Writing Stack Exchange
Writing Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [inspiration]

This tag should be used for questions about how you can find inspiration for your work.

This tag should be used for questions about how you can find inspiration for your work.

26 questions
16
votes
7 answers

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 piece of scene or dialogue. I don't know if this is an…
Neon462
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14
votes
8 answers

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 words, grammar, or style reminiscent of whomever…
Kitkat
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14
votes
2 answers

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 can be passed on from generation to generation…
Nathan Fischer
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13
votes
5 answers

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 that prints stories submitted by users, but rather…
erikric
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9
votes
4 answers

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 there", so I will work on them a lot harder. The…
user2352714
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7
votes
3 answers

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)?
Alex
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6
votes
1 answer

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 there are resources that gives good overview of…
erikric
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6
votes
1 answer

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 mathematics, and this just might be the thing that…
uhoh
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6
votes
7 answers

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 like a request for porn recommendations. It is…
erikric
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5
votes
5 answers

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 writers block. I need to have identified some…
Rockynovel
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5
votes
3 answers

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 story. I just ask myself something like, "what…
Ludi
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5
votes
2 answers

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 references in my own work. Is there an accepted…
kevboh
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5
votes
4 answers

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 my own original work inspired by other authors…
CodeWalker
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4
votes
6 answers

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 exclusively within these genres. I would love to write in…
Reed -SE is a Fish on Dry Land
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3
votes
1 answer

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 for instance, many french plays started as an…
ogerard
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