The Writer's Block & Inspiration Thread

[Shinigami07]

This writer has been inspiring me lately.
Don't know who he/she is - just interesting.
Enjoy your nights!

http://foxstone.wordpress.com/

[Watch Rider]

I use music for my inspiration. There's all kinds of types you can use. But for action sequences I use the punchy ones like this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XstrpkqT6dw

More easy-going stuff:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=biuoGH6TEAw

The important thing for me is not to have lyrics in the music, for some reason (with me anyway) it distracts me too much...

[Arrogant-Arse]

I found this extremely helpful ( even if it is an old thread ). I've tried writing so many stories, but I'm never able to finish because I get writers block. I appreciate the thread everyone who's added tips. c:

[Eeriesenna Sunfall]

Weather inspires me alot and so does music. Also, people-watching. Some of the best inspiration for fantasy appears everyday in real life.

[Connor the Scribe]

I wouldn't say I have writer's block; I'm just a perfectionist with a lack of motivation. I've been stuck writing one novel since early high school, deleted countless bytes of usable material, tossed millions of pieces of copy paper for my typewriter in File 13 (read: trash can)... In general, I think that I am too hard on myself. Now that I am in college and out of that hell that was high school, I seem to be happier.

[Ashlasaurus]

Bless this topic.

[I_Write_Ivre]

I've kinda lost inspiration as I was so excited to publish for my 30th birthday, but since the only reliable way to get final edits done was through my parents (either volunteer or pay me for work as the economy is in the toilet), they flaked for three months on both and now I've kinda lost all interest in writing that was my passion for 18 years.

I'm just depressed and not feeling any motivation to write.

[Jasper Storms]

-snickers- I actually wrote a blog post about how to deal with a writer's block. biggrin

I'll quote the relevant part of the post, for the full thing just click on that link. I hope it's useful to some of you here. smile

Quote:

Those who enjoy writing any sort of literature, from fiction to nonfiction, probably got stuck at one time or another. There are a lot of useful tips already available online, but the writer’s block that bugged me for eight months couldn’t be beaten into submission until I thought of a trick that turned out to be very easy, yet also extremely effective.

The problem I was dealing with, was that I wanted to write a chapter for a story that had to fit between two existing chapters, however, I couldn’t figure out what I should put in there. I had a vague idea and I knew that I wanted to add roughly three pages to my novel, but for some reason I just couldn’t get it done.

I once read something along the lines of, “There is nothing more inspiring than a blank page, since your story can then go in any direction. It allows you complete freedom since it doesn’t need to conform to what was already written.” and that line got me thinking.

It made sense that a blank page would help you focus on that what you really want to write, so I created a new document and scribbled down four lines that contained a rough idea of what I wanted to write about. It turned out that the blank page indeed allowed the creative juices to flow free again, and that in turn caused me not to write the three pages I had intended, but a full six pages that had some really lovely dialogues as well!

In the end it turned out that subconsciously I kept what was previously written in mind as well, and after I was done with my additional chapter I could simply copy/ paste it in my novel. I still had to make some minimal changes at the start and the end, but after that I was pretty much done already. A writer’s block of eight months was cleared in half a day of writing and I had a lot of fun while doing it.

Since then I’ve dubbed this method the ‘Blank page method’ and I now deploy it every time I get stuck in a story.

It’s only a small tip, but next time you find yourself staring at your screen, not knowing what to write; you might want to remember this tip, and do what I did; create a new document and forget about what you already wrote for a minute. I found that there really is nothing more inspiring than a blank page!

[I_Write_Ivre]

It seems like no one's posted this yet.

[Klaark]

I_Write_Ivre

It seems like no one's posted this yet.

Ah, you beat me to it!

[Drolnomed]

I'd like to share a story I remember from when I was very young, because it has been a great source of inspiration to me lately. Hopefully some of you will benefit from this intriguing tale.

If you enjoy a thought provoking notion, read the following:

Long ago in China there three brothers who had devoted their lives to following the teachings of a great wise man. He raised the three brothers and did all he could to educate them in the ways of the world and prepare them for life. The brothers' personalities couldn't have been more different. The oldest was boisterous, loud, and arrogant. The middle brother was book-smart and a little too proud of it. The youngest brother was quiet and collected, and was always the brunt of his older siblings' torments. One day, the wise man gathered the boys and told them that he would soon step down from his position and appoint one of them, they would have but to pass a simple test. The wise man then led the brothers three outside where he had constructed 3 small huts in a clearing, each baring one of the three brothers' names. He told the boys, "You must take one gold coin from me, go to town, and bring something back here that will fill your hut completely." With that, he handed a gold coin to the oldest brother, who made haste to leave. Upon returning, the oldest brother had brought with him three men, each pulling a cart full of straw. He took the straw and began packing it into his hut, but to no avail. The straw barely filled the room inside enough to reach the tops of the windows when he was done. "I am afraid you have failed me," said the wise man. "Go now and never return." he finished. The oldest brother slumped on the ground in defeat as the wise man handed a gold coin to the middle brother. The middle brother did as the first, and left for town. Upon returning, the middle brother had brought with him three men, each pulling a cart full of sand. Being educated and clever, the middle brother had devised a plan consisting of pouring the sand into the house until it was full. He took a ladder and climbed up to the roof of the hut and one by one, he poured sand through a hole he had made in the roof. To his dismay, the hut had no door, or solid windows, so the sand simply flowed out of the doorway and settled on the ground outside. No matter how he tried, he could not fill the hut with sand. "You, too have failed to pass this test. Go now and never return." He said, as the middle brother collapsed finally giving up on his task. The wise man turned to the youngest brother and handed him his coin. He did just as his brothers before him and left for town. When the youngest brother had returned, he was alone. The only thing he brought back was a small box. The youngest brother walked into his hut and crouched on the floor, setting the box down in front of him. He opened it and produced a candle in one hand, and a match with the other. He struck the match, lit the candle and completely filled the room with light.





I hope you enjoyed this interesting story. If anyone knows the name of it, please tell me, because I was told this story by a monastery monk when I was little kid, and I heard it again once after that but I don't recall the name. Thanks and goodbye!