Guest Article: Imagination and Inspiration
Today I have a guest article for you from Mywriterscircle.com member John Craggs, also known (and not only on the forum) as Gyppo. John/Gyppo describes himself as a writer, adult tutor, storyteller and all-round rogue!
Be that as it may, he is a highly experienced freelance writer, and gives his advice and support generously to other members of the forum. I particularly liked this article - which he posted last week - and thought it deserved a wider readership.
IMAGINATION & INSPIRATION
"I've just got no imagination."
Every creative writing class has one student who issues this challenge, daring the tutor to prove him wrong.
Which they obviously are. If they couldn't imagine themselves as a writer - whatever their image of a writer may be - they wouldn't be in your class.
The more timid ones hesitantly admit to a 'lack of inspiration'.
The following addresses both problems, and although it may not work for everyone I've known it produce excellent results.
If you rely on inspiration as the driving force behind your writing then you'd better learn to make yourself inspired!
Did I hear you say no-one can be inspired to order?
This isn't strictly true.
OBSERVATION STARTS AT HOME
Become your own study object. Observe yourself throughout the day as you would observe someone else if you were planning to write about them.
Take note, mentally or on paper, of the things that trigger your imagination. The things that catch at your curiosity like a ragged fingernail on cloth.
Scraps of overheard conversation on a bus perhaps.
Music. I personally find music a great source of inspiration. Though the mental images rarely seem to have any direct connection with the tune.
Pictures. Some people will find great inspiration in a handful of photographs, or an art gallery.
People. Real people - despite all disclaimers to the contrary - are the raw material of so much writing. A stranger seen in a crowd can provide the basis for a character who then spawns a whole novel of supporting characters.
For example, I once saw a three year old girl, with an unearthly blonde beauty, and the blackest coldest eyes I have ever seen in my life.
The question that sprung into my subconscious was 'what will she grow up like'?
I saw an assassin, sunbathing on a rooftop until it was time to do her grisly job. A horror oriented writer may have seen her as a child of the devil.
Another writer may have seen her as the victim of some childhood trauma. Possibly leading to a psychological thriller about child abuse and its possible consequences.
Actively look for inspiration. Once you get into the habit of seeing everything about you in terms of possibilities, rather than a simple fact, you will never be short of ideas again.
Another example? You see a man leaning on a wall. So far this is just a simple recordable fact. But why is he leaning?
Is he just tired, ill, or lazy? Or perhaps clawing himself back upright after a mugging?
On a more gentle note, is he waiting for someone, or something? His wife, mistress, old flame, or a terribly mundane bus. And if the latter, where is the bus going? Is it taking him to somewhere/someone, or away from an untenable situation?.
How about an offbeat surreal view? Maybe he really is holding up the wall, instead of vice versa. (Reversing your perception of everyday events like this can be quite productive at times.)
WRITERS SHOULD ALWAYS ASK 'WHAT IF'
What if he misses the bus? Will he go back and resolve his problem, or just stand there indecisively? Will his failure to arrive on time lead to further misunderstandings and more twists in the emerging plot? (If not, you're not trying hard enough!)
On the surreal note, if he really was supporting the wall (and by now you should have asked yourself why), will it fall down if he catches the bus, and if so, what will it reveal? Was that wall the empty facade of a previous life, now exposed as the sham it truly was?
Turning those ideas into stories/articles may be another set of problems, but without those initial building blocks you will not even get started.
NO SUCH THING
I accept the existence of people with no sense of humour - I've worked with a few - but I sincerely believe that there is no such thing as a complete lack of imagination. It may have atrophied since childhood, but it's there in everyone.
Imagination can be compared to a motorcycle. If well maintained and regularly used it bursts into life at the first kick. But if neglected and abused half an hour's vigorous kicking will get you nowhere until you do a little repair work.
So give your imagination a service. It'll work a lot better afterwards.
*
If you enjoyed this article, you might like to subscribe to Gyppo's free fortnightly humour newsletter by e-mailing gyppo1-at-ntlworld.com with 'MSD SUB' as subject (in the e-mail address, of course, change the -at- to the usual @ sign). You could also check out his three e-books, 'A Hamper of Havoc', 'British Bike Bodgers Booklet', and his latest, 'The Flying Ferret', available for sale at http://stores.lulu.com/store.php?fAcctID=1175168. Gyppo says he will even pop them onto a CD for anyone who doesn't like downloads. Contact the 'gyppo1' e-mail address if you would prefer this.
