What inspires you to write?

[jasperd]

I am inspired by paintings and overcast days but most of the time I get my ideas while I am in the shower.

[Azraelsbane]

The voices in my head get very upset when I stop writing. ;)

A lot of my ideas are from dreams, but the series I'm working on at the moment has been my pet project since practically before I had the ability to write my name. Some stories are just yours.

[DeadlyAccurate]

The thought that if I don't, I'm going to have to go get an office job. And while I'm probably going to have to do that eventually anyway, I'm trying to keep from doing so as long as possible.

[Rhea L]

Music. That is, a lot of things do the trick, but music is the one that never fails me.

Other people, too. To some extent, anyway.

[Just Mike]

Things picked up in conversation. Pacing around. Sitting in a dimly lit room and asking myself "what if." Randomly inputting words into a search engine and thinking seriously about what shows up.

[Tracy]

The bank manager.

[CoriSCapnSkip]

Watching TV and imagining characters and the adventures I'd like to see them have.

[Zoombie]

Better writers.

[Manderley]

The knowledge that I will live my dream if I do.

[Enraptured]

Music. That is, a lot of things do the trick, but music is the one that never fails me.

Music is a big one for me too. I can't count how many times I've had an important plot piece fall into place because of a song. It helps me solidify ideas; so does jumping on a trampoline, or swinging on a swing. But what puts the ideas in my head in the first place? That's a bit harder to answer.

Sometimes an idea just pops into my head, and I have no idea where it came from. Sometimes I hear a fragment of dialogue out of nowhere. My current novel was inspired by a dream. The one before that was partially inspired by mythology, though by the time it was done the mythology aspect was all but unrecognizable. And sometimes I think of story ideas by just mulling over things that fascinate me.

[Jamesaritchie]

Funny how no one ever asks "What inspires you to play computer games," or, "What inspires you to have sex," or "What inspires you to eat breakfast?"

I'm inspired to write because writing is what I most want to do with my time.

[Ziljon]

light and dark green leaves
dappled sunlight
chipmunks, rabbits, and deer.

[EriRae]

Funny how no one ever asks "What inspires you to play computer games," or, "What inspires you to have sex," or "What inspires you to eat breakfast?"

I'm inspired to write because writing is what I most want to do with my time.


"What inspires you to play computer games:" It has to be a good computer game, like God of War or Star Wars Battlefront. No silly sh*t or bad graphics.

"What inspires you to have sex:" He has to want ME, and be my husband...lol...though I'd take Johnny Depp or my avatar (yeah, I know he's dead and wouldn't want me anyway...so what).

"What inspires you to eat breakfast:" Absolutely nothing. Not for the world. I hate breakfast food and refuse to eat it. Besides, I've always heard you shouldn't eat before you go to bed.

JAR, sometimes your condescending demeanor makes me laugh out loud. If you don't like the question, why bother to answer it?

What inspires me to write: beauty in evil things, and evil in beautiful things. I have something to say, dammit, and I'm gonna get it out there if it kills me. Or JAR does...

[san_remo_ave]

Everything and nothing. Mostly my desire to write.

[Jamesaritchie]

"What inspires you to play computer games:" It has to be a good computer game, like God of War or Star Wars Battlefront. No silly sh*t or bad graphics.

"What inspires you to have sex:" He has to want ME, and be my husband...lol...though I'd take Johnny Depp or my avatar (yeah, I know he's dead and wouldn't want me anyway...so what).

"What inspires you to eat breakfast:" Absolutely nothing. Not for the world. I hate breakfast food and refuse to eat it. Besides, I've always heard you shouldn't eat before you go to bed.

JAR, sometimes your condescending demeanor makes me laugh out loud. If you don't like the question, why bother to answer it?

What inspires me to write: beauty in evil things, and evil in beautiful things. I have something to say, dammit, and I'm gonna get it out there if it kills me. Or JAR does...

No matter when you first eat, it's still breakfast. You know, "break your fast." Time of day has nothing to do with it. Either you eventually eat breakfast, or you die of starvation.

I did like the question, and I simply answered it honestly. If you enjoy doing something, you do it without the need for inspiration. If you don't enjoy doing it, you're a damned fool to look around for reasons to do it.

[EriRae]

I did like the question, and I simply answered it honestly.

Ah, yes, but it's the WAY you answered it that made me laugh ;)

[TheKnightWhoSaidNi]

La musica classica. Beethoven, choral stuff by Eric Whitacre, and movie soundtracks. When writing for an extended period of time I always have my music on in Windows Media Player.

[JasonChirevas]

Ah, yes, but it's the WAY you answered it that made me laugh ;)

Whereas I thought JAR's response was something concrete and useful for the OP as opposed to gossamer.

You live in the world you want to live in. If you want inspiration to write, sit down and write. Do that more than you do other things and you're a writer.

There is no muse.

-Jason

[JohnDavidPaxton]

The gun I place to my temple.

Metaphorically.

And if that doesn't work, literally.

[Stuart Clark]

Other creative people. I used to belong to a writers group and after a night of sitting around listening to other people read their work I found I was bristling with ideas and itching to get back to a computer. I'd often be up until 2 or 3 the next morning.

These days, if I'm stuck in a rut, I'll often go to an author event at a local bookstore just to hear someone talk about their work. That normally gives me a kick in the backside.

[Sassee]

I get little inspirations from everything that goes on in my life. Conversations, people acting weird/silly, dreams, songs, movies, other books, forum topics/responses... I take random snippets of any or all of those and use them for material in my WIP.

[maxmordon]

Analizing feelings of real or fictional situations of life; also music and of course history and... desperation, also desperation...

[mscelina]

the insistent emails I get from my editor. Oh, and bills. Those too.

[Scothoser]

Satire, I would have to say. My first story I ever really wrote was a slam against "Milo and Otis", where the heroes died at the end. It was such a hit with the other students that I was chagrined. ^_^

Even this morning, I saw a goose followed by a duck, which was followed by a chicken, which was followed by a turkey. What kind of story was behind that? The more I think about it, the more I can see a brilliant children's book.

For me, it all comes down to the question, "Why?" Once that question is asked, stories start to form.

[Shady Lane]

Bad movies.

[Varthikes]

Star Trek, Babylon 5, Anne McCaffrey's works, and New Age music.

[Esopha]

White space on my Word document.

[RRK]

Family and friends saying, oh so casually, "So how's that novel coming?"

[Dhewco]

If I drank, I'd say beer. Does Vicodin count?

LOL, I'm inspired by many things . . . songs (I once had a wip based around the Willie Nelson song Seven Spanish Angels, set in a 20th century independent Texas), tragedies in my personal life (I had two projects based on a guy trying to live his life over again . . . one by Heaven-powered time travel and the other by raising his clone.), and I was inspired via a writing workshop project.


David

[celeber]

Caffeine and music!
That is part of it, the rest lies with the voices in my head muttering.

[ZannaPerry]

Most of my ideas come to me right before I go to sleep. Figures! But when I listen to music, or watch a movie.

[HourglassMemory]

What makes me want to write is usually music, classical or movie soundtracks.....images...reading other books, watching movies.
Waht gives me ideas....anything, it jsut depends on how my mind then uses it and gives ita dose of imagination and creativity.

what inspired me to write in the first place? ever ever?
Harry potter.
They were the first books I read without pictures.

[Shadow_Ferret]

Writing inspires me to write. The more I write, the more inspired I get.

It's sort of like rolling a snowball downhill.

[Wolvel]

What inspires me is when a new idea runs up inside my head and slaps my brain until I pay it some attention.