Finding Inspiration

Feb 22

Imagery plays a vital role in the success of dystopian, fantasy, and science fiction books. Because these books are usually set in make-believe worlds or alternate worlds different from our present, worlds that live in the mind of the writer, it is essential to the success of these books for the reader to see the visuals the way the writer sees them. The world must find a way to live outside of the writer’s mind.

Visualizing my Imaginary World

When writing imagery, I often will see if I can find visual aids that support the images in my head. I find it easier to richly describe a scene/setting if I have a visual – the visual helps me see the rest of the details that my brain may have overlooked.

Ordering my Visual World

In the past, I bookmarked. A lot. Now I use Pinterest, a relatively new tool that allows you to “pin” images to a virtual pin board. By organizing my boards, I can create a collage of images for a specific WIP, a chapter, even a scene. The great thing about this is that it allows me to easily organize the images. Plus, I can view them all at once, on the same page, allowing the imagery to really flow together, creating a succinct visual of what I’m imagining.

Of course, the one flaw with Pinterest is that it is a superb procrastination tool. So you have to be careful with the amount of time you spend on it.

Do you use Pinterest to help with your writing? How do you use it? What do you think of it as a tool for writers?

I’m only just getting started on Pinterest, but if you want to see how I am using it, check out my writing inspiration board. And stay tuned for my chapter-by-chapters boards which should arrive shortly.

Aug 17

My writing has been slacking lately, mostly because I’m in the editing stage and I hate editing. It took about as long to edit my Master’s Thesis as it did to write the darn thing. Anyway, I am now debating – should I buy a Mac Air or not?

An argument for:

If I have a lighter computer, I will be able to take it places. Therefore, I can write more.

Why this argument fails:

Having increased portability does not guarantee that I would write more. In fact, it might encourage less writing. I may take my computer to the coffee shop and then sit and look at all the people. Or I might decide to just sit around the house instead of leaving. Not a good argument.

Another argument for:

It will be shiny and new and pretty. Therefore, I will want to use it.

Why this argument fails:

Yes, I will want to use it, but will I want to use it for editing?

Basically what it comes down to is this – the speed will be the same as my current mac, the screen will be smaller, and the computer will be lighter. So there’s really only one improvement, and in all honesty, that improvement will not magically make me more motivated or more creative. I shouldn’t need something new to finish my writing. But who knows, maybe when I finish editing my book, I will get a shiny new computer. After all, a little bribery never hurt anyone.

May 12

I know. Mother’s Day has come and gone. But I wanted to do a shout out regardless because for me, my mother has played an important role in my writing and my life.

All writers need support. The life of a writing can be a lonely and rough. Without support, it is easy to throw in the towel. For me, my support has always come from my mother.

I wrote my first story in first grade. It was about my dog, Bentley and I won an award for it. When I came home with my story, my mom was so proud of me that she took it to Kinko’s and had copies made so I could share it with other people (a.k.a my grandparents).

As I grew older, my mom continued to support everything I was interested in. She encouraged me to go to theater school (thankfully I decided against that) and later supported my decision to go to graduate school for archaeology. Even when I changed careers, then changed careers again, she continued to stand by me. And as I’ve fallen back into writing over the past couple of years, the support from my mom has never once dwindled. She believes that I can be one of the few writers that make it, and having her believe in me helps me to believe in myself. Knowing she will always be there, through my disappointments and successes helps me continue with my writing. While I could write without her support, knowing I have it makes it all the easier and it gives me something else to shoot for – making her proud (though I know she will always be proud regardless).

Is there someone who has been influential to your writing? Do you have a support group? Do you think writers are more successful who have a support group or a cheerleader, or do you think we are only as successful as our talent?

Jan 19

I’m off to Italy for a long weekend of relaxation and inspiration. While I will be without internet, I have gone ahead and scheduled a couple of posts, including a review of Anna and the French Kiss (check it out on Friday).

