Inspiration in Odd Places - Where Do You Go to Get Inspired?
Do you ever have that stray thought that’s absolutely brilliant...and don’t have anywhere to write it down OR your phone? So you can’t even text it to yourself?
This happens to me all the time. In fact, most of my best thinking happens when I have no opportunity to write any of it down.
Cue the voice memo (if I have my phone). Or, once I realize it’s a great thought, I try to repeat it over and over again so I don’t forget the most important part. At least if I get the main idea down, the other stuff will come back, right? Sometimes.
But sometimes once I jot down the main idea, other, even better thoughts come out of it. I can expand that thought into several. I can create characters or scenes from it. I am inspired!
This is awesome because, as writers, we aren’t always inspired. Most days we don’t just wake up and have a complete vision for what we want to write that day. Or even where we see our work going at all. In my experience, your original “vision” usually changes by the end anyway.
So when we can inspire ourselves or have a moment of clarity here and there, no matter where it is, it can fuel our writing and make it better.
Here are the top places and situations I tend to get the best thoughts, some more inconvenient than others, and what I do to incorporate those into my writing. The last action always being to write it down with as much detail as possible, as soon as possible.
The Car
If you read my blog on how I started my novel, you’ll know that the initial thought started as a brief dream, but grew into a full creative piece in the car on my way home from an event.
My old car got totaled in February, and we had to buy a new one. Sassy Sally is awesome!
This is how powerful car thinking can be! I don’t necessarily mind long drives anymore, as I went away to college and (gradually) learned to get over my fear of highway driving and cruise control. I blare my music, and it gives me time to think whatever I need or want to think.
In the instance of my novel, it turned a “What the heck was this dream about?” thought into an entire novel idea with pretty well visualized characters and somewhat of a plot. This isn’t the only time this has happened, either. Just the other day, I was thinking about ideas for my blog in the car, and like 3 separate ideas popped into my mind.
Of course, you can’t just whip out your phone and type those into a note or a text when you’re driving, so you can be left hanging. (If you do text while driving, please stop, for your safety, and those around you.)
What to do when inspiration strikes:
If you have a phone with voice command, command it! I have a Google phone, so I can just tell it “Hey Google, make a list, remind me…” Siri & Alexa work the same way. This allows you to still be hands free, but get your ideas somewhere to reference them later.
Think through the idea in as much detail as you can. The more detail you add, the better picture you create in your mind, which means you have a higher chance of remembering at least the main points.
The Shower
I typically shower in the evening, as I find it relaxing. I also have way too much hair to want to blow dry and style it every morning. The problem with this is that as I am winding down for the day, my mind does one of two things: 1) It calms down like a normal brain and begins to think about getting sleepy OR 2) It goes into hyper mode because it realizes that this is the last chance of the day to think productive thoughts.
Most nights, my mind takes option two and just goes haywire. Sometimes it’s about the blog or about my book. Sometimes it’s about my classes and how I can get my students engaged with the material. Sometimes I just think about random things that happened throughout the day.
But of all the places to have a great writing thought, the shower is probably the worst. At least for me. Think about it: you don’t have a pen and paper, or even just a pen to write on your hand (kicking it old school over here). You don’t have your phone or other electronic device to voice record or type. You’re literally just in there with your body and your soap.
What to do when inspiration strikes:
Roll your eyes dramatically and sigh. You don’t really have to do this. It’s pretty dramatic, really. I’ve come to realize that this is, in fact, part of my process every single time, though. For whatever reason, the shower seems to go much more quickly after that sigh.
Think through the idea in as much detail as you can. As in the car, if you can create more detail and think through the “why” of the idea, you have a better chance of remembering when you can write it down.
Walking the Dog
I love walking my little guy, and he loves it, too. It gives us both a chance to get out of the house and allows me a break from screen time and technology.
Charlie
Inevitably, we get around the block or away from home and I see something really cute (I see you sweet neighborhood dogs and toddlers learning to walk) or a really pretty plant and it inspires a half a thought. What if so-and-so saw this in my book?
By the end of the block I’ve got a whole little scene or conversation in my mind, and clearly, nothing to write it on. Honestly, this one is the best case scenario for me because I am close to home, and know that I will be able to write it down soon.
What to do when inspiration strikes:
Observe your surroundings closely. Is there a particular detail that struck your fancy? Try to remember that object or dog or toddler and what’s going on around it. Why did it inspire you? What was it about the moment that caught your eye?
Tell your idea to your dog. Let’s be honest: your dog is probably a good listener who won’t talk back, and s/he is a captive audience during the walk because s/he literally can’t go more than about 20 feet away from you. Now, I might suggest looking around and seeing if you will have an audience before you talk to your dog like s/he’s a human...but, I’ve been known to talk to Charlie even when there are people around. I swear he understands half of what I’m saying, or at least he makes a good show of pretending to figure it out. He likes when I talk to him (even if he doesn’t understand), and your dog probably does, too!
Trying to go to Sleep
If my mind hasn’t gotten over its thinking frenzy when I get done showering, it’s inevitable that I will keep thinking when I’m trying to go to sleep.
Usually this is because I’m just so excited about the idea that I want to keep thinking about it even though I need to stop. Or it could be because I am dreading something the next day and don’t want to go to sleep.
Either way, it’s super inconvenient because I will be doing all of my other bedtime routines and then actually laying down, and this thought will still persist and grow more details. It can be like it has a mind of its own.
What to do when inspiration strikes:
Write it down quickly with the details you have right now. As you can probably tell, I’m usually all about the details; however, sometimes enough is just enough. I always keep a notepad and pen next to the bed for exactly this reason. Write down what you have and put it away for the night. You can pick it up the next day. Sometimes you might even dream about it and get more from it!
Type it out in a note or text message on your phone. If you don’t like physically writing things down, or you have already turned off the light, you can always make a note on your phone or put your idea in a text message for later. Word to the wise: don’t type your idea out in a message to someone who immediately texts back, just in case you accidentally send it. They will be confused, and you might be too if you don’t remember what you were trying to remind yourself.
In a Meeting
Even if I am paying the most attention in a meeting, on occasion, someone will say something striking and turn my thoughts in a completely different direction. Because of my job, I am usually delegated to take notes, so when my mind wanders off, the notes are not very good.
Kind of like a keynote speaker at graduation. You have the best intentions of hearing all the takeaways, but you get 2 deep and your mind starts wandering a little bit. This could be a good or bad thing, depending on how far down that path you go.
This can be problematic for both the meeting and the idea! You can’t focus on either one, and reasonably, you should probably prioritize the meeting notes in this case.
What to do when inspiration strikes:
Jot it down on your notepad. I usually have a notepad I’m taking notes on, so I’ll write it on the side or top margin and draw a bubble around it so I can easily tell it’s separate from the notes. You can delineate however you like, but make sure it’s separate.
Type it out on a blank Microsoft Word document and send it to yourself. If you’re a typist and you take your notes on the computer, popping open a new email, typing the thought out quickly, and saving for later is a quick and easy way to keep the thought separate. You can then send it to yourself and voila!
Obviously these are some unusual, and sometimes inconvenient, places to be inspired. I know I’m not the only one, though, and there are definitely other places this happens!
Where do you find yourself getting inspired? And when you have that inspiration, how do you hold onto it?
I always love hearing about other people’s writing processes!