My phone’s notes app is full of notes (naturally) boasting titles along the lines of “Story Idea,” “possible blog posts,” or “Story/character ideas” and such. Some of the notes’ contents are as simple as a couple of words forming the first threads of a plot, a blog topic, a meet-cute idea, or a name or traits I like for a character. Others are fleshed out with a paragraph or two, perhaps along with a mention of the inspiration behind the idea.
Because I am committed to writing at least four or five days each week, I’m constantly on the lookout for inspiration. The old adage “Write what you know” is all well and good unless you don’t know much. I used to struggle with inspiration because I determined I lived a pretty basic life. I am a wife and write-from-home mom, and I do all the things that entails: manage our family calendar that largely revolves around my husband’s business travel and our two student-athlete teenagers’ schedules; meal plan, shop, prep, cook, and clean up (which sucks the majority of my time – see note above about teenagers); chauffeuring our non-driving Little Bit everywhere; trying to keep our home tidy-ish; laundry (So. Much. Laundry.). You get the idea.
In addition to my demanding tasks as COO of DeBow Co., I also read and write, participate in church activities, and attempt to maintain a social life that doesn’t completely depend on our kids. That’s basically my life in a nutshell. So, on the surface, I’m boring. But then it occurred to me I don’t personally need to live an adventurous life to be inspired or discover good ideas. I can find inspiration in the everyday of life all around me.
A mentor mom I sat at the feet of as a new mama once talked about teaching our kids to be “there you are” people. I love this concept so much. Instead of being self-focused, a “here I am” person, look at others and see how we can love, serve, and support them. I made efforts to embrace the idea for myself and then teach it to our children. What I couldn’t have realized at the time is how much that would help me in my future writing journey. I may live a relatively routine existence, but other people don’t. When I am in “there you are” mode I get to enjoy hearing others talk about their lives and adventures, and often, inspiration strikes.
Just last week I walked with a mom friend while our daughters practiced soccer. Our conversation was delightful, and getting to know her a little better gave me a couple of story ideas to add in my notes app. I overheard a conversation at the Super Bowl party I just attended between a realtor and a high school senior interested in the profession, sparking another contribution to my ever-growing inspiration list. And these examples are both just from the past week. When I attempt to see – truly SEE – people, I get glimpses of human nature, and creativity abounds.
While I’m running errands and notice interesting people, I ask myself, “what is their story?” I try to imagine what a peek behind the curtain of their lives might look like. I wonder why they are the way they are or what drives their decision making. Just by going about my day with a “there you are” approach, my eyes are opened to a myriad of ideas.
Music can be another fantastic source of inspiration. So much music, particularly of the country genre, is rich with story. Songs like “Fancy” (Reba McEntire), “The Thunder Rolls” (Garth Brooks), “Independence Day” (Martina McBride), and “Two Black Cadillacs” (Carrie Underwood) paint amazing tales you can practically see unfolding in your mind as you listen. Those compelling stories beg creatives to dream up their own ideas of similar themes.
Another source of everyday inspiration is quality television. I’ve written about this before, but there are excellent TV shows that demonstrate how outstanding writing brings characters and stories to life. Just this week, my son and I finished The Walking Dead. I am not a fan of the horror genre, but my son convinced me to give it a try. From the first episode, zombies and gore aside, I was completely hooked. The epic saga of the fall of civilization and the impact it had on the human condition experienced by various characters had me riveted.
Over the eleven seasons we watched, so many characters traversed compelling arcs, prompting many tears over these fictional people. And as we sat glued to the final episode, I was blown away by the handling of each character’s growth or devolvement throughout the series. The deep, complex characters inspire me to think bigger and more emotionally about the characters I wish to create myself.
“Reading is everything. Reading makes me feel like I’ve accomplished something, learned something, become a better person. Reading makes me smarter. Reading gives me something to talk about later on. Reading is the unbelievably healthy way my attention deficit disorder medicates itself. Reading is escape, and the opposite of escape; it’s a way to make contact with reality after a day of making things up, and it’s a way of making contact with someone else’s imagination after a day that’s all too real. Reading is grist. Reading is bliss.” — Nora Ephron
And naturally, reading is another spectacular source of endless inspiration. I love what Nora Ephron said about reading and agree wholeheartedly that reading is everything. Reading – whether it be fiction, articles, memoirs, blogs, etc. – will always stoke the fires of creativity and spark inspiration. Being sucked into a story, caring about robust characters, soaking up rich descriptions, enjoying the writing style of the author – all of it breeds imagination. Reading is my favorite source of inspiration.
Where do you find inspiration in everyday life? How do you keep track of your ideas? What do you do when you feel your creativity is lacking?