Where do you find INSPIRATION?

One of the questions that writers often get asked is 'where did you come up with the idea for your book?'

I admit I always like to hear the behind-the-scenes details of how a story started.

 
But, I know from experience it's one of those questions that's difficult to answer because often the 'idea for your book' starts as just a tiny kernel of a thought. Like the idea for THE FAERIE RING really just started with a pickpocket in Victorian London. I had my character - now what? It's hours of hard work at the computer: writing, thinking and developing characters, that eventually morphs that little crumb into a full-blown story.

I guess the good news and bad news for me is that I never seem to run out of ideas for stories.  What I don't have is enough time to write all the stories I think up. Or at least, I haven't had enough time yet....

Anyway, I saw a video yesterday that was TOTAL inspiration for a story. This is EXACTLY how a story begins in my head - some intriguing little fragment that catches my fancy and off we go. The video has gone viral so you've probably seen it. If you haven't - take a look:  (This guy is quite chatty so you might want to skim forward to the black and white footage (but I do love listening to those Irish accents...)

Is that not FASCINATING?  I LOVE stuff like that.  So much possibility. I can tell you now - there will be a time-travel book in my future (and probably in the future of 5,000 other writers too - ha!)

So that's the sort of stuff that inspires me to think about a new story. What inspires you?

Inspiration, Advances and How to Write the Breakout Novel

Happy Saturday!  This is going to be a sort of a rambling post about a variety of topics but since it's the weekend I didn't think anyone would mind. 

First off - people always want to know - where do you find your inspiration for your stories? That, of course, is an almost impossible question to answer because who the heck knows where some of this stuff comes from?  What if's and why not's and chocolate-induced daydreams can produce all sorts of wild ideas.

However, I do love the notion of the fantastical being tied to what we know as the real world.  Myths and stories that have a finger in our reality.  An example that comes to mind is a holey stone.  For those of you not up on your faerie lore, a holey stone is a stone that has had a hole carved through the rock by water or the power of nature. You can see my niece, Emily, holding a holey stone above.

It is said that if you peer through a holey stone you can see into the realm of Faerie.  Many cultures believe holey stones have healing and magical properties. They are also said to carry the wisdom of the ages and offer protection if worn or carried.  Below is a picture of my daughter, Carly, holding a rare white holey stone.

Whenever we go to the beach we look for holey stones.  I have quite a collection of them in my office, some with two and three perfect holes carved in them.  I'm not going to tell you what I see when I look through them.  You'll have to find one and discover their magic yourself!

Other means of inspiration, when all else fails - the Candy Drawer!

(Yes, this is an actual drawer in my house. It's enough to give you googly-eyes, isn't it?  I can't believe it took me this long to think up this brilliant idea!!! Inspiration in a drawer. :D )

On to Advances - one my favorite writing-related blogs to read is Kristin Nelson's Pub Rants.  Kristin is an agent and extremely knowledgeable about the publishing industry.  She is very gracious and matter-of-fact about sharing her knowledge and often has helpful and interesting posts.  Yesterday she wrote about advances for debut authors.  I don't know why, but it seems like these sorts of statistics are difficult to find so I was pleased to read what Kristin had to say.  As we all know, it varies wildly but she at least provided a benchmark to begin with.  Thanks Kristin!

And finally, on to How to Write the Breakout Novel.  (Don't we wish we all knew how to do that one!!)  Another favorite blog of mine is that of Sarah Davies from Greenhouse Literary.  Delightfully English, (I can always hear her accent when I read her posts) and incredibly knowledgeable (she was an editor in London for 20+ years) Sarah is running a series of posts on How to Write the Breakout Novel. So far she has posted five parts to the series, each brilliantly written in a way that shows us what she means and makes you really think about the story you're writing.  The topics, thus far have been: An Inspired Concept, Larger Than Life Characters, A High Stakes Plot, A Deeply Felt Theme, and A Vivid Setting.  If you are a writer, definitely worth your time to check it out!

So, lots of good information to share.  I'm always on the lookout for writing related blogs that make me think about the craft of writing as well as providing insight into the industry. What favorite blogs do you recommend?

Poetry Friday - Without You Here

I have no idea how we got from last Friday to this Friday so quickly but here we are again on Poetry Friday. My poem this week is actually the lyrics from a song that serves as an inspiration for one of my WIP's.

The poetry of songwriting is an art form in itself and I hope to do some songwriting myself in the future. Anyway, this song is written by Johnny Rzeznik of The Goo Goo Dolls, who was voted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2008. Enough said.

Without You Here

Your love’s a gathered storm, I chased across the sky
A moment in your arms, became the reason why
You’re still the only light, that fills the emptiness
The only one I need, until my dying breath

And I would give you everything
Just to feel your open arms
And I’m not sure I believe
In anything I feel

And now, now that you’re near
There’s nothing more without you
Without you here

I’m trying to believe
In things that I don’t know
The turning of the world
The color of your soul

That love could kill the pain
That truth is never vain
It turns strangers into lovers
And enemies to brothers

Just say you understand
I never had this planned

And now, now that you’re near
There’s nothing more without you
Without you here

My head lies to my heart
And my heart it still believes
It seems the ones who love us
Are the ones that we deceive

But you’re changing everything
You’re changing everything in me

And now, now that you’re near
There’s nothing more without you
Without you here


What inspires you?

Sea shells and favorite books

Sea Shells are like art. I love sea shells. They are so beautiful and fragile and functional all rolled into one. Check out this guy: Mr. Spiny Oyster... makes you think twice before snuggling up to him, eh? I don't know if you can tell from this picture but those spines are, like, three inches long. And some are broken! I have to admit there are some days (like today, er..Friday mornings when I don't want to go to work but want to stay home and write....grrrr!) that I know exactly how Mr. Spiny feels. I read somewhere that these particular oysters only exist off the Baja coast - but I'm not sure if that's true and accurate - so don't quote me! But kind of cool to think they have developed their own little secret society hidden in the briny depths, as it were.


Which leads me to my next shell - The Lion's Paw. (Camera panning slowly to the right please....) This shell became one of my favorites in part because of a book I read as a child aptly entitled 'The Lion's Paw' by Robb White. To this day I still love this book, though it is out of print and very difficult to find. I secured this copy, at great personal risk on ebay, (cough cough, make that financial risk - the tattered old 35 cent paperback doesn't sell for 35 cents anymore...go figure...). Can you see the knobby knuckles and the flanges that look like the paw of a lion? Cool, huh?

Which then leads me to the notion of inspiration in writing. Great books like The Lion's Paw are a huge inspiration for me. Books that I love, still, many (many) years later and will never forget. That's my goal with my writing - to make the characters so real and the story so magical that someone remembers it, fondly, many years later. What do you find as inspiration in your writing or if not a writer, in your world?