I never know where or when I’m going to find inspiration – does any writer? Sometimes I go looking, or will it in my mind, but I seem to have the best luck when I leave the door wide open and welcome inspiration on its own terms.
I’ve gotten into the habit of taking a photo and posting it every morning on my walk from my car to the building where I work. I see it as a transition from the artistic world to the place I go to earn a living. Even on the most ordinary or bleak mornings, I always manage to find something to capture and share. Sometimes they become gifts of inspiration for my writing.
One morning, the sky was full of swift moving clouds flying past a crescent moon. I stood for a moment, enjoying the breeze and the magical sight in the sky. Then I took a picture, shared it, and went inside. I thought of that image on and off for most of the day and wanted to re-live the experience somehow. I wanted to use it in the story currently in process so readers could share the experience and I could remember it forever.
I didn’t rush the image, but let it hover in my mind. I kept writing and waited for the opportunity to present itself. When it did, I inserted the beautiful, sensory moment I’d experienced. I’m sharing the passage where it appears so you can savor the moment as well.
“Lennox pulled Titus to a halt at the crest of the hill overlooking the Murray farm. He silently thanked the thin, wispy clouds racing past the crescent moon that kept the skies in near-darkness. They would help him remain undetected as he paused next to a large pine, watching for any activity in the buildings below.”
It’s just a few words that describe the sky as my character contemplates his next move. But I lived that sensory moment, and I am grateful that a moment of magical inspiration happened to me.
Herb Sennett
Thank you so much for that enchanting memory of an inspirational moment. I thought I was the only one that did that. So many of my pictures taken over the past ten years have made into little moments in my novels. It helps me to know that I’m not strange. I’m just like other creative writers who strive to take moments of life and share them through my stories.
Dana
Thanks for the inspiring words. As summer nears I am looking forward to the slower months and the joy of sitting to write. This was encouraging. Just lovely!
Anne
Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed it – happy writing!
Mary Freeman
I truly enjoyed your description of the thinly clouded moon and thank you for taking the time to share it with us. You’re the one who stopped to notice, and then to take the photo; yet you gave us the chance to slow down for a moment and also enjoy its enchantment. When you used the memory in your writing you did what modern writing coaches preach, made it part of the plot. Sadly, the drive to make every word plot-driven prevents us from sharing these precious momentary observations. My theory is that readers are just like those of us who savor a lovely distraction on our way to work. Done well, a writer can and should share the little natural observations even if the yolk-yellow center of a daffodil in the sunlight does not impact the plot.
Anne
Well said, thanks!
Gerald Dowling
Anne, and just think that sky, the sliver of moon, and the blue sky have been up there every day, all the time since you’ve been born.
We all get gifts of inspiration, but in most cases we are distracted from visiting with them, too caught up on what’s going on in the world. Things we can’t control any more than the clouds. My Grand Father use to warn me not to go barefoot in the chicken yard. I use to think it was a warning to keep me from messing up my tennis shoes. Now I know the truth; he was telling me not to let stupid stuff distract me from using my gifts. It’s good getting to my place in life, and grateful for every day the ink in my pen takes down a thought on the back of a McDonalds napkin.
Anne
Thank you for your insight… gifts are everywhere!