Writers are supposed to be creative individuals who spin spell-binding yarns out of nothing. After all, that is what creating means, right? Making something out of nothing? So you get your coffee, soda or water bottle, position yourself at your desk or on the floor with your laptop and your fingers dance over the keys like they are dancing with the stars. Right? Wrong, most of the time. You might be more likely to sit for several minutes staring at a blank screen, turn it off, go get a sandwich, come back, type a few lines, then hit the delete button in disgust. So, what does it take to ignite this great stuff that fathers so many excellent works? Learning a few tricks may help.

1. Always keep a pen and a little notebook handy. An idea might come to you when you least expect it. At the supermarket, on the bus, while driving (wait until you stop before you reach for the pen) and in many unexpected places. You may even awake during the night with an idea for a novel. When this happens, jot down as much of the detail as is available, then lay it aside.

2. Use your senses. Your senses can help you conjure up a story. The next time you go for a walk, look at your surroundings. What lies beyond that vacant lot? Why is that car parked in the same spot for the last two weeks? Every morning on my way to work, I pass an area with overhanging trees and under them are three old vans parked in parallel parking. That’s all I can see. The vehicles look like they’ve been there for ages. I can’t see any house behind them, just the trees hanging over. I wish I could get out of my car and investigate. I should get some material for a good story. Don’t be afraid to eavesdrop, but do it without being obvious. Other people’s conversation can make a great story.

3. Keep a journal. Similar to # 1, keeping a journal can be a way to unlock your creativity. Try to write in it first thing in the morning. Don’t worry about grammar or style or even spelling. Simply write what comes to your mind and after a month, you’ll see things emerging that you never knew you had in you. It could be the beginning of a memoir, a novel or a non-fiction book.
4. Read. I’m sure you already know that this is a surefire way to spark your creativity. My love for writing and, I daresay, my creativity grew out of my love for reading. Growing up, I read voraciously and that led me to begin writing at an early age. Reading can supply you with a lot of ideas for your own work, while at the same time teach you to recognize good writing.

So there you have it. In my next post I’ll talk about some other ways to release your creativity. Meanwhile, leave me a comment and let me know what you do to get your creative juices flowing. Until next time …

This post really belongs in the category, Guess What I Read This Week, a post that I started last week, however I couldn’t use the same title twice, so I decided to use the next best thing, which is the title above. If you’ve been following this blog, you may have read my post some time ago on famous authors who suffered rejection. You may recall that Jane Austen was one whose famous novel, Pride and Prejudice, formerly called First Impressions was rejected by the publisher and subsequently accepted after some revision.

That was centuries ago. The famous scribe was once again rejected in this century, according to an article in Writer Beware Blogs, but this time the person submitting the manuscript was not Jane Austen, but a writer named David Lassman. How did this come about? Well, it seems that Lassman, frustrated with all the rejections he was receiving for his own novel, decided to pseudonymously submit chapters of Ms. Austen’s books to several publishers. The result? Rejections galore. Why did he do it? He wanted to test whether the publishers and agents could recognize great literature. You can read more about it at this link: http://www.janeausten.co.uk/regencyworld/pdf/rejecting28.pdf.

So, what do you think? Should Lassman have played that hoax? According to WBB, submission hoaxes have been around for some time, with even the UK’s Sunday Times getting in on the act and achieving the same result as Lassman. Of the 18 publications that he submitted to, only one responded, letting him know they recognized what he’d done and warning him of the consequences of plagiarism. But hoaxes aside, what lesson can we as writers, desperate to have our works published, learn from Lassman’s folly?

I think the first one should be, never plagiarize, whether seriously or in jest. Think of how you would feel if someone plagiarized your work.

Second, always research your markets carefully before submitting. Apparently, Lassman did not. He subbed romance manuscripts to houses that do not publish romance, and to publishers who do not accept unagented submissions.

Third, be prepared to wait. And while waiting, continue to sharpen your writing skills. It will all pay off in the end.