Thread: Where do you get your nonfiction ideas?

Anyone else get them in the bathroom?

I get them from school. We're forced to right them in complete disregard for our mental well-being and our social lifestyles (or lack thereof).

Haha. I sometimes get them in the bathroom, but only when in the shower.
Generally I get them while going to sleep.

My beliefs and convictions. So far I've had no interest in writing an analysis of a part of contemporary society through non-fiction. Perhaps I shall someday. Not anytime soon.

Sometimes I notice strange things that really interest me, sometimes a single photograph can spur one of my writings; other times I just start thinking about something and decide to jot down ideas... usually it turns into something more.

i write almost exclusively non-fiction [other than poetry] and get my ideas virtually everywhere, awake and asleep...

since i'm a philosopher, and my work holds a mirror up to human behavior, much comes from the news and all forms of 'entertainment' that display this species' flaws so overtly...

plus, i travel all over the world, so the travel itself is a never-ending source of inspiration, as are the vast variety of cultures/peoples i spend time in/with...

Originally Posted by mammamaia

since i'm a philosopher, and my work holds a mirror up to human behavior, much comes from the news and all forms of 'entertainment' that display this species' flaws so overtly...

Has anyone ever discussed this idea with you? Even as a philospher you can't hold a mirror up to society, because you are holding it, and therefore the mirror has a bias. What you are really holding is a lens, and you're writing what you see through it.

Just a little more post-modernist thought to begin the day

you are entitled to your opinion, talia... i don't agree with it, however...

a lens can be either clear or magnifying... looking through a microcope or telescope lens from one side, makes things appear large or closer, from the other side will make things seem smaller... so, it's not clear what you mean there...

as for me, i'm not lwriting what i see through a lens, other than that what i see as i look around, is influenced by what i have observed/experienced/learned... that's no great revelation, as it's true of all living creatures gifted with sight/awareness...

if you took time to browse my work, you might see that it does hold up a mirror, shows the readers what they would see in it, if they dared to look... of course, it's my own opinion, as i am the writer... the same can be said of every other philosopher who's ever lived...

i don't care to argue the point, and this is not the right place to do so, in any case, since it doesn't relate to the topic, does it?... i've no idea what your idea [or anyone else's] of 'post-modernist thought' is, as i don't do jargon... as someone once said, 'it's greek to me, kid!'

hugs, maia

Originally Posted by mammamaia

as for me, i'm not lwriting what i see through a lens, other than that what i see as i look around, is influenced by what i have observed/experienced/learned... that's no great revelation, as it's true of all living creatures gifted with sight/awareness...

if you took time to browse my work, you might see that it does hold up a mirror, shows the readers what they would see in it, if they dared to look... of course, it's my own opinion, as i am the writer... the same can be said of every other philosopher who's ever lived...

You're right that we needn't argue the point, because we both seem to agree, it's just a terminology issue. You say mirror, however you admit that your perceptions are biased by your experiences. My point is that therefore you're not holding up a pure mirror, and that your writings are not a pure reflection.

And it's not my opinion alone, but in fact the opinion of every contemporary literary analyst, who have just chosen to formalise the observations you've listed here.

You appear to be ahead of your time.

Ideas can sneak up on you from anywhere. Usually, mine result from some problem my mind had been chewing on, a question that needs to be answered before I can sleep.

"You appear to be ahead of your time. "

again?... darn!... had the same problem in high school back in the dark ages of the early 50s... didn't get me any second dates, dagnabit!

Personally, I write so that I don't forget. Even the most mundane personal events can be touching in a few years (i think). Really great writers can make daily occurences a joy to read. One example is a website called www.projectdck.com. There is explicit content, but they do a great job of sharing themselves. So there you have it, that is how/why i write.

From personal experiences...then I add a sarcastic twist when writing, so people think I lead a more exciting life...

Well, I wrote a thesis on the Newlyn and Barbizon School of Art. I just loved the sea and Cornwall and realism in art... so yeah... hehehe, and Barbizon in France was like the start of that whole movement so that was that sorted out. You've got to write about something/one you love, otherwise what is the point in writing it? Just think what your interests and hobbies are. I didn't know much about arthistory really, only dabbled in it, but it was something that had alway interested me.
Actually doing all the rearch and all that was nightmare though, so whatever topic you decide on, if original research is going to be involved, you'd better find something you really LOVE...

Ok, back to bathroom... there was this paper the cornish magazin lying around in a bathroom, which an oil painting on it's front cover from the Newlyn School...

I get my non-fiction ideas from fiction . . . And the bathroom, too. =)