Thanks again to Gyppo for allowing me to reprint his article here.
Be that as it may, he is a highly experienced freelance writer, and gives his advice and support generously to other members of the forum. I particularly liked this article - which he posted last week - and thought it deserved a wider readership.
IMAGINATION & INSPIRATION
"I've just got no imagination."
Every creative writing class has one student who issues this challenge, daring the tutor to prove him wrong.
Which they obviously are. If they couldn't imagine themselves as a writer - whatever their image of a writer may be - they wouldn't be in your class.
The more timid ones hesitantly admit to a 'lack of inspiration'.
The following addresses both problems, and although it may not work for everyone I've known it produce excellent results.
If you rely on inspiration as the driving force behind your writing then you'd better learn to make yourself inspired!
Did I hear you say no-one can be inspired to order?
This isn't strictly true.
OBSERVATION STARTS AT HOME
Become your own study object. Observe yourself throughout the day as you would observe someone else if you were planning to write about them.
Take note, mentally or on paper, of the things that trigger your imagination. The things that catch at your curiosity like a ragged fingernail on cloth.
Scraps of overheard conversation on a bus perhaps.
Music. I personally find music a great source of inspiration. Though the mental images rarely seem to have any direct connection with the tune.
Pictures. Some people will find great inspiration in a handful of photographs, or an art gallery.
People. Real people - despite all disclaimers to the contrary - are the raw material of so much writing. A stranger seen in a crowd can provide the basis for a character who then spawns a whole novel of supporting characters.
For example, I once saw a three year old girl, with an unearthly blonde beauty, and the blackest coldest eyes I have ever seen in my life.
The question that sprung into my subconscious was 'what will she grow up like'?
I saw an assassin, sunbathing on a rooftop until it was time to do her grisly job. A horror oriented writer may have seen her as a child of the devil.
Another writer may have seen her as the victim of some childhood trauma. Possibly leading to a psychological thriller about child abuse and its possible consequences.
Actively look for inspiration. Once you get into the habit of seeing everything about you in terms of possibilities, rather than a simple fact, you will never be short of ideas again.
Another example? You see a man leaning on a wall. So far this is just a simple recordable fact. But why is he leaning?
Is he just tired, ill, or lazy? Or perhaps clawing himself back upright after a mugging?
On a more gentle note, is he waiting for someone, or something? His wife, mistress, old flame, or a terribly mundane bus. And if the latter, where is the bus going? Is it taking him to somewhere/someone, or away from an untenable situation?.
How about an offbeat surreal view? Maybe he really is holding up the wall, instead of vice versa. (Reversing your perception of everyday events like this can be quite productive at times.)
WRITERS SHOULD ALWAYS ASK 'WHAT IF'
What if he misses the bus? Will he go back and resolve his problem, or just stand there indecisively? Will his failure to arrive on time lead to further misunderstandings and more twists in the emerging plot? (If not, you're not trying hard enough!)
On the surreal note, if he really was supporting the wall (and by now you should have asked yourself why), will it fall down if he catches the bus, and if so, what will it reveal? Was that wall the empty facade of a previous life, now exposed as the sham it truly was?
Turning those ideas into stories/articles may be another set of problems, but without those initial building blocks you will not even get started.
NO SUCH THING
I accept the existence of people with no sense of humour - I've worked with a few - but I sincerely believe that there is no such thing as a complete lack of imagination. It may have atrophied since childhood, but it's there in everyone.
Imagination can be compared to a motorcycle. If well maintained and regularly used it bursts into life at the first kick. But if neglected and abused half an hour's vigorous kicking will get you nowhere until you do a little repair work.
So give your imagination a service. It'll work a lot better afterwards.
*
If you enjoyed this article, you might like to subscribe to Gyppo's free fortnightly humour newsletter by e-mailing gyppo1-at-ntlworld.com with 'MSD SUB' as subject (in the e-mail address, of course, change the -at- to the usual @ sign). You could also check out his three e-books, 'A Hamper of Havoc', 'British Bike Bodgers Booklet', and his latest, 'The Flying Ferret', available for sale at http://stores.lulu.com/store.php?fAcctID=1175168. Gyppo says he will even pop them onto a CD for anyone who doesn't like downloads. Contact the 'gyppo1' e-mail address if you would prefer this.
Thanks again to Gyppo for allowing me to reprint his article here.
Nick at 1:22 PM
1 Comments:
Brilliant guest article, Nick -- I really enjoyed this one!
Karlos
www.karlblog.com
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