The Source of Inspiration, or 28 Sources

One of the first questions big-time authors are often asked is, "What inspired you to write this book?" I'm always fascinated by the answers, whether it was a dream or reading another book, or staring at the night sky. Inspiration is an important component of creativity. We seek it whenever we want to begin something new, or if we feel stuck where we are. Many of us have go-to places for inspiration, like a favorite bookshelf or a Thinking Spot (Thotful Spot).

Think, Think, Think

I'm of the opinion that mixing it up is always a good thing when it comes to inspiration and creativity, so here we go: SOURCES OF INSPIRATION

• The Zoo
• The Park
• The Coffee Shop (people watching)
• A favorite book
• A book from a different genre
• An old favorite song
• A folk song
• A new favorite song
• A biography
• Historical fiction
• Science magazine
• Church
• Hymns
• Poetry
• A self-help book
• A survival how-to manual
• Interview a child
• Interview an adult
• A painting 
• A whole museum
• A play
• A movie
• A TV show (e.g. Firefly or anything by Joss Whedon)
• A daycare center
• A school (make sure to get a visitor's pass)
• Twitter #amwriting #scifi (etc.)
• Meditation
• Dream Journal

You can't properly claim writer's block until you've tried all of these things, right? Right!

Happy Weekend and Be Inspired!

(random capitalization brought to you by Katrina LantZ)

It's the Middle of January; Do You Know Where Your Resolutions Are?

Well, do you?

I know not everyone is as organization-challenged as I am. I have some amazing organizational examples as blogmates here on Operation Awesome. But for me, it's generally a trick to remember, exactly what were those fifty goals I set on January 1st on the high of New Year fireworks? By the middle of the month, I'm awash in daily life and lucky if I remember to follow through with two or three of those original fifty.

If you're feeling a bit swamped by daily life, you're not alone. I'm right there with you. Fortunately for us, there are organizational genius like Abby who create downloadable spreadsheets entitled, "2015 Writing Goal Tracking Spreadsheet."

Yay, Abby! Does it get any better? I submit that it does not.

So while Abby's awesome tool helps you keep your writing goals, I'll just mention a new tool I've been using. It's called THE VISION BOARD.

It's not a storyboard. It isn't framed in filigree, although it could be. Shoot, it would be so much better in filigree. Don't judge me, Pinterest.

It's just a poster I made to include some of my favorite hopes and dreams, as cut out of magazines or as coined in clever phrases, like "Live Life On Purpose!" But mostly my vision board is personal. It's customized to me. I plastered the background with images of lush, green gardens; cozy, stone fireplaces; and rich, hardwood bookcases filled with treasured tomes. These are the places where I want to write. These are the inspirational images that lure my imagination from its daily-sludge hiding place.

Writing goals--or any goals, for that matter--ought not to be about the guilt you feel when you don't keep up, or even the totally awesome feeling you get when you reach them (though that is the huge payoff we all crave). Goals are about the journey. 

I may not have read all 500 something books on my bookshelves (one of my lofty previous New Year's Resolutions), but looking back on the past year, I can say that my time was well-spent. The journey took me through a pregnancy, the discovery of an amazing ancestor, a failed attempt to buy our first house (the one owned by that ancestor)... followed by a successful attempt to buy a different first house (one frankly more suited to us), and the birth of my fourth child. We enjoyed celebrating our first Christmas in our own, really-own place. I even made a construction paper fireplace.

We hiked, we danced, we camped, we watched sunsets, we randomly met old friends in unexpected places, and read a billion books that found us (ones that weren't on my to-read list, incidentally, so they don't count toward that goal). We lived. It was absolutely unusual and inspiring. And I wrote.

I could make a list of things that didn't happen. But that would be ungrateful. As the guru says, "Life is what happens while you are busy making other plans." Or maybe that was John Lennon.

Never be afraid to make those other plans. That's how the journey begins! Bon Voyage!

