Inspiration

One of the common questions that interviewers and fans often ask published authors is, “Where did you get the idea?”

Where indeed…  Our favorite fiction writers produce stories that appear before our eyes like magic.  They weave a tapestry of illusion that touches our senses and stirs the cauldron of shared emotion.

I believe that true inspiration comes after you feed your brain with facts – whether they be images, experience, text, music, whatever.  Then you let things percolate and smolder – you jot down fleeting thoughts, bits of dreams, a swell of emotion – all while you get down to the nitty gritty of regular, persistent time with your butt in the chair writing.  This is what works for me.

Although in the spirit of thee olde practice what ye preach, I’m striving to get better disciplined at both – jotting down those snippets of inspiration as they occur (all too often I don’t, then try to remember later, only to discover the idea has evaporated into thin air) and getting into the routine of consistent writing time (there’s always so many other things to do…<sigh>).

So I am dedicating this page to “Things That Inspire Me”.  Perhaps you will find something here that inspires you as well.

• Herbal anything – medicinal and culinary uses, flowers, crafts, gardens, folklore, history, and magic.
• Witches!  In every form.
• Nature – particularly ancient trees, water, and storms.
• Birds and other creatures visiting my yard.
• Spirituality
• Paranormal
• And…well, lot’s more!

Stay tuned.  I’ll make these types of blog-posts too.