So, today I wanted to talk about inspiration and where to find it.
I'm a great believer that some people just have a "writer's intuition." This is something I believe inspires me when it comes to creating stories. A lot of ideas just come to me with no clear rhyme or reason for why.
Take Denver Falls (DF), I've been working on a num her of stories for YEARS and I was yet to release any. Yet, DF just came to me one day (in the shower in fact!). I had a sudden flash of a girl in a forest and a young man approaching and asking her if she was lost. From there the story grew.
I'd already created the town of Denver Falls for my short story, The Willow (mybook.to/TheWillow), which in turn came from inspiration from film and music.
So, the film in question was Jennifer's Body (shout out to the cheesy teen horror fans). Now, if you've seen the movie you're probably thinking 'How the heck is The Willow similar?' Well, it's not. But, the song used in the movie, Through The Trees by Low Shoulder.
Listen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=851ksBW0ZD0
Music tends to inspire a lot of my writing. Though the initial ideas tend to come from the every day, and my weird, messed up mind. Most of the ideas are then grown and expanded with the help of music. It's not so much the song itself, the composition or the lyrics, it's more how the song makes me feel... What it ignites inside of me.
Then I see them, my characters, playing out in my head like a music video. I take that image and I paint it onto the page. And if I ever get a little lost and lose my way, I add the song to my playlist (one for each book, some for individual characters) and listen to it to keep me inspired.
What are some of your favourite sources of inspirations?
Let me know.