When Windows is your biggest window

The first 8 years of my marriage were lived out in rentals, mostly apartment rentals. There was one little colonial house with a frosty basement and pokey stairs, the kind you trip down when pregnant. Being home with kids in apartments in a one-car family situation, I often felt like a shut-in. It was a good day if I took my tinies to the park, their recreation center classes, or on a nature walk. We did a lot of fun things INSIDE, but my anxiety over handling the dangers of California roads/traffic, strangers, and wild-kids-who-don't-listen often kept me inside.

Feeling cut off from the world by my circumstances, I reached out to the online community to socialize with distant family, stay abreast of the news, and cultivate my writing talent. I found so much support, plenty of avenues for stretching out as a person. I wouldn't say it was a limiting experience, but I wouldn't call it rich, either. Truth be told, I spent too much time on the computer, whether writing, reading for others, blogging, or perusing the news.

When we moved recently and bought our first house, in the country of all places, something changed pretty drastically. I had WINDOWS! Lots of them, facing the light and the mountains and the sight of my kids playing in the backyard! Suddenly I spent less time on the computer. Feeling safer in our little community, I ventured out more, joined a co-op, discovered the library programs, and put my kids in swimming lessons. I talked to people face to face. At first it was scary, coming out of my protective shell. I worried about saying the wrong thing (common for me), losing one of my wayward children, or damaging public property (I have all boys). With some early successes, I felt encouraged, and just plain got out more! About this time, my husband and I got smart phones, which let us have our "Windows away from Windows," so to speak. I could check my email, communicate with distant family, read books via the kindle app, and do flashcards with my kids, all away from the computer. (Of all the inventions that have helped stay-at-home moms--the vacuum, the blender, the crock pot, the sticky note--the smart phone may have been the most liberating for me personally.)

When I approach writing today, as a liberated person, I don't do it feverishly or constantly. I do it purposefully. In fact, everything I do these days is done on purpose. I feel freer to act rather than to be acted upon.

And though I write less than I did before, I believe what I do write has a richness that was missing before. Maybe let's call it SUNLIGHT.

Source

Please share your own experiences in the comments. Each path is so richly different, and this has only been mine.

Real Life And Writing

Quote of the Day:

It is hard to master both life and work equally well. So if you are going to fake one of them, it had better be work. ~Joseph Brodsky

A few years ago, I was asked:

Have you ever had anything cause you to step back from writing? If so, what was the cause and how long did it take you to get back into the swing of things? If not, do you have any advice for other writers about not letting life get in the way of writing? 

My answer…..yep, yes, yeah, definitely, frequently, more often than I would like, totally, all the time, and FOR SURE!

Writing can be fun. I love it – it’s thrilling to create a world and characters and situations and to see how they all mesh into this wonderful conglomeration of ideas. But it is also work, hard work…it takes time and effort and energy….and sometimes I just don’t have any to spare.

How long it takes me to get back into it depends on what made me step back in the first place. Sometimes Real Life intervenes and I am just too busy with dentist appointments, parent/teacher conferences, sick kids, a neglected husband, and a dirty house to take the time to write. When that happens, I usually just step back for a few days, take care of what I need to take care of, and jump back in.

What else will make me take a break for a bit? Sometimes, I get stuck on a scene or a plot twist. When this happens, it may only take me a day or even a few hours before something occurs to me. And sometimes it takes a month or two :D Depends on how bad I’m stuck :D

And then sometimes, I just get tired of it all. Maybe I’ve revised so many times I can’t stand to look at my manuscript one more time…or maybe it all just seems like too much effort and not enough reward. When this happens, I might stop writing for weeks. I spend my spare time devouring every book I could find. I reread my favorite series, I watch movies, listen to music and chat with friends, and eventually, I'll get that itch again…the one that just makes my fingers ache to pound the keyboard.

I still go days without writing sometimes, due to one thing or another (unless I have a looming deadline and then I don't have a choice ;) ), but I miss writing now…I think about it, I want to do it, and I try harder to make the time. I’m sure another slump will come along, but it too will pass.

Do you have any advice for other writers about not letting life get in the way of writing? 

