inspiration in unexpected places

At one point, as part of my writing course (yes I am still doing it - although admittedly very behind on my current assignment!), I was supposed to research trade magazines and specialist publications.  Now, I could have spent hours trawling through 'Happy Tractors' and 'Existentialism for Beginners'¹ in WHSmith.  However, I decided to be practical and use my current contacts / resources - which is what a writer is supposed to do anyway.

I put a notice in the church notice sheet. Magazines, please!

Inevitably I got a very varied assortment!  Some were of real interest, others were so jargon-ated I didn't have a clue.  The idea was to find new markets for writing, and to see what was required to write for such magazines - content, references, style.

I did a sort out the other day where I was going through my general magazine 'stash'.

I decided my collection of Insurance Times could probably be recycled. But some of the others I kept - one technology and engineering magazine I found surprisingly fascinating.  Management and business magazines can have articles on people skills and team work and stray into how people tick - very interesting.  One had an article on the role of gossip - I kept that one, and will  probably cut out the article for my clippings file eventually.

Yesterday I found the British Journal of School Nursing in my guitar case (what a strange sentence!)  Someone must have given it to me when I had my guitar with me, and I slipped it into the nearest available compartment.  Since I stopped my involvement in music at church for energy reasons, I've only just discovered it.  I'm not a school nurse.  I'm not a teacher.  I'm not a parent and I'm not a child.  But it is really interesting.  This was an issue from 2008 and had articles on stress and mental health, confidentiality, sex education, weight, drama in education, competence and the age of consent and an interview with a school nurse at an independent Faith School.

Now I am not necessarily thinking of writing for any of these magazines - my knowledge on the subject is full of holes.  But they cover topics that act as triggers - stimulating ideas, providing illustrations, looking at wider issues in specific ways.  And, of course, they open a window on other people's worlds.

We need to stray outside our specialisms, including in relation to faith and theology .  Many of these 'outside' elements can trigger connections we never knew were there - whatever our field or area of expertise.

¹As far as I know these titles do not exist².  But if you fancy some bored googling, you can confirm that for me, if you really want to.


² Rather ironic, considering the second one's title.

'for further details, see elephant'

I've just got a new notebook which I use for writing - ideas, inspiration, all sorts.  It's a plain A5 one which I put inside the lovely cover which was made for me by a fellow blogger over a year ago.  See the original post and link to her blog here.

I was sitting in a coffee shop on the way back from a rather painful remedial massage on Thursday, transferring some notes into it from a smaller pocket notebook.


If you read it, you may get confused.  There are an awful lot of elephant references.  'See elephant' it says, frequently.  Or 'inside elephant' is another common one.

The slightly more helpful 'notes in elephant' may give you a clue; the pocket notebook in question is a Bang on the Door one which Andy gave me some time ago, with a picture of a fabric elephant on the front.  All very easily explained, but you have to wonder what would happen if someone read the bigger notebook without this frame of reference.

What elephant? And why?!

Which goes to show how important it can be to know the context of something, otherwise the meaning is entirely baffling or easily misunderstood. You have only one half of a conversation, one piece of the puzzle.

You have an elephant, and you've no idea why.

what inspires you?

Wednesday evenings I have put aside for writing, although I have to say I am getting tired now and the evening has barely started. Perhaps I'm still in British Summer Time - that's probably true.

I've been thinking of the need for inspiration, which led me to the question: what inspires me?

Let's see...

nature sky God friends love animals books quietness laughter anecdotes dreams family children rockpools words colours waterfalls hope creativity art trees light dark thoughts boats earth discussion humour ocean seasons faith doubt touch watermelon photographs birds air travel flowers mountains sight music rivers taste butterflies

I could go on..let's be inspired.

What inspires you?

inspiration

I have put together a proper first draft of my anthology! I had collated a few of those I thought appropriate, but was attempting to write one in particular, but kept stalling. I hate sounding twee when I write poetry. And the fact is I'm out of practice. So playing with words in that particular way has been more difficult than it has done previously; although thinking about it inspiration has always ebbed and flowed throughout my life. It's the working at it when inspiration is low which is the challenge - a necessary challenge for anyone serious about writing in any form.

Anyway, I was taking Rest Stop 4 when inspiration hit, and I'm afraid I did rouse myself to scribble a few lines, lest they dwindled during the half hour I'm supposed to be calm and restful and 'empty my mind'. When I got up properly, I was suddenly able to re-write the one that was bothering me, plus the other one that 'hit' while I was lying down. And with those two, my anthology seems to be complete. I want Andy to read through it, and also my parents, who I'm seeing next week (I'm going away with them for a few days). Just checking the appropriateness of my selection and also the order. Then I need to write a little introduction explaining the purpose, a final proof read, and then we'll go to press!! Well, er, a photocopier.

Was lying there thinking (yes, I know I shouldn't be!) about how easy it is to sink back into life even after the revelatory moment I experienced, and the sudden compassion for the women of Darfur (see here). Actually, shortly after this I saw an advertisement for Kay Warren's book, Dangerous Surrender. I read the blurb and was so struck by it under the circumstances that I knew I should read it at some point. (It's about how she had all these plans for her life and ministry, but how God broke her heart and called her instead to work on behalf of those suffering the effects of HIV and AIDS.) Andy went into Wesley Owen today and saw it while he was there, so picked it up for me. I'll take it with me next week as my 'holiday reading'. On the back it says: You have a plan for the rest of your life. God has a plan for the rest of your life. Are they the same? This is so in tune with my own thoughts at the moment. I've felt such a challenge lately - that all those dreams and visions I've had for my life, all the ways I think I should use my gifts and talents, all the things I wish I could do...all those things may not have anything to do with what God wants of me. There would have been a time when I would have found that terribly hard to accept. At the moment though, it thrills me. Every now and then I have a spiritual skin prickle.

Listening to Casting Crowns in the car when we were driving this past weekend, there were some songs I'd not got round to listening to yet, as Andy only got this particular album fairly recently. And the song 'Somewhere in the Middle' gave me that same prickle...on the same subject.

Fearless warriors in a picket fence,
reckless abandon wrapped in common sense
deep water faith in the shallow end
and we are caught in the middle.
With eyes wide open to the differences
the God we want and the God who is
But will we trade our dreams for His
or are we caught in the middle?


Previous to all this has been my fervent prayer that I would discover who God is, not what I would make him. Now, I discover the impact on my own life - my plans, my assumptions, my dreams...all mine.

With eyes wide open to the differences
the God we want and the God who is
But will we trade our dreams for His
or are we caught in the middle?
(Casting Crowns)

After such a long time of apparent silence, these little arrows of insight leave me breathless, grateful, and longing for more. I am finally at that point, after a lot of grief and tears and bitterness, when I can honestly say I am excited, not afraid, about God's plans for me, and willing to set aside any ideas I had about it. Big words, I know, and I know it won't be that simple. But I am, at least, beginning to hear.


Today: 4-5/10, medium high