Where Do You Find Inspiration?

Inspiration is a marvellous thing. Few feelings are better than being struck with a brilliant new idea or two by the mythical muse. But inspiration is a fickle thing, and we writers simply can’t control it, which is why, all too often, we’re left with no new ideas at all. But while we can’t simply command inspiration to strike, we can put ourselves in the way of inspiration by going places or doing things that might spark some fresh ideas. In this post, I’d like to share a few of the things I do when I’m hunting for inspiration, but I’d also love to hear where you search for yours. Why don’t we share?

When I’m hunting for inspiration, one of the first places I look is in a book. Fiction books especially have so many amazing lines, speeches and turns of phrases. While I’d never think of plagiarising a plot, the writing often sets my mind off on a rabbit trail of curious thoughts. Non-fiction books are also good for new subject matter, especially if you’re looking for new ideas for blog posts.

In the past, I’ve always found a lot of inspiration when I’ve visited places with lots of history. Museums are amazing places for this. All those stories of lives lived long ago, and all the curious objects that tell the story of the past reek of inspiration. Old houses, historical churches and cemeteries are also places that are worth visiting in the hunt for new ideas.

When I need a quick shot of inspiration, I often have a conversation with another person. Even when we’re not talking about books, plots, or anything writing related, there’s always the potential for the conversation to spark an amazing idea. I can’t count the amount of times a plot hole has been fixed in my book thanks to a completely unrelated idea.

So these are some of the things I like to do when I’m on the hunt for inspiration. Where do you look for yours? Where do you find those elusively brilliant ideas? I’d love some new suggestions to try out.

A Quick Announcement: Next week Gossiping With Dragons will be going into hibernation for three weeks over Christmas, starting on the 15^th. Fear not! I’ll be back on the 5^th of January 2015 all rested and refreshed and ready to start the new year in style.