"When you write, you lay out a line of words. The line of words is a minor's pick, a wood-carvers gouge, a surgeon's probe. You wield it, and it digs a path you follow. Soon you find yourself deep in new territory."Annie Dillard: "The Writing Life".
Finding inspiration and overcoming the barriers that hinder writing is all part and parcel of the writing process. I have studied writing fiction at university, attended a number of writing workshops, and read many books about writing. With all this instruction am I actually a better writer? Well yes; but not because I've learn the secret about writing fiction, but rather, because I have learn to develop strategies to write and to keep on writing - with or without inspiration. I have found that the only "secret" or "essence" of fiction writing is an unswerving dedication to writing.
A good place to start with your writing is to write about your own life. The age old adage "write about what you know" is still very relevant - even if you are focused on writing fiction. Writing about scenes in your past creates the basis from which your imagination can leap. Booker award winning novelist Graham Swift says, "For God's sake write about what you know! For how else will you bring your imagination into play?"
Characters and scenes in our writing are inherently based on characters and scenes from our own life. If they are not plagiarized straight from real-life then they are combinations of characters or scenes that have been merged together within our sub-conscious. All writing has, in some way, a basis in reality, so it makes sense to start there.
I have found that an invaluable resource for writing is a notebook, or a number of notebooks. You never know when inspiration will strike. So it's a good idea to have a notebook within hands reach at all times. Use them to write any random thoughts or ideas or overheard conversations, whatever! As writers we must be poachers of people, of confrontations, and of conversations. These are the scenes of everyday life and the foundations of truths.
I have found it particularly important to have a notebook beside me when I sleep, if you're anything like me, you will find great ideas and thoughts popping into your head as you're trying to sleep or in the never-land state between sleep and awake. Indeed, dreams are significant sources of inspiration for writers. I have come to the conclusion that dreams are a form of internal writing, a way of understanding and interpreting our own lives.
If you are suffering a serious case of writers block a good thing to do is to try some writing exercises. These exercises can be found in most of the writing books out there. A writing exercise can be as simple as describing a familiar room. Or you can try to write a sentence that uses every letter of the alphabet. Et cetera. Crosswords can also be helpful, just to get the mind warmed up.
Writing exercises make you think about words, and words are the writer's weapon of choice. To defeat writers block do not stop writing - write at all costs! Write in different ways and experiment with different writing styles. Daydream and ponder life but always have your hands ready and waiting at the keyboard.
I find that reading good literature is the perfect way to get inspired to write. But reading is also a useful way of learning and understanding the different methods and styles of writing. Carmel Bird in her invaluable text on writing, Dear Writer, suggests that, "Writing fiction involves more than the mastering of technique. A writer needs to be a reader, to know how to read, and how to think about reading and writing".
All the writers I know are fond of reading. The only reason I started writing was because of the pleasure I got from reading. When we read we start to enjoy words. It is every writers dream to write the perfect sentence or the perfect plot, preferably in the same piece of work! We will only understand what a good sentence is and what it looks like if we have read a lot of good sentences.
Find the genres and styles of writing you enjoy by reading broadly. Learn your chosen genre. All writing is a tiny fragment of an ongoing narrative that is out in the public sphere. All writing is inter textual and reflects back, criticizing or complementing the writings of the past.
In the end, however, it all comes down to writing; get your fingers moving over the keyboard or your pen moving across the page. Whether you're inspired or not: Write. Write, write, write. That award winning novel, or that number one best seller isn't going to fall from the sky and land at your feet. Desire what Barbara Hanrahan desires, "I just want the pure world of me and the writing, where writing is like a religion". The secret to success is to keep at it. Find a time and a place to be alone, to be comfortable, so you can write.
