Inspiration In All Places

Greetings internet! For my first non-introductory post to this blog, I decided I wanted to talk about a part of the creative process that's maybe more of a side-effect than an actual step. As anyone who creates in some form knows, inspiration strikes from just about anywhere. The things you see, the things you do, the things happening around you or the things happening in your imagination - the constraints of inspiration are pretty non-existent. And as I'm sure all creators also know, the sudden, inevitable lack of any kind of inspiration is also just as likely and just as difficult to explain. But what I'd really like to focus on in today's post is more than just that brief moment of "oh, this gives me an idea." I'd like to talk about the things that thrust you into your creative mindset. The things that make you sit up and go "oh my god, I have to get home so I can write!"

For me, there are a few things that do this best for me. The first is going to conventions! I've only been a convention-goer for about 4 years now, but they've always instilled the same fire in me. And it certainly makes sense. The conventions I've frequented are ConCarolinas in Charlotte, NC and the much smaller IllogiCon in Raleigh, NC, but both of these conventions have writer's tracks. So it's a chance to spend two to three days listening to other authors talk about their work and their processes and their tips and tricks and to be surrounded by people who share that passion with you. And for me there are really few things that are as inspiring as seeing and listening to these people who were, at one point, exactly where I am now. Even by the time the first day of the convention is done, I'm usually desperate to pull out my tablet or my phone to pick at whatever project I'm currently working on. And who knows? Maybe one day I'll see my work being published and I'll get to be up there inspiring new writers, too!

Now, it makes sense that spending a few days with writers and in writing panels makes me, well, want to write. But the other thing that really pushes me into my creative headspace is a good movie. When I'm not eating or writing, one of my very favorite past times is going to the movies. Don't get me wrong, watching a movie at home is great. But going to the movies is the best. Even with the expensive ticket and the overpriced concessions and the people on their cell phones on the row in front of me, I love the movie theater. And most of the time when I leave a movie I'm happy! Even if the movie was bad, I have something to talk about and I have a new experience of some kind for it. But once in a while a movie will hit me in just the right way that I leave the theater on cloud nine and all I can think about is sitting down to write. They're not even my favorite movies that do it to me! I have a hard time explaining it, but sometimes I'll watch a movie that just feels so creative in its own right or so well executed that I am completely overcome by the need to do something like that. To create characters and stories that make other people feel the same sense of awe or wonder or surprise that I felt in the theater.

One of the first times I really noticed having this reaction was after I saw The Uninvited. I left the theater, and I was practically giddy. It was like a rush of endorphins and inspiration, and I think I went back to my dorm and wrote fanfiction for the rest of the night. And I still get that feeling when I walk out of certain movies. And I'm never sure when I walk into one if it'll do it for me or not, so it's always a pleasant surprise. Pacific Rim and, more recently, Mad Max: Fury Road gave me the same feeling, although it was a little easier to understand with those. A film that, in my opinion, does an excellent job with in-depth world building instills within me a very deep desire to do some world-building of my own. And the best thing about having a rush of inspiration during a convention or after a movie is that I usually have at least a little time to act on it. Not like when I'm struck with the desire to write in the middle of the work day.

Have any of you ever had that sudden onslaught of creativity? And if so, what brought it on? I'd love to hear what makes other writers desperate to write!