Be Open to New Ideas — Especially When Inspiration Strikes

This week while riding the T on my morning commute, an idea for a new story came to me. Out of the blue, without much thought — true, simple inspiration just hit me! It was one of those moments when I most understand Emeril's notorious "Bam!" Quite pleased, I hurried to work to write it all down, thinking wouldn't it be wonderful if all ideas could come this easily, because sometimes, when you most want something to work, that's when it becomes the hardest.

This fortuitous and spontaneous story inspiration got me thinking. Although I am in the early-to-middle stages of working on a new manuscript (first draft of course), an entirely new idea that has nothing to do with my current work seemed to mysteriously arise from somewhere in my brain. As people, and maybe perhaps even more so as writers, our minds are always going everywhere and thinking of a thousand things at once.  We are observing, we are thinking, we are reading, we are conversing — the list goes on and on. But in the midst of all this, we need to remember to be attuned to this smaller moments of inspiration. We need to keep an open mind to new ideas and all the places they might come from. Especially because if you don't write them down now, often, you just can't remember them later.

Not only does exploring new ideas for future stories help us in the future, but I also think it helps us in now. Sometimes I feel like my brain needs a rest from my current project. That thinking about it so much can sometimes lead to frustration rather than triumphant creativity. But giving ourselves a break to explore a new world or scenario — one that is even totally absurd and totally fun — can benefit our current projects simply by opening up our minds. Many writers have different processes, and I know some write at the same time every day while others go with more of a "when the mood strikes them" approach. But regardless of your style, it remains important to be ready to seize the moment of inspiration and explore new ideas, even if it's only to be put away for safe keeping.

For me, I keep a list of future projects stuck to the cork board over my bed, and a notebook full of partially developed but promising ideas in a notebook. Sometimes I feel like I have so many ideas that I simply just don't have the time. But finding a balance between what you're working on now and what you hope to work on in the future is important. Because keeping the creative juices flowing is key, and making sure you have something to work on when you finish your current project helps you to keep going, and avoid feeling stuck or without inspiration.

We writers are writing all the time. We are writing the potential situations that might arise in our day; we are writing messages and emails and tweets; we are writing and rewriting dialogue that exists in the real world as well as our fictional worlds. So we want to make sure to be writing our future stories as well. Letting them ruminate in the back of your mind; thinking about one when you are about to fall asleep; and writing down that bit of dialogue or plot detail when it comes.

Knowing exactly what you'll work on in the future isn't a science, and it might change as soon as you finish your current project. But planning ahead can never hurt. And it might just lead you to better stories, and exciting adventures, even now!