I think travel is one of the best ways to get inspired. Getting out of your box, even if it’s just to go an hour away, gives you a fresh perspective. It lets you get outside of your head. It exposes you to new perspectives, new settings, new people. All things that are extremely valuable tools for a writer.

Researching through first-hand experience

For a while now I’ve been mulling over a fantasy plot that begins in Pompeii. I can look at pictures and read accounts written by people who have been to the ruins, but nothing works better than first hand experience. Of course, I could come back with a completely different idea, or I could come home with nothing, but that’s part of the fun of doing first-hand research. And what better place to do it than in Italy?

How do you research? Do you travel to find inspiration for settings and character? Do you rely on books and the internet? Or are you able to pull everything from your imagination?

Jan 12

What makes an ideal writing space? I’ve been thinking about this for a while because, until this weekend, I have been without one.

This weekend, I finally got to create my own writing space. No more sharing a desk with the boyfriend. No more being forced to write on the sofa, or the other sofa, or in bed. Finally, after almost a year, I got my own desk (or second desk since the one we were sharing is technically my desk).

What makes the perfect writing space?

Everyone is different. This is a very personal thing. Some people write best in crowded coffee shops late at night. Others find inspiration while listening to music or starting at 5 in the morning or staring at a television. For me, I work best when I’m in a familiar, distraction free place.

But I also need a space that inspires me.

What’s in my new writer’s space?

A desk that is just the right size – I needed enough room for my computer and a notebook. If it’s too big, I’ll just cover it with distractions. Too small, and I will feel cramped and uncomfortable
A drawer – a drawer is key. I need to be able to stash stuff away. Out of sight = Out of mind
Writing books – Last year I found these amazing bookends. They’ve been hidden away in my bookshelf, but now they are out on display, cradling my writing books. Seeing my writing books while I write helps inspire me
Natural light – I need natural light or I feel like I need to go elsewhere to find it
A comfortable chair – I’m still looking for the perfect chair, but for now, a chair from the dining room table will just have to do.
I’m also thinking about a bulletin board for posting ideas, but this might become too distracting.

Other than that, I’m pretty easy going in regards to what I need. Because when it really comes down to it, all you really need is an idea, a little bit of skill, tons of patience and persistence, and something to write the story on, whether its pen and paper, a typewriter, or a computer.

What goes into your writing space? Do you have certain things you need? Do you enjoy a stark space or do you prefer a busier one? Or are you one of those lucky people that can write anywhere?

My perfect writing space

Oct 24

With NaNoWriMo 2010 fast approaching, I’ve got one question for you. Are you ready?

For first-time participants, you may be thinking, ‘but isn’t preparation against the rules?’ Having an idea, an outline, character sketches, etc. is not cheating. You are only cheating if you add words to your word count that you did not actually write during NaNoWriMo.

As a 3-time failure, I will let you in on the secret to my lack of success. I was unprepared.

If you do nothing else…

Have at least a general idea about your story. My first year, I wasted valuable time day 1 trying to figure out what in the world I was going to write. As I’m sure many of you have noticed, November 1 inconveniently falls on a Monday this year. Unless you are taking the day off of work or school (which I am considering), you will have precious few hours on day 1 to add some progress to your progress bar. All the more reason to come in with a plan.

Your NaNoWriMo Story Plan

Having a plan does not mean you need to have a fully developed, beautifully outlined plan. For many, that would take the fun out of NaNoWriMo. A plan can be as simple as knowing your general plot and the name of you MC. This year, I have decided to go with a slightly more detailed plan, but it is by no means the fully sketched out plan suggested by Karen Wiesner in her book First Draft in 30 Days (a great book, by the way).

Because everyone loves an example

To help get your juices flowing, I thought an example was in order. One way I get ideas is through pictures. A picture really can say a thousand words, or in this case, 50,000, if you know how to look at it. Look at the photo and let you imagination flow. Think of some stories you could create from it. The scene in the photo does not even need to be included in your story. You could base it off of the emotion you get from looking at the photo or what the photo makes you think of. Post your ideas and come back tomorrow for an example of a short plot sketch I created based off of this photo.

