You can’t force an idea can you. William Stafford once said that the creative process is like fishing. You cast a line and then sit patiently, waiting for a nibble. You have to be still and quiet because if you make too much noise the fish won’t bite. With time and experience, you learn the right moment to land that baby.
That kinda goes against what we want as writers. We want results and now. We want proof we are making progress and being productive. We want finished pieces and strive for each one to be better than the last.
So what if, we took one day…..Just one day a month as an Ideas Day? To go fishing, metaphorically rather than actual in my case 😉 No actual writing, but you’re allowed to write ideas in a note book.
If you could have one day a month as an ideas day, what would you do?
Me? I’d spend the day at an art gallery or sit on the sofa watching old black and white films all day 🙂
Ahhhhh….. Peter Jones would be so proud of me!
I don’t often suffer from writers block, I have too much whizzing round in my head, what with the daily prompts 😉
But…..if you ever find yourself staring at a blank page, try the 7 Minute Story technique by the Limebird Writers Blog. Brilliant 🙂
I spent most of yesterday editing 2 stories. I want to send one off to a competition and the other to a magazine. I also spent an hour or so on Title Ideas (post on that tomorrow).
Yesterday’s prompt was about being lonely, so I came up with a story about a woman who has everything apart from one thing…..love…..sounds like that Beatles song lol. Today’s prompt is write about sinking. Gawd, this is all very depressing isn’t it lol.
The View Outside 
I’d probably look at pictures. I have a tendency to be inspired when I look at a picture. I want an idea day! Can we make that an international thing?
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That’s exactly why I’d spend the day in an art gallery, I really must try it! 🙂
Oooooo, yeah, shall we start a Campaigne? Lol 😉
xx
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I wish my muse had the ability to save all ideas for one day a month or at least for the same time each day. She gets me in the middle of the night, in the middle of the work day, and even while watching a movie. Ack!
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Wow, I’m so jealous hon 🙂
I really have to work at my ideas, they don’t often just come to me in a flash (unless I’m actively sitting there thinking about a particular story). I guess that’s why I don’t think I’m ‘naturally’ creative 😉
Isn’t it a good thing then?
xx
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For an idea day, I would go wander around at the nature preserve with my headphones on.
Brainstorming works for the little things — just sitting down and making myself write X number of ideas is usually productive.
I can’t chase the big ideas. Big things like concept/plot — they come out of nowhere and whomp me over the head… But not as often as I’d like.
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Ooooo, that sounds lovely hon;)
Yeah, actually I haven’t done any brainstorming for ages, thanks for the reminder.
xx
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You’re right Vikki, ideas can’t be forced but they usually pop up when you’re least expecting it and have nothing to write with!
If I had an ‘ideas’ day I’d spend it looking through magazines for pictures of potential characters,
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That’s a great idea Sally, somewhere nice I hope? 😉
xx
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Can I join you when you do xx
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Of course, but you might find it a bit boring 😉
xx
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I love the idea of the 7-minute writing prompt. I wrote a blog about this very subject. Going out in nature, sitting in a busy place (train station, airport, park, mall) observing people, regular blogging and reading others’ blogs, taking a creative writing class and revisiting old short stories I didn’t finish for one reason or another — any and all of these give me ideas. Great post!
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Thanks hon, and thanks for stopping by 🙂
xx
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