I want to talk about creativity. It concerns one of the most asked questions of authors – where do you get your ideas from? I know it sounds like a clich\u00e9, but so many non-authors want to know how we can \u2018come up with\u2019 such devious, exciting and intricate plots for our novels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And I think we all have a slightly different answer. \u201cI get my best ideas when I\u2019m in the shower \/ out walking \/ drunk on a Saturday night\u201d; \u201csome of my most well-received novels have been based on dreams \/ nightmares \/ the result of imbibing vast quantities of psychedelic drugs\u201d; or the asinine \u201cI don\u2019t know, really – they just come to me when I\u2019m sitting in my garden writing studio listening to the sounds of nature\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some of these may be true, but it\u2019s not my version of truth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
One universal truth is that staring at a blank page doesn\u2019t cut it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Take this blog post, for instance. I \u2018experienced\u2019 a piece of creativity, and thought that it would make a blog post. I made some notes. And there it sat, staring at me from out of the screen. \u201cI\u2019ll do it by Friday\u201d. I lied. \u201cSaturday is a good day to write blog posts\u201d. I lied again. \u201cWhat about Sunday?\u201d The truth is that today, Sunday, I connected my laptop to the power, opened it up, and began writing. I was \/ am experiencing creativity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That\u2019s enough of this meta \/ 4th wall stuff now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, earlier this week, I had this experience of creativity. It was not in a moment of quiet contemplation or during a drug-fuelled wild rant, but when I was cleaning my teeth in the evening just before bed. Why? Who knows? <\/p>\n\n\n\n
I had to make some notes, which led to a brief synopsis of around 600 words. Not the best thing for the early hours of the morning. But this was essential, because it could then be subjected to the \u2018hangover\u2019 test. Not for me, the story idea. Was the idea just a fanciful piece of nonsense, or does it have what it takes to be moulded into a viable story?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
How did that lightning flash of creativity come about? It was a conjunction of 3 ideas (as are most good things in life): <\/p>\n\n\n\n
So that\u2019s my latest bit of almost spontaneous creativity. The big take away from this is that it didn\u2019t come from staring at a blank screen, nor did it come from running through my story ideas folder or a list of writing prompts. It came from much deeper, and it embodies topics and themes I\u2019m passionate about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Watch this space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
< coming up in the next few blog posts >
How long does a book take to write?
Should you engage in toxic debates?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you\u2019re interested in the Efficient Novelist program, there\u2019s a Twitter account, but it\u2019s fairly quiet at the moment. It might be worth a follow for future updates: @EfficientNovels<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n And if you found this blog post interesting or useful or a brilliant way to procrastinate, please consider buying me a coffee at https:\/\/ko-fi.com\/authorgeraldhornsby<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n If you want to sign up to my monthly newsletter, please sign up here: http:\/\/gerald-hornsby.com\/about-the-author\/<\/a> Please click the button below to follow this blog!<\/strong>
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