How Music Will Make You a Better Writer
by K.M Weiland @ Wordplay inspirationMusic is arguably the purest art form. It’s a breathing of the soul, a perfect embodiment of emotion, a story without words. For the most part, we lowly writers can barely hope to tell as complete a story in 300 pages as can be found in almost any collection of musical notes. If you’re a composer or a musician, God bless you. You’re sharing a little bit of magic in everything you do. If, on the other hand, you’re like me and your only musical accomplishment is playing the radio, your best hope of sharing some of music’s clarity and emotional depth is to tap into it as a springboard for your writing.
Think You Can’t Write? Grab a Crayon and Jot This Down
by Karri Flatla @ Snap VA inspirationwriters blockRemember the waxy, smelly goodness of Crayola crayons? Every time I inhale their aroma I hark back to my childhood in all its uninhibited creative glory. When I watch my own children put crayon to paper it makes me feel relieved. Relieved that they can just freely express whatever happens to be residing in their imaginations at that moment. What would happen if you approached writing the same way?
People Watching
by Laura @ Word Grrls ideasinspirationI don’t think you can really be a writer unless you are also an avid people watcher. I really like to sit with a coffee and watch the people around me. I don’t write stories for them, I just observe and come to my own conclusions about who they are, what they think and feel. Do they seem tired, grumpy, cheery, clever, amused, interesting, rushed or laid back? Are they well dressed or a bit too casual? Does that hair style really suit them? You can go on forever.
Get Inspired – Watch People
by Sarah Lam @ Writing Consultation inspirationwriters blockNeed to write but having writer’s block? Surprisingly, there are many ways to clear writer’s block but I am going to talk about the one and only way that truly helps to find ideas when writing.
5 Writing Topics I Don’t Blog About, and Why
by Joanna @ Confident Writing ideasinspirationI’ve been doing a bit of blog stock-taking recently, looking back at the things I write about, the posts I enjoy the most and also the writing that resonates the most with you.
I also started thinking about the things I don’t write about.
There are at least five big writing topics that I know I avoid:
Inspiration for Writers
by Danielle Buffardi @ Horrible Sanity inspirationAhhhh, my fellow writers. We all need inspiration at one time or another. Some of us more so than others. I’d like to share with you some of my methods for collecting inspiration when I need it.
Write like you’re dying
by George Angus @ Tumblemoose inspirationwriters flowWhat causes a writer to write? is it the need to create? Maybe it’s the need to put something out there that has been bottled up for too long and needs to breathe and gain a life of its own. Perhaps a writer writes because they have a talent for the craft and just wants to make a living.
Powerful tools to help your writing
by George Angus @ Tumblemoose healthinspirationJust to give you a kind of fair warning, this is a little different take on the tools in your writer’s toolbelt. Take what works for you, discard the rest. All I would ask is a thoughtful moment on each tool with an internal question to yourself: Would it hurt to give this a try?
Freewriting – a Game Your Unconscious Likes to Play
by Bill Henderson @ Write a Better Novel ideasinspirationtechniquesFreewriting is a form of conscious writing that you do for a specific period of time. It’s not trance writing, you’re very aware of what you’re writing. It’s not presentational writing–it shouldn’t be written as though it will be read by others. It can be sloppy, ugly, incomprehensible, ungrammatical, as elliptical as a grocery list: because no one will ever read it, none of that matters. It has only one rule. For the 10, 15, or 20 minutes that you’ve chosen to freewrite, DO NOT STOP.
Finding writing inspiration
by Debbie Ridpath Ohi@Will Write For Chocolate ideasinspirationWhen I was in my early teens, I used to write fan letters to my favorite authors. In retrospect, I’m surprised at how many wrote back; some of them must have received hundreds of letters like mine on a regular basis. Here’s a letter that Stephen King sent to me, for example. I asked Michael Crichton where he got his ideas…proudly thinking at the time, I’m sure, that I was asking an incredibly interesting question he had never received before. To Crichton’s credit, he graciously responded with a handwritten note in which he also thanked me for my letter. His answer to my question about where he got his ideas: They just happen.
Writing 911! 5 Tips to Breathe New Life into Your Writing
by Karen Swim @ Confident Writing ideasinspirationWhether you write as part of your profession, or as a hobby there may come a time when your writing feels flat and lifeless. You put the words on the page and they seem dead on arrival.
