| We writers, write. It’s what we do. Sometimes, we have to sit at our computers and notepads and push ourselves to write something, other times, we are guided by our inspiration. Inspiration can strike at any time, in any form, so it’s always handy to have something nearby to write on. For me, it’s either my phone’s notepad or my computer. I used to write in a physical notepad, but I find my brain works much faster than my hands can cope with and makes my handwriting illegible – even to me. So, typing is my preferred choice. I can be sitting on a bus, having a shower – or the worst one – moments away from falling to sleep and some grand idea will start forming in my head that I just have to note down. This happened to me today. I thought up a conversation between two people. It doesn’t fit into any WIP I’m currently writing, but I feel it’s good enough to be included in something in the future. I also (on a daily basis) will conjure up titles and brief synopses to books. I have so many now that there’s no way I have enough life-time left to write them all, but I’ve found I can incorporate those ideas into other projects. I have been victim to not knowing what to focus on. I can be 30,000 words into a new book, when inspiration pushes me to start something else. I currently have five of these from this year alone. To deal with this, I now plot them all out over a few pages and see which one I want to focus on first. Then, it’s just a case of being strict with myself to stay on one project at a time. I don’t stifle my creativity though. When inspiration strikes, I make a note of it (so it’s not forgotten) and then go back to my current WIP. It’s not easy to do, but for me, it’s the only way I’d ever finish a book. |
When Inspiration Strikes
