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How To Find Your Writing Muse

By on February 16, 2017
How To Find Your Writing Muse - Writer's Life.org

For some writers, finding inspiration is so easy. Wherever they go, whoever they meet, wherever they look they find things that interest and excite them, that fill them with wonder, things  that make them excitedly reach for their pen and paper already bursting with so many ideas they can barely contain themselves.

Unfortunately, we are not all so lucky. In fact, it is a common writer complaint to sometimes feel creatively stifled, uninspired and that writing is difficult, frustrating and tiresome.

The good news is, feeling this way doesn’t mean that writing is not your calling, nor does it mean that you are any less of a writer than those that float around finding creative joy wherever they go. Writing is like a relationship, it has its ups and downs and requires a lot of work to keep it alive and healthy.

If you have been feeling a little uninspired of late and are looking for your writing muse, why not try some of the suggestions below to see if they can help you get back into the groove?

Listen to music

Music is extremely powerful, it heightens our emotions, makes us feel things, and sometimes even do things that we wouldn’t normally do. It can make us feel in love, angry, brave, tearful and a whole range of other emotions in between. Make different playlists from tear jerkers to power ballads and listen to them while sitting down to write.

Socialise and pay attention

You won’t find your writing muse by sitting indoors and staring at your computer screen. You need to get out there and meet people. Socialise as much as you can, and when you do, really pay attention to the people you meet. There are so many interesting characters in the world waiting for you to capture them in your writing. So get out there and find them!

Try something new

Taking up new hobbies, undertaking new challenges, getting out of your comfort zone - all of these will put you in situations you never expected to be and take you to places you never thought you would go. Make your life as interesting, adventurous and exciting as possible and you never know what could be around the corner that inspires you to write.

Find people with shared passions

Finding people who share your passions and get excited about the same things as you is always helpful. You can not only bounce ideas off one another but conversations about your interests will rev you up, and you’ll encourage each other to keep doing the things you love, get excited about one another’s work and be there to share each others success.

People watch

People are fascinating creatures. Why not head out and pick a spot - in a park, in a train station - anywhere where you’ll get a good footfall. Then have your notebook and pen poised and ready and see what unfolds. The conversations you hear and the interactions you see can be just what you need to inspire you for a brand new character.

Get into nature

Nature is formidable, beautiful, frightening and majestic. Go and watch the sea on a windy day, or take a sunset walk in a forest. Many famous writers say that nature has inspired them to write, and when they are feeling creatively blocked a good walk tends to fix them straight away.

Get writing!

The most important thing to remember while trying to find your writing muse is that often it is writing itself which inspires us. So however blocked you are feeling try and force yourself to keep writing, you’ll soon break that cycle and feel motivated and excited to write once more.

Bethany Cadman -author of 'Doctor Vanilla's Sunflowers'

Bethany Cadman -author of 'Doctor Vanilla's Sunflowers'

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