Sep 29

I recently learned about this great website/newsletter – WriteSpa, part of Winslow Eliot’s website. You can either subscribe to the newsletter or view past newsletters online. The premise is to provide writers with a weekly writing exercise. In perusing some of the past exercises, I came to one from last week: Great Dialog (part 1/3). The exercise encouraged eavesdropping to improve dialog in your writing.

So why does this excite me?

I LOVE to eavesdrop. I can’t help it. Out at dinner, on the T (subway for you non-Bostonians out there), walking down the street, in a dressing room. If there are people conversing, I’m probably eavesdropping. I think my favorite type of conversations to eavesdrop on are phone conversations. There is a sense of mystery and intrigue. You have no clue who is on the other end. It’s always fun trying to figure out what is going on, creating the other end of the conversation in my head, imagining who the mystery person is in relation to the one in front of me. Of course, first dates are also fun to eavesdrop on.

Wait, doesn’t this make me a creep?

And now we come to the crux of the matter. If eavesdropping helps me to better experience the world and see how others interact, then there’s nothing creepy about it at all. It’s research. I mean, how boring would it be if all of my characters interacted in the same way? Super boring. So, to all you writers out there, I say give into your inner creep, the voyeur inside us all, and engage in some healthy eavesdropping.

Aug 02

We all get it, some worse than others. But is it really writer’s block? In a post on The Urban Muse, Is it Writer’s Block? Or Overthinking?, the writer examines the real reason behind writer’s block. Perhaps we are not interested in the project at hand, and, like a child being told to do their homework, fall into a mental slump. Or maybe we are over-thinking our writing. Instead of just getting something down and coming back later to revise the content, we worry about getting it just right or obsess about an idea not being perfect. We are so afraid of failure that we do not give ourselves the opportunity to fail.

Sometimes the best cure for me is to take a walk or go for a run. Or if its been a while since I last read my content, I do a reread and mild edits. Usually this happens when I have decided my work is rubbish, and the reread helps me see that its not actually as bad as I thought. Copyblogger recently posted a post about stepping back and putting your work into perspective:

Let it rest (at least 24 hours)
Read as a reader – I find it easier to do this if I’m reading a hard copy. Something about a hard copy makes it feel more real.
Ask for feedback
Proofread

Check out the blog for additional details on each suggestion. It was an interesting post.

Another post with good suggestions for ways to break through writer’s block is from Time to Write. And if worst comes to worst, apparently a half hour of exercise can boost creativity, plus it keeps you healthy.

Jul 28

In my attempts to enter the minds of kids, I’ve been spending a lot of time perusing children news sources, which are surprisingly abundant. One recent find was an article in National Geographic Kids, Beelzebufo: A Giant of a Find. Talk about great inspiration. After all, what’s cooler than a frog the size of a beach ball?

In other news, a bear in New Hampshire ‘rescued’ a stuffed bear being held captive by humans. Read about it here.

Finally, a boat made out of plastic crossed the Atlantic.

You’ve gotta love the inspiration you can get from bizarre happenings in the world.

Pinterest as a tool for writers – keeping track of your inspiration

Visualizing my Imaginary World

Ordering my Visual World

To New Mac or not to New Mac

An argument for:

Why this argument fails:

Another argument for:

Why this argument fails:

Some Post-Mother’s Day Mother love

And I’m off…

Researching through first-hand experience

Creating a Writer’s Space

What makes the perfect writing space?

Are You Ready? Countdown to NaNoWriMo – Part 1

If you do nothing else…

Your NaNoWriMo Story Plan

Because everyone loves an example

Eavesdropping-the secret to great writing…or so I hear

So why does this excite me?

Wait, doesn’t this make me a creep?

Combating Writer's Block

News for Kids