What inspires you to write?

[jamestl2]

Sometimes it can seem like ages figuring out what to say; others can find what they want to write in a matter of minutes. I am curious as to what fellow bloggers, article writers, or authors in general, motivates their thoughts and gets the creative juices flowing.

Do you just sit around and wait for inspiration to write? Or does it just come to you naturally?
Are there any brainstorming exercises you perform?
Any activities you undertake while thinking about what you could say?
Is there any research you perform to learn more about the topics you’re interested in?

How do you write effectively and where does the motivation of thinking about what to say, come from for you?

[Shamou]

Originally Posted by jamestl2

How do you write effectively and where does the motivation of thinking about what to say, come from for you?

I'm not a blogger and I don't consider myself a writer... but as you can see by my post count, I love to write...

Victor Hugo said, "Imagination is intelligence with an erection..." and I would say that this is where most writers get their inspiration... I love to think... I love to find solutions to problems... I love the creative aspect of writing... and, if you truly love something... you find it easier to do...
.

[Blake30]

I also love to just think about problems, and find some kind of creative answer to those problems. I write articles on different subjects, and quite honestly, I sit down and open up my Wordpad software, and just start letting the words flow. I can always go back and make changes, but just the process of letting my creative vision flow helps tons.

I'd say research is important to. You definitely have to know the subject to be able to write effectively about it.

I don't remember who said it, but I've always thought in the way that "an idea not wrote down, is often an idea lost." I find that to be very true.

[songwriter]

Lately... nothing. lol I'm focused in other things. And if you focus in other things you miss your focus on your creation field.
mmm.... or should I say in you focus in something contradictory to your creative field.
For instance, you can fall in love, focus in that new someone, and still write a lot, or maybe more. Because that's about love, creation, art...
If you focus in getting a new job, or in promoting yourself..... you find no inspiration for art. But kind of a scientist-business one. Maybe the one I have lately... I write posts instead of songs.... lol

A time for songs... A time for posts.... everytime for every purpose... lol...

I believe that a song it's more powerful than an article, a blog... etc. it just gets into your mind and it's part of you, and you don't forget a thing, and it moves you emotionally.
Now I'm a cold thinker instead of a songwriter... because of my life... tomorrow I've got a job interview for instance... and I try to find possibilities for my music to show. You can't write music like that... I've talk with another ones that live the same, if they are their own managers, they can't write... that's why managers exist.

On the other hand.... in songs you don't sit down and wait... you made them in every possible moment, like riding a car, sitting at the toilette, waiting for the bus, going to sleep or playing an instrument, but not waiting for something.
And for my ideas I post here... I don't sit down and think...what I post it's just what I've learnt.
Songs are more "what you have lived".

[Catlover]

When I'm really ready to write, it just flows. There's nothing like it. For me, I think it's because I'm slightly more introverted than extroverted, so I like that little bit of extra time that typing or writing allows for me to form my thoughts rather than expressing them simultaneous with thinking them. I imagine it must be different for those who really do their best thinking out loud. I'm also a very fast typist which enables me to keep my typing in sync with my mental flow. I like the ability to go back and edit what I've written. When I'm really in flow, I can write a lot in a short space of time.

[Kaspian]

Every morning, I sit down and write three pages of whatever comes to mind. It doesn't matter if my grammar is bad, if I misspell things, or if my handwriting is so bad that even I can't read it. What matters is that I spend three pages putting down whatever's in my head, regardless of what it is. It takes me 30-45 minutes.

This exercise makes all other writing easier, since I am in the habit of getting stuff on the page without much criticism. (I can edit later!) Topic ideas can come from anywhere—questions people ask on these forums, my own realizations and challenges as I learn to live more effectively, a sign on the side of a bus, a comment someone makes in passing, things I read, things I write, etc.

[johnths]

It's nice to learn from you who can write smoothly and easily.

For me, I have just started out trying to write more often. I find that writing gets easier when you are writing about an experience, something you feel strongly about or something that you are strong in. It's the conviction that drives the pen on... I think. My writings have so far been based on two key principles -

1. to learn from life experiences. So, I pen down my experiences (each time there is something to learn from it), reflect and then go on to write how I am learning from the experience.

2. to pen down my thoughts on importance of service excellence. So, each time, I am being served well or lousily, be it in a shop, restaurant or anywhere else, I would immediately get down to write it out, express how we could all learn from the experience.

I would be glad if you could get into my site, read it and let me know how I could improve further - Life Skills

Well, still a long way to go... but I do find that after writing for sometime, you will get the hang of it. Your thoughts flow more easily, and your pen moves more comfortably, in essence.

Well, have fun, for all who want and love to write. Frankly, I hope to progress to writing a book...

JT

[llong]

I am inspired to write when I've learned something that I'd like to share.

[DeathStorm]

Me, too llong Since I was a kid I was trying - with a mixture of autobiography/diary and experience-narration style - to write some kind of an account on how to live and tackle certain specific situations (less generalized than self-help books though. More like a log-book or a manual).

Otherwise I write as part of a contribution or evolution of what has already been written. One thing I often do is trying "hybrids".
e.g. I read a science fiction novel while I'm in an oriental country; I try to write something that combines science fiction elements with what I learned from the culture in that oriental country, and mix the different social structures, graphic, architectural and ideologic elements.
I do the same when I compose music as well.