Honestly, no. Because let’s face it…sometimes life IS going to get in the way. There really isn’t anything you can do about it. If writing is important to you, you will come back to it. It might take a few weeks or even a few years before that happens. But if it is something you truly love, eventually you’ll find your way back.

I would, however, advise not to berate yourself for time lost…don’t feel guilty about taking time out of your life to go back to writing, and don’t feel guilty for taking time from writing to deal with Real Life. You may not always be able to juggle Life and writing at the same time. But at some point, if writing is what you really want to do, you’ll ultimately find the time for both.

I Hope You Dance!

TGIF! This weekend remember that living makes for better writing. So when you get the choice to sit it out or dance...

 
Songwriters: Sanders, Mark D.; Sillers, Tia;

I hope you never lose your sense of wonder
You get your fill to eat but always keep that hunger
May you never take one single breath for granted
God forbid love ever leave you empty-handed

I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean
Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens
Promise me that you'll give faith a fighting chance
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance

I hope you dance
I hope you dance

I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance
Never settle for the path of least resistance
Living might mean taking chances but they're worth taking
Lovin' might be a mistake but it's worth making

Don't let some hell-bent heart leave you bitter
When you come close to selling out reconsider
Give the heavens above more than just a passing glance
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance

I hope you dance
(Time is a wheel in constant motion always)
I hope you dance
(Rolling us along)
I hope you dance
(Tell me who wants to look back on their years and wonder)
I hope you dance
(Where those years have gone)

I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean
Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens
Promise me that you'll give faith a fighting chance
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance

Dance
I hope you dance
(Dance)
I hope you dance
(Time is a wheel in constant motion always)
I hope you dance
(Rolling us along)
I hope you dance
(Tell me who wants to look back on their years and wonder)
I hope you dance
(Where those years have gone)

Tell me who wants to look back on their years and wonder
(Dance)
Where those years have gone
(Dance)


And then come back and bring that sense of wonder with the world to everything you write. Happy Weekend!

Getting Out of the Pool of Writing Funk

Have you ever been stuck in a pool of writing funk? You know the feeling...where the universe seems to be conspiring against you and you just get a little down in the dumps when it comes to writing?

I am currently trying to hose off the gunk of the funk as we speak. Now, first of all, I need to point out that it is not my writing that gets me funky. I love writing and most of the time, I really WANT to do it. Only sometimes the funk mires me down so much I just can't.

And sure, when I’m querying and the rejections pour in, it dampens my mood a bit. And mostly because I tend to get those “good” rejections; the ones that say “you are a great writer and this is a great story, it’s just not quite right for us right now.” It’s harder to be that close and not quite make it. My favorite was when one of my dream agents told me “it’s not you, it’s me.” Had me rolling on the ground. Just too funny/depressing. If I ever need to query again, I hope I have a project she loves, because she is just too awesome.

Anyhow, my writing funks tend to happen as a side effect to what is going on in my Real Life. Writer’s block never lasts for long. I just work on something else, or go do a load of dishes. I always get GREAT ideas when I’m doing dishes (which sucks because I HATE doing the dishes) :D But if I’ve been cooped in the house with the kids for months on end with no break, or if I’m stressed over anything else going on in my life, or just not feeling well…..my Real Life funk spills over into writing territory and becomes (dunh dunh duuuunh) WRITING FUNK.

How do I get out of it? I take a writing break. I read…a LOT. I also load up on romantic and British comedies. Two of my favorite British comedies are the shows Vicar of Dibley and Absolutely Fabulous. I love watching movies like Fools Gold and The Holiday and Pure Luck. When I get in a funk, I want to laugh.

And of course, my wonderful friends are great at pulling me out when I’m about to go under. I start sending out hoards of desperate emails and IM’s. And when things are really bad, I tend to shut down a bit, stay away from everything and everyone, and that is when the hoards of emails and IM’s start coming my way. I don’t know how I ever got through the day without my writing family. They are a true God-send.

I always reach a point where I just tell myself to snap out of it. The break has gone on long enough...time to suck it up and push through :) Time to write :)

How do you get out of the pool of writing funk?