by Susan Hibberd

Created on: January 13, 2008

A good writer can find inspiration in a whole range of thoughts, feelings and experiences.

When you are a writer, you take note of everything that goes on around you, and store it away until somehow something falls into place.

You might write prose or poetry, fiction or non-fiction, romance or thriller, but you are always looking for that spark that starts you off on another writing spree.

Unless you are paid to write a particular article, writers normally wait for the muse to strike. And generally, there are so many ideas swishing around in your head that you can't follow them all up at once!

Here are some things that inspire me:

PEOPLE

Watching the way people talk, walk, act and interact interests me. I like to see what they do when they are together and think about what they would do when they are alone. These observations can act as the inspiration for a character in a story, or the 'hook' for a non-fiction piece. The way people act can sometimes just re-affirm a thought I had had previously, and confirm my suspicions.

I look at people going by and think how I would describe them. What makes them unique? What makes them act the way they do? These things can be remembered or noted down in a notebook.

PLACES

Places often spark off thoughts. These thoughts can be entire in themselves, or can lead to a different place altogether. I look at a place and think about who lives there. Why does the place exist? What is its purpose? What has happened there? What stories could these walls tell? Thinking these things gives me inspiration.

OBJECTS

Sometimes looking at objects can start a train of thought. I will sometime look at things and practice describing them, which will start me off thinking about how the object has been used. What sort of room would it have been in? Who would have used it? This then gives me a scene to fit people into.

It's worth looking at even the smallest objects, like pebbles and bees wings. They are beautiful.

EXPERIENCES

Thinking about my own life experiences is sometimes the catalyst for creative writing. I think about emotions as well as places I have visited and people I have met. Writing from experience has a ring of truth about it, and if you can speak about the loss of a child, or your wedding day, a fight with your mother, or a bad day at work the truth will shine through.

TELEVISION

Television lets you into worlds you wouldn't otherwise visit. Learn about other lifestyles and cultures. Watch programs about real people and see how they talk. Listen to Oprah and Jerry Springer. The lives of the people that appear can be the start for so many stories!

MUSIC

Music makes you emotional, and that is the start of all good writing. It can also conjure up a mood, a place or a person. This makes it a very important tool.

Good writers see inspiration all around them. They might hear birdsong, or the garbage truck, they might hear a baby's laughter or a squeal of car tires, and they will think about how that could be a poem or a story or the basis for a Helium article. A truly great writer will never be short of inspiration because they have so much to say, and think that there are never have enough hours in the day.

Having said this, I do believe that finding inspiration is a skill that can be learnt. When you hear or see something that inspires you, write it down. Even if it is just a name or a brief description of an object. It could be a place name or the title of a song. Come back to these things and look through them. Some of them might bring inspiration on their own, and some might work together.

Take every experience you can and absorb it all - one day it will find its way out through your words.

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