I woke up this morning after a restless night full of nightmares. I don't know what set it off, but I'm not lying when I say I spent the entire night fighting off murderers, tornadoes and even a bear. I don't mind though. As unpleasant as they may be, I find that nightmares offer great inspiration for stories.
Sometimes, when you feel the urge to write something a little darker, or a scene in which a character is truly frightened, it helps to know what that feels like. I'd prefer not to be chased by a murderer or attempt to escape a city full of tornadoes in real life, so if I want to write about it and realistically capture what it would feel like, I lean on my dreams.
It's the same reason I can't watch zombie movies too often. I love them, but whenever I watch them I have zombie nightmares all night. And I have to say, watching them on the screen is a lot less scary than actually being chased by them. So I try to limit my exposure. But having those nightmares makes it possible for me to write a piece of zombie fiction, if I so choose. I already know exactly how it feels to be chased by hoards of zombies. I know the feeling of despair when you realize you're trapped in a corner. And yet, as awful as that night's sleep was, I'm perfectly safe and able to write from a new perspective.
Where else do you find your inspiration? How do you make your own writing realistic? Have you ever found it in an unexpected place?
Showing posts with label inspiration. Show all posts
Showing posts with label inspiration. Show all posts
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Thursday, June 7, 2012
Be Inspired Blog Hop
I've been tagged by Ruth Long of Bullish Ink in the Vicki Orians Be Inspired Blog Hop! Basically, it's all about writers talking about what inspires them and divulging a few tasty details about their works in progress.
The rules are as follows: 1) Answer the following ten questions about your work in progress and 2) Tag 5 other writers and link to their blogs so that we can all read their answers as well. Sounds simple enough, yes? Let's begin!
1) What is the title of your book? PROMISES TO KEEP
2) Where did the idea for the book come from? It actually came from a Your Story prompt in Writers Digest. The prompt was to write a 750 word story where you visit your childhood home and find that it's been condemned. I don't know why, but that small prompt triggered this story in a big way. It was like a lightning bolt. I wrote the 750 word story and submitted it, but I always knew there was so much more to tell. It didn't win, but continued to percolate under the surface for several months until I saw the link for Camp NaNoWriMo. I'd done it in November and loved it, what a perfect excuse to tell that story!
3) What genre would your book fall under? It's hard to label it at this point, but I'm going to say mainstream fiction.
4) Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition? This is a really hard question because I don't really think about those things and I'm terrible with movie star names! I think I'd want to go with slightly more undiscovered people. I find the big names often take away from the story. You end up looking at the actor instead of the character they're playing. I know, I know, weak answer - but what can I say? You stumped me!
5) What is the one sentence synopsis of your book? A teenage girl is brought back from the afterlife to deal with a promise she made before her death.
6) Is your book published or represented? No.
7) How long did it take you to write? Don't know, still writing it! I decided to give it a go for the June Camp NaNoWriMo. I'm hoping to finish the rough (ROUGH) draft by the end of 'Camp' and then the editing begins!
8) What other books within your genre would you compare it to? That's a tough one! It's not as funny as TWENTIES GIRL by Sophie Kinsella, but the subject matter is similar.
9) Which authors inspired you to write this book? Just one. Alice Kuipers. As always I name my Wizard of Oz when it comes to my inspiration. She was the first person in the writing world to take me seriously, and she's always held me to a high standard. She's made me hold myself to a higher standard and I'll always appreciate that.
10) Tell us anything else that might pique our interest in your book. It's the story of a family that has lost their way and the eternal hope that they can bring it around again. The truth is there, sometimes it's just hidden in a clever place.
Now for the final piece of the puzzle. Here are my five tags:
1) Lindsey Fairleigh
2) Claudine Jaboro
3) Veronica Roth
4) Sopphey Vance
5) Rose Woods
The rules are as follows: 1) Answer the following ten questions about your work in progress and 2) Tag 5 other writers and link to their blogs so that we can all read their answers as well. Sounds simple enough, yes? Let's begin!
1) What is the title of your book? PROMISES TO KEEP
2) Where did the idea for the book come from? It actually came from a Your Story prompt in Writers Digest. The prompt was to write a 750 word story where you visit your childhood home and find that it's been condemned. I don't know why, but that small prompt triggered this story in a big way. It was like a lightning bolt. I wrote the 750 word story and submitted it, but I always knew there was so much more to tell. It didn't win, but continued to percolate under the surface for several months until I saw the link for Camp NaNoWriMo. I'd done it in November and loved it, what a perfect excuse to tell that story!
3) What genre would your book fall under? It's hard to label it at this point, but I'm going to say mainstream fiction.
4) Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition? This is a really hard question because I don't really think about those things and I'm terrible with movie star names! I think I'd want to go with slightly more undiscovered people. I find the big names often take away from the story. You end up looking at the actor instead of the character they're playing. I know, I know, weak answer - but what can I say? You stumped me!
5) What is the one sentence synopsis of your book? A teenage girl is brought back from the afterlife to deal with a promise she made before her death.
6) Is your book published or represented? No.
7) How long did it take you to write? Don't know, still writing it! I decided to give it a go for the June Camp NaNoWriMo. I'm hoping to finish the rough (ROUGH) draft by the end of 'Camp' and then the editing begins!
8) What other books within your genre would you compare it to? That's a tough one! It's not as funny as TWENTIES GIRL by Sophie Kinsella, but the subject matter is similar.
9) Which authors inspired you to write this book? Just one. Alice Kuipers. As always I name my Wizard of Oz when it comes to my inspiration. She was the first person in the writing world to take me seriously, and she's always held me to a high standard. She's made me hold myself to a higher standard and I'll always appreciate that.
10) Tell us anything else that might pique our interest in your book. It's the story of a family that has lost their way and the eternal hope that they can bring it around again. The truth is there, sometimes it's just hidden in a clever place.
Now for the final piece of the puzzle. Here are my five tags:
1) Lindsey Fairleigh
2) Claudine Jaboro
3) Veronica Roth
4) Sopphey Vance
5) Rose Woods
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