How I Get Inspired

Getting inspired can be tough, how do the professionals stay inspired? I’ll share how I stay inspired.

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If you’re writing or doing anything creative you’re probably wondering how the professionals get inspired to write. Sad to say, we really don’t. It’s true. If I know I need content for The Cameron Journal, I can’t really wait around for inspiration to strike. I have to post something and I often must sit down and produce something. If you wait around for inspiration to strike, you won’t get much done. Like many other things, the key is to sit down and do it. Don’t feel bad, even I am bad at it sometimes. I’ve spent more than one writing session distracted by anything and everything but actually doing writing. I’ve even cleaned the house to avoid sitting with a manuscript or a new blog post. Point of fact, I took out the trash and cleaned up the kitchen to avoid writing this very blog post! However, getting inspired often takes more than just showing up or avoiding house work.

Show up

The most important thing you can do when looking for inspiration is to make time for inspiration to find you. The old adage in film goes that 90% of making a movie is showing up, holding a clipboard, and looking very serious. The same thing is also true of writing. Inspiration is never going to hit if you don’t show up for yourself. However, many people will give you the advice that you should block out time to write or make a specific time to write. This is often not an option for everyone. So it is important to keep tools handy so you can write wherever the mood strikes. This is where the smart phone can be incredibly useful. You can use apps like Evernote to the notes app that comes with your phone to write wherever you happen to be located. For example, if your kids are busy at practice and you’re stuck in the car, that can be a good time to write. I often get great ideas while doing incredibly mundane tasks. I take out my phone, note those ideas down for later. Sometimes I end up writing a whole scene or solving a problem. The goal is to stay in a place where your work is on your mind. When that happens, inspiration will be there to greet you.

Get your thoughts straight

Everyone has their own way to organize their thoughts. Whatever method you use, make sure that your thoughts are straight. It can be easy to get lost in a bunch of ideas but nothing that ties them together. If you get caught in this trap, the best way is to start writing down everything that comes to mind. This can be ideas for your manuscript or private thoughts. There are points in my work when I have to do some journaling about my own life so that the fiction can break through.

Notating down your ideas gives you the chance to organize them. I use the outlining process to give me a free, but structured, space to write down ideas and organize them. Many of my projects will include an “ideas” note where I can just put down different ideas. Those ideas, if I think they can work, then get moved to the outline where they can be included in the draft. It’s very important for me to have all the pieces straight in my mind so I know how the book is going to go. For me, it saves time of drafting and re-drafting. I do the mess with concepts and ideas and when I have a solid pathway forward, only then do I write. Writing is very hard and I want my hard work and precious time to pay off.

I am often bothered with matters of life that prevents me from writing. I will admit to being one of those temperamental people who can’t write if my world has gone wrong. This might seem like the opposite of what I wrote above but the thoughts that powers creativity can often be blocked by stress. I also have trouble writing when I am too tired. I have to manage my energy levels very carefully so that I have the energy to write. I am blessed that when it comes to blog posts and commentary I can write that fairly well in almost any conditions. Fiction is like a rose. The conditions have to be somewhat perfect. Louis L’Amour said he could write in the middle of a highway. I am not that way. I do enjoy writing around people. I don’t want them bothering me but under headphones in a busy mall can be a very inspiring space. I like to watch and make up stories about people based on their body language and what I imagine they are saying. Otherwise, I like to write with a little bit of music. Lyrics can sometimes be problematic based on my mood.

Experiences

The best way to get inspired to experience other things. Sometimes, if you just can’t write, that is a good time to watch a solid TV show with good storytelling, a good movie or a good book. Often, experiencing the art of others will help you create some of your own. I did not have much TV or movies growing up so I am very inspired by various forms of story telling. I grew up on a great collection of books both new and modern so when I had the chance to dive into the world of TV and Movies I consumed them as fast as I could. Some have even become favorites. One need not watch or read with a critical eye in order to be inspired. Humans understand storytelling at a visceral level. If you can’t get inspired then grab a book or get a movie going, it can give you just the inspiration you need. Once you feel the muse, remember tip number one: show up.

Staying Inspired

Getting and staying inspired is no easy thing. The best way to get and stay inspired is to make sure that you’re showing up to your muse, make sure that you can record and work with ideas and keep giving yourself experiences. Inspiration is less of a lightning strike and more of a river. It’s important to stay in the flow of it all.