps me remember it.  How I organize my thoughts as I work on a manuscript can help a great deal … Read more

Sources of Inspiration: Writing Whatever Comes to Mind

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One suggestion Julia Cameron offered in The Artist’s Way which I made a part of my life was the Morning Pages. I take an ordinary notebook and write 3-4 pages by hand of whatever comes to mind. It can be as ordinary as “Cinnamon just walked to her food dish” or as surreal as “He waves his hands only to have antlers come shooting out of the earth, blooming flowers.” (Rewrites of this have made their way into both original stories and fanfiction). It’s a place where I can express anything that’s been bothering me, including how I’m not making … Read more

Sources of Inspiration: Ordinary Things

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Once upon a read, I was advised by another writer to make a list of ordinary things. To try to write a story, an essay, or a poem about each of them. At first I thought this was a waste of time, a way to bore readers and myself. I mean who wants to read about trash bags and kitty litter? Yes, these are essential to every day life and I’m grateful for them. Does this mean I want to read about them or write about them? When I retreat into my imagination, I was hoping for a break from … Read more

Sources of Inspiration: Terror

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I’m a naturally twitchy person and there’s a lot to be terrified of right now. Like the epidemic that’s keeping me close to home. The current governmental situation makes me want to hum the Apocalype song from Revolutionary Girl Utena. I look up and expect to see an inverted White House, floating and rotating in the sky until chunks of it start falling, smashing into America. Yes, I’m probably giving too much ritualistic dignity to the current situation but ritual comforts me in times of terror. I live in a land filled with enemies whom might hurt me or those … Read more