PmClots

Hello everyone. I would like to start by saying that I am relatively new to the whole writing process. Though I have written in a journal for quite some time now, I can't seem to write beyond that. One of my main issues is the lack of inspiration. Is there anything that all of you out there do to help yourselves with this problem? When I have that inspiration and desire I can go on for hours writting some pretty good material, but when it is absent from my life (which is mostly the case) my writing is the complete antithesis of that. Any helpful hints out there?

Thank you for your time.

Emerson Darkness

Try considering what it is you like in life.

What everyday things capture your attention? What not so everyday things capture your attention?

Break inspirations down in catagories like that. It might help.

When you write about what you like, you are writing for yourself. It's not so much of a burden researching things then, not as much as researching homework assignments anyway.

You're writing more about things your inclined to know about. In the process of the story you can make those things SPECIAL!!! You can magnify their importance for excitment, or maybe you think they are exciting enough as they are, and you would rather shoot for more of a realistic touch.

mammamaia

no matter how dull your own life is, things to inspire a writer are all around you!

get out of yourself and start looking at everyone and everything else... read the paper every day... watch the news every day... surf the net and google for sites and blogs on subjects that interest you... go out and watch people in the mall, on the street, at church, wherever you can go on foot or by car, bus, train...

i just can't understand anyone who says they want to be a writer saying they're lacking inspiration... imo, all they are really lacking is the second part of your dual 'lack'... desire!

if you really want to write, have to write, then your only complaint would be having too much inspiration...

love and hugs, maia

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Omnisu

Inspiration is over rated. Perspiration is how you get things done.

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kenewbie

This I have never quite understood. You want to write but you cannot find the inspiration to do it? Then why do you want to write in the first place?

Anyway, I would suggest that you read something you really love. That should inspire.

k

Mike C

Best advice. If you're not in a writing mood, go read something. Don't beat yourself up about not writing - reading is part of a good writer's job.

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HarryG

The advice about reading is very helpful. Personally, I always have at least two books on the go, although a really exciting one will be read in one sitting. I read just about anything as long as it’s well written.

I also re-read one of the classics on a regular basis, but read it in an analytical manner, to learn from the experts. Most of the classics inspire me when my writing is flagging, I was going to list some of them here, but realise that it would be too long a list and we all know what they are anyway.

FrankBlissett

Ditto the advice to read when you're not in a writing mood. Or, if you're too ancy to read then catch a movie. Or take a walk, with the idea of really REALLY observing the minutia of what's going on.

A common problem (which may or may not be the case with you) is that a writer will be so focused on finding a super-nova of an idea that s/he just shuts down when it doesn't come. For a spell I wrote a flash (most) every day, few of which had a really big and original idea - one of which was more a prose-poem (and not that good at that). I just created a spreadsheet with a couple dozen people/occupations in one column and a couple dozen locations in teh other. The spreadsheet randomly gave me a subject/setting each day and I wrote a few hundred words about a moment in their lives.

A simpler way would be to use the phone book. Chose a page of the yellow pages at random and use that as your subject (if you need help with names, use the white pages too).

Or, write a "to be continued" for a commercial you see. She melted when he gave her the diamond ring - then what? We last see someone running down the beach, surfboard under arm - then what?

You mentioned that you have been keeping a journal. Maybe you could try writing fictoinal journal entries for characters. Simple stuff like "Bobby broke up with me yesterday" - how does the character feel? Depressed, relieved? "A bunch of us went to teh beach today" - what happened there? Volleyball, flirting, stepped on some broken glass? You get the idea.

Good luck.

-Frank

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X-File o'Phile

Inspiration doesn't always have to be a huge lightbulb over your head, or the gates of heaven opening above your head. Inspiration can be as small as the way a leaf dances in the autumn breeze or the way the rays of the sun break through the clouds.

A writer is an observer. A writer sees things the masses take for granted or are just blind to. A writer sees the absurdity in things and can recognize drama brewing between two people who have anger reflected in their eyes.

When I am on a quest for inspiration, I don't have to go far. I love sitting in a coffee shop and watching people. I note their mannerisms and voice inflections. I listen to their coffee orders and wonder what made them choose that particular latte or mocha and how that could reveal details about their personality. I also like making up stories about people I see. I hypothesize about their job or where they are going to go next.

If I see something that interests me, I immediately translate it into prose in my head and file it away for use later.

Inspiration is different then trying to figure out a story idea. But even then, story ideas are easy as well. What interests you? What do you find humorous? What do you find difficult? Listen to your heart, your gut. The idea for my book came from a scene I saw in my head that I thought would be fun to write about. I wrote it out and from there, the ideas flew. Ironically, the original scene idea won't find it's way into my novel.

I find that if I hit a writer's block I just write what I see. If I'm at my desk, which is cluttered at the moment. I write about my desk. If I'm at a bookstore, I write about the people I see. Try it, it works!

imrhati

Chris Miller told em this once "Finding inspiration is like catching a cat; you need to sit around and relax while it finds its way to you."

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