Questions tagged [inspiration]
This tag should be used for questions about how you can find inspiration for your work.
26
questions
5
votes
5
answers
143
views
What questions do you ask yourself to get inspiration?
A lot of writers talk about how you can't wait for inspiration to hit, you have to just sit down and write. That's fine and all, but I can't just sit down and write without a method to attack my ...
- 71
5
votes
1
answer
509
views
Working backwards from "Delete the people, keep the math and jazz." (SciFi short story)
I'm a great lover and a modest consumer of the short story genre.
But I've precious little experience writing fiction.
A line just popped into my head while listening to music and working problem in ...
- 235
-2
votes
1
answer
97
views
Does having some same characteristics invoke copyright?
I want to make a manga. The complex story uses characters from toys that I played with as a child. These characters were Legos and not rendered in 2D.
And, I mixed some parts of their body so they ...
2
votes
3
answers
369
views
How many books do authors tend to write at once?
I was wondering, how many books do authors write at the same time? I usually try to focus on one project at a time, but I sometimes get inspiration for something else and want to write something ...
- 401
9
votes
4
answers
657
views
How do you get feedback when sharing your ideas makes you not want to write?
I have a problem in that if I ever tell people about my story ideas, I lose motivation and eventually stop working on them. If I do not tell them I feel like I have pressure to get the story "out ...
- 4,647
16
votes
7
answers
3k
views
I can't write without an inspiration
I've been writing a book for almost a year now. But it takes so long because I have to wait for "inspiration".
Sometimes I will get an idea that makes me excited and want to write. Mostly it's a ...
- 171
2
votes
2
answers
187
views
I'm unable to read any book or write a single line
So, there was a time when I could finish a book in 2 days. All I did was read books and sometimes I took some time out to write something as well.
For the past few months though? Nothing. When I sit ...
- 175
0
votes
3
answers
157
views
I'm looking for inspiration for spells and potions [closed]
Is there any books out there that details old spells and potions?
- 2,041
2
votes
2
answers
289
views
How similar can something be before an idea is *stolen*?
I'm looking to write a Metamorphosis style short story where the reader wakes up as an animal for no apparent reason, and everything goes crazy.
Now, the Kafkain influence is clear just from this ...
- 383
5
votes
3
answers
485
views
Going from worldbuilding to writing a short story
In the past I never had the urge to write, except for poetry, which has always helped me to deal with my emotions. Lately, I have done a lot of world building. Rarely with the intention of writing a ...
- 658
14
votes
8
answers
2k
views
How do I stop my writing sounding like a bad imitation of whatever author I've just been reading?
I like to read across a variety of authors, genres, and publication dates. Whenever I sit down to write something of my own immediately after marathoning a book or series, I tend to unconsciously use ...
- 265
2
votes
4
answers
171
views
What to write when I cannot create stories?
I believe that I am good at expressing things specially in writing. I like to write.
I have seen on this site that people usually have stories in their mind but don't know how to write it!
My ...
- 186
0
votes
2
answers
954
views
Feature film and finding a co-writer
I've written a few scripts for film, but think I need to collaborate with someone. I always run out of ideas. Where would I find a co-writer?
2
votes
2
answers
179
views
Finding it difficult and stress provoking to write a long post
For the past few weeks, I have started to write about random things in an attempt to improve my language skills.
I figured maybe writing on forums(all types) about my own problems would help me to ...
- 147
1
vote
6
answers
195
views
How to keep going after a failed project?
I was posting my story on another site. After a while it sunk to the bottom. Not a big deal. But soon it seemed like everyone began to ignore it. So I cancelled it because I couldn't keep posting back-...
4
votes
6
answers
2k
views
Why write in a different genre than what you read?
This question is somewhat linked with Should you read your own genre?, but I believe it is distinct or at least approached in a different way.
I am a sucker for sci-fi/fantasy and read nearly ...
1
vote
1
answer
101
views
Best blind sequence? [closed]
I'm trying to write a story in which the sun has essentially gone out and visibility is constantly limited, and sometimes completely gone. Being a very visual person, I'm finding it hard to describe ...
- 11
5
votes
4
answers
5k
views
What is the best way to use your favorite authors as inspiration without plagiarism?
I am a big fan of certain authors' writing styles and stories and I am convinced that when I sit down to start writing my first book, I'm bound to copy an idea or theme from an author. How do I create ...
- 53
7
votes
3
answers
616
views
story driven by event rhythm
There was a graphical representation of Star Wars, and the curves the story takes.
Should a story be rhythm based like this from design phase (i.e. when making some pre-writing work)?
- 177
1
vote
1
answer
127
views
Find Information For Describing A Nuclear Power Plant
I want to start my story connecting the government flaws to the main characters life before he was even born. I thought since the settings a somewhat Communist United Soviet United government, A ...
- 179
6
votes
7
answers
7k
views
Any documentaries or other inspirational movies about creative writing?
Whenever I watch a good movie or documentary about a subject that interests me, it really gets my juices flowing and makes me want to act on my interests (I suddenly realized that this might sound ...
- 2,504
5
votes
2
answers
1k
views
plagiarism vs. reference?
I just finished reading the annotated edition of Lolita, and Nabokov hid references to other works of literature everywhere. Lately I've also been considering ways to work in lyrics and other oblique ...
- 153
3
votes
1
answer
182
views
Translation as the starting point of a new work of fiction
In the past, there has been famous cases of translations becoming works on their own. Many dramatic plots were copied from country to country (Elizabethan dramatists used to translate Spanish plays ...
- 201
14
votes
2
answers
558
views
How can a specific (current) event be made timeless?
There are some movies and some stories that are enjoyable when they're released - but they don't stand up to the test of time very well. I've been wondering about what makes a story timeless, one that ...
- 2,677
6
votes
1
answer
296
views
Good sites for descriptions/rules of different genres?
I just listenend to an episode of Writing Excuses where they discussed genre blending. I found the topic very inspirational, but as one tend to only read books of certain genres, I was wondering if ...
- 2,504
13
votes
5
answers
268
views
Are there any good magazines about writing?
As in all other fields I'm interested in, I love to have a subscribtion that makes sure some hugely inspirational material gets dropped into my mailbox once in a while. I'm not looking for magazines ...
- 2,504