Inspiration

Inspiration: the lifeblood of creativity. Newsflash--creativity is hard work! Inspiration isn't just laying around out there with the empty 16 Handles containers on the sticky summer sidewalks of Manhattan. Where does your inspiration come from?

 I've spent a lot of time this summer considering where my inspiration comes from and I've had some surprising results. Though I love my forever home of New York City and most people consider it to be a hotbed of creative thought, I realized this summer that I feel most inspired in nature.  I find fire to be a tremendous source of inspiration. Just to be contradictory and confusing, I also find great inspiration (especially for writing) during rainstorms.  Conversations are good too-they keep the words churned up in my brain so they spill out more easily. 

In terms of creating words from inspiration, that process comes from sheer willpower.  Creation, birthing words or pictures or original thought, is not an easy process. It's difficult and uncomfortable and I can't count on both hands the number of times in the last two monthes I've taken my beautiful inspiration and simply gone on a nice walk rather than sit down and actually put pen to paper (ahem, fingertips to touchscreen).

Sustained inspiration on one topic is my latest challenge. Flashes and bursts of inspiration are great fun. Displined inspiration is another story, not just a different game but a whole new playing field. 

Crater Lake, Oregon, summer 2014

Looking at a place called Wizzard Island, it's hard not to feel creative...now to capture the story I can feel pitter-pattering around on the outskirts of my mind.