I walk for exercise and inspiration. Exercise because it’s good for me and inspiration because I write children’s books.
As I put one foot in front of the other and breathe deeply, my mind gradually clears of all the junk that’s swimming around in there, opening my mind to new ideas. That could be a subject for my next blog, a scene, a plot twist, or an idea for my next story.
Inspiration can strike anywhere and at any time. And I’m very grateful for that. That’s why I always carry paper and pencil or a tape recorder with me.
It could be in a supermarket, on the golf course, while sitting at my computer, while watching TV, while reading a newspaper or on a walk.
Even in a dream. The storyline for my first children’s story, ANTics came to me in a dream after watching a group of ants carry a potato crisp back to their nest.
When I was a kid, we spent the school summer holidays in our caravan by the sea. liked to sit on the rocks gazing out at the water. I was an avid reader. I read all sorts of fiction, but wasn’t one for poetry. Yet more often than not, while sitting there communing with nature, listing to the waves crashing on the rocks and watching the seagulls wheel above my head, I would write poetry. I was inspired by my surroundings.
WHAT THE EXPERTS SAY
Few writers can afford to wait for inspiration to strike. Serious writers knuckle down to the business of writing, just as they would if they had a 9-to-5 job.
Stephen King hit the nail on the head when he said: "Amateurs sit and wait for inspiration, the rest of us just get up and go to work."
Leonard Bernstein said: "Inspiration is wonderful when it happens, but the writer must develop an approach for the rest of the time."
Peter De Vries sums it up: "I write when I’m inspired, and I see to it that I’m inspired at nine o’clock every morning."
You don’t have to wait for inspiration. But when it comes, inspiration can fuel your urge to write, particularly if you’re muse is taking a catnap.
If you have the time, you can read a sample of ANTics HERE
* If you are a children's author, I would love to hear where you got the
inspiration from. Share your story and I’ll feature it in a My Guest Author's Blog.
Thanks for reading and don't forget to keep reaching for the stars