[Jill]

I don't know if this is the best type of inspiration, but for me, I am generally inspired to write when I disagree with what others have been writing about. I like to make sure that what I consider the truth about the situation at hand is made clear.

Also, my articles or posts often get written because I've seen lots of people misunderstanding or misinterpretting a particular technique or idea, and again, I want to set the record straight.

Another easy way to write about something is to take questions from your readers. Then all you have to do is answer them. It helps if you're an expert in something, of course!

[JimOfferman]

At the risk of sounding stupid, I have no idea what inspires me to write... I just do. Most times it's tons of fun, other times it can be rather frustrating and hard. But to me, it is very much a craft, like any other... I don't need to be in any particular mood to be able to write or not (luckily).

Jim.

[Ilya]

For the most part of my life I didn't value sharing my thoughts with others. It was a simultaneously snobbish and self-depreciation attitude. I used to divide the people into two categories. Those who wouldn't understand what I'm saying, therefore I should not waste my thoughts on them. And those who are smarter then me and therefore my thoughts are obvious to them.

With age I've discovered that it is not that easy. I've discovered that people can benefit from my thinking despite their intelligence and knowledge.
Also I've discovered that I like sharing and helping others through my writing. It is very large part of my life purpose.

Writing on this forum is a great opportunity to do so. I read the questions and opinions of other people and try to answer them as honestly and seriously as I possibly can.

With this attitude there is always something I have to say.
And since I've learned to touch type very fast, writing something is not hard for me and it is a matter of minutes to write my thoughts down.

[Trudi]

I find I have three ways of writing.

One is deciding to write - Then I sit down and write on purpose. This is much more effective when I take a couple of moments to center myself and call on the spirit within.

Two is having to write - When I haven't written in awhile, I get all balled up inside. Then I have to write. This usually is a morning pages kind of thing, where it just flows out of me. Some just throwing up on the page and some creative type writing.

Three is getting in a flow. When I am writing daily, it starts to flow naturally. I still like to get centered, but it is really more of an on-going process than having to actually start writing.

[Christian223]

Steve Pavlinas blog has a lot of great advice about how to gain motivation, search the articles section too, i have changed my habits to better ones thanks to that, i highly recommend you to do that.

I can also give you my personal perspective on that, perhaps you can gain something from it.

I come from a technical background, and i started to learn to draw and paint early in this year, it has been really difficult for me to "create" (because it was something i am not used to), wich is a general term applied not only to painting but also to writting (and any kind of creation), well, the thing is that it was also very hard for me to get working on an idea, i lacked motivation to draw anything, but im slowly learning to paint/create only the things that make me happy and/or paint the things that make me laugh, or make me exited and anxious to start painting, sometimes i get and idea as if given by God, you know, im laying on my bed and suddenly i see an image in my mind, and i love it so i want to paint it, but there are times when i simply dont have any particular idea, so i just throw a shape, or a simple idea, and i go from there.

For example, the other day i didnt know what to draw, so i thougt on a random word, "horse", so i started doing a standing horse, this is the basic thing from where to work, what could this horse have to make the idea more exiting?, more funny?, something that i would like more?, something that fits my personality?, i would like to see a duck mounted in that horse, i like that , and what could this duck have to make it more funny?, a cape?, a smile?, a sword?, a helmet with horns?, a helmet with an arrow in it?, i take the last idea because for me its the funniest, and thats it, i get drawing.
I hope it helps, good luck!.

[ken nubo]

I write about an average of 300 words per day on my blog for like 5-6 months now? I just write to write, I don't care too much about making it stylish or whatever.

[Jason S]

I get asked this question a lot... enough to have dedicated a blog post to precisely this topic (posted 8/8/07).

My post covers how I refine ideas, conceptually and grammatically.

In terms of where ideas come from, frankly, the best ideas seem to come from "someplace else." It's like the ideas have a life of their own... I'm just the guy they called to help them find their way on to paper.

[pixartist]

Originally Posted by Kaspian

Every morning, I sit down and write three pages of whatever comes to mind. It doesn't matter if my grammar is bad, if I misspell things, or if my handwriting is so bad that even I can't read it. What matters is that I spend three pages putting down whatever's in my head, regardless of what it is. It takes me 30-45 minutes.

This exercise makes all other writing easier, since I am in the habit of getting stuff on the page without much criticism. (I can edit later!) Topic ideas can come from anywhere—questions people ask on these forums, my own realizations and challenges as I learn to live more effectively, a sign on the side of a bus, a comment someone makes in passing, things I read, things I write, etc.

I do the exact thing as Kaspian. As an artist, I get into these creative funks and writing my morning pages helps me to reset my compass due north. For more information on this, get the book "The Artist Way" from Julia Cameron. It teaches you how to rediscover your artistic being which is rooted all the way back to your childhood. Highly recommended!

[AtriumGuy]

Hi James-- I think inspiration from writing can come from a myriad of different areas. Personal experiences are always the most translucent, and reading books is always beneficial. I also get inspired from seeing success from others... I'm a sports fan and watching a great athlete (like tiger woods) totally inspires me to try my absolute best every moment of the day....