Short talks to inspire writing

To generate ideas, do all the obvious things, such as reading, looking, and listening, but you already know that, so try leaving the house as a spy. I’m serious. Spying is not just listening and watching. It’s espionage which places one in an entirely different frame of mind, where everything takes on the uncanny sheen necessary to creativity. Also, spying isn’t reliant upon a human subject, which is handy during a pandemic because anything can become an inkling of a story. Be suspicious about what you see. Suspicion is the cynic’s curiosity. Suspicion ramps up curiosity. While walking my dog the other day, I saw a whistle hanging from a tree branch in a very remote place. I thought, how weird, and kept on walking. On the loop back, I saw the whistle again and thought, actually, that’s suspicious, which made me engage with the whistle on a different level. I stopped and looked, really looked, and saw broken branches, lipstick on the whistle, and a little plastic tag in the mud (which I picked up.) Before I knew it, my mind, who couldn’t help herself, had linked these ‘clues’ together and come up with a story. The story itself was rubbish, I didn’t even write it down, but handling it led me to an idea which proved really helpful to what I’m currently working on. Intentional suspicion forces our attention, which creates links, and because we make associations through our knowledge base, you’ll find that those links often piece together our other work. Because –

“Ideas are like rabbits. You get a couple, learn how to handle them, and pretty soon you have a dozen.” – John Steinbeck

As always, wishing you luck and inspiration with your writing. 

Be well friends,

Gret Heffernan 

#selfpublishing #publishing #BacklashPress #writing #writinggroup #writingcollective #writingtips#WritingProcess#AmEditing#AmWriting #Creativity #Editing #WordCount #WriteChat #WriteGoal#WriteTip #WritersLife #womenwriters #WritingCommunity #TheWritersZen #StoryCrafter #StorySocial