You are all out of ideas and procrastinating because you are bored and certain your readers will be too. For those “must do” writing tasks, you may get it done and the mechanics are all there but the magic is decidedly missing. Don’t worry, you can rescue your writing from the valley of dry bones with these 5 tips guaranteed to breathe new life into your writing.
Finding your writer’s voice
by George Angus @ Tumblemoose inspirationtipswriters flowSome writers are lucky. That’s what I’ve decided. From the very first keystrokes that they ever put to paper the words just flow and make sense. Others struggle and it seems like the words never take on a natural flow for them. Sometimes the difficulty in making words flow is so severe, it causes a terminal case of writer’s block.
Writing In The Long Run
by Hannah Gilead @ NouveauWriter inspirationmotivationThey say that completing a marathon is as much a psychological feat as it is one of physical strength and endurance. It’s obvious that a lot of training goes into preparing for a long distance run. However, the greatest challenge a runner faces is one of mind over matter. It’s about passion over discouragement and ambition over fatigue; going the long haul despite the pain and the setbacks that come from within and without.
How to Find the Time to Write
by James @ Men with Pens inspirationtime managementHow to find the time to be a freelance writer is something many people ask, especially those who would like to develop a sideline career. If you’d like to be a writer, but you also have a full-time job and a family, finding time to be a freelance writer might seem an impossible dream. Here are some ideas to find the time you need to write…
Chasing After Ideas With a Paper and Pen
by Samar Owais @ The Writing Base ideasinspirationtoolsSince my post on recording ideas (in which I practically stuffed a pen in your bags/briefcases/pockets), I decided to add something to my pen carrying habit. Instead of just being satisfied at having a pen in my bag, I decided to make sure to take the pen out every time I had a few minutes.
10 Things to To Do When You Lose Your Blogging Voice
by Joanna @ Confident Writing ideasinspirationtipsThere are times when blogging seems easy. Natural. Maybe even like breathing. Other times though when it’s hard. Awkward. Perhaps you feel like you’ve become a stranger on your own blog. Or that there’s nothing more you can add to the words that pour out into the blogosphere, day after busy posting day. Perhaps it starts to feel like you’re losing, or have lost, your blogging voice.
3 Can’t-Fail Steps For Writing Without Intimidation
by Dave Navarro @ Men with Pens inspirationmotivationIf you’ve ever held back from writing because at some level you’re feeling intimidated, you’re not alone. Thousands, if not millions of writers hear the same voice in their heads:
How Dreaming at Night Inspires Famous Writers
by Laurie Pawlik-Kienlen @ The Adventurous Writer ideasinspirationSome successful writers believe that dreaming at night is the heart and soul of good writing – while others can’t remember their dreams at all! Here’s a roundup of how dreams inspire some famous writers…and a dreamy question for you, fellow scribes.
Coming Up with Fresh Content
by James @ Men with Pens ideasinspirationOne of the largest problems freelance writers might have is creating something new and exciting to generate interest. The Internet makes it easy to find all sorts of information within minutes with just the click of a mouse. The many angles of a topic or subject might already be covered by someone else. Been there, done that. There is a unique twist to everything, and part of the challenge and fun is finding that something special for your material. Stay away from the writing about the same-old that you find anywhere – it’s safe, sure, but why do you want to be the same as everyone else? What will make your material more likely to be picked out, if it isn’t unique? To stand out from the crowd, you have to go that extra mile to find something different and interesting.
The Blogging Habit
by Joanna @ Confident Writing inspirationmotivationtipsBlogging is a powerful writing habit to develop. With time, repetition and regular practice you’ll find that: Your creative mind generates new material, day after day, week after week. New ideas for posts will pop, unbid, into your mind, asking to be written up and shared. You notice words, images, resources, ideas that you can use as quarry for posts. The feedback, responses and comments from readers help you to develop new material to share…
Breaking Writer’s Block
by James @ Men with Pens inspirationtipswriters blockIf you’re a freelance writer, you’ve certainly sat down to write at some point and couldn’t find the right words. Worse, you could have ended up staring at a blank page. Writer’s block happens and it brings creative juices to a grinding halt. Most likely, if you’re a freelance writer, you panic. This is your job, after all, and no writing means no income. What do you do? How do you break through writer’s block? Here are some ideas for breaking writer’s block…