Tag Archives: writer

The Creative Child Within (A Poem)

Posted on by under Poetry

When we’re young, the world is our oyster.
Hurt and humiliation are two things we don’t fear.
Imagination is our kingdom and every moment counts.
Ah yes, when we’re young, creativity abounds.

As we grow up they say, “Fall in line!
Get good grades! Be on time!
Find a job! Pay your bills!”
All things that stifle creative wills.

When we’re young, our sense of presence lasts.
There’s no anxiety about the future. No dwelling in the past.
It’s this innate presence that lets our creative juices flow
but we block it and build dams around it every year we grow.

Now I can hear the sound, traveling through your eyes
of broken dreams and emptiness
as your inner child cries,

“Gimme ink and paper, crayons, brushes, and blank space.
Gimme songs to sing and lightening bugs to chase.
Gimme wood to carve, clay to mold, and games to play.
I’m jumpy and I’m restless. Can I come out today?”

Children as Creative Geniuses

Posted on by under Daily Inspiration

As children, we’re spontaneous more than we are analytical. We accept new information with delight, and without making comparisons to what we already believe.

We’re curious, not jaded.

Even the most ordinary experiences in life are met with a sense of awe.

Artists who are able to continually produce great works throughout their lives are those who are able to preserve these childlike qualities.

Practicing a way of being that allows us to see the world through innocent eyes, frees us to act in concert with the universe’s timetable.

Translators for the Universe

Posted on by under Daily Inspiration

If you have an idea you’re excited about and you don’t bring it to life, it’s not uncommon for that idea to find its voice through another maker. Not because someone steals your idea, but because the idea’s time has come.

We’re all translators for the messages that the universe is sending.

What My Newborn Has Taught Me

Posted on by under Daily Inspiration, Personal Life Reflections

I have a six week old baby girl now, and we’re learning how to do life together. One thing is for certain. If I start the day with my intentions being anything other than to be with her, surely my plans will be disrupted and we’ll both wind up frustrated. 

But I’ve noticed something else. If I start the day and my only goal is to be at her service, we’re both guaranteed to have a great day. Ironically, when we’re both having a great day, all of the things I hoped to do usually wind up getting done anyway, while she’s napping.  

So here’s what my newborn has taught me: Putting the baby’s needs before my own is the only way to ensure the day goes smoothly. It’s a lot like other areas of life, if you think about it…

We always find our best selves in service to others. In fact, our best days are spent in this way. 

If you want to write, read.

Posted on by under Daily Inspiration, How To/Advice

The number one advice I have for other people interested in become better writers, is to read.

I find it fascinating that whenever I’m going through a dry spell in my writing, I’m going through a drought in my reading.

The opposite is also true. As soon as I begin reading a new book, the creative inspiration and ideas begin to consume me in such a way that I have no other choice but to write.

The two activities are directly and positively correlated.

Reading serves as mental stimulation. It provides us with renewed inspiration.

As a general rule, we are readers first. And writers second.

So if you want to write, read.

Inspiration is Like a Butterfly

Posted on by under Daily Inspiration, Personal Life Reflections

Have you ever noticed how inspiration often comes at the most inopportune times?

When a million other things are vying for our attention. Or when we’re right in the middle of something else. Like a shower. Or a run. Or when we’re simply not in the mood to write. Because we’re tired. Or hungry.

Have you ever had a brilliant idea come to you out of nowhere? A sudden flash of insight that you promise to write down later.

But when later comes, no matter how hard you try, you can’t recall what is you were supposed to write down. Maybe you remember the general idea, but the words are no longer fully formed, waiting to flow effortlessly from mind to paper. The inspiration is no longer a sudden flash, but rather a struggle to be grasped. And it’s brilliance is lost.

I think inspiration is purposefully inconvenient.

Because, you see, inspiration is ultimately a gift that wants to be shared. It’s constantly searching for the right receiver.

Inspiration demands attention. And it determines who’s rightfully worthy of it by arriving at the wrong time.

If we’re not willing to put time on hold, stop what we’re doing and fully receive the inspiration in the exact moment it arrives, then like a butterfly, inspiration simply flutters off to find another mind somewhere else. It wants to be with a person who recognizes its worth.

What It’s Like to Be a Writer

Posted on by under Quotes

A funny description of what it’s like to be a writer by fellow author Donald Miller.

writer-working

“Writers don’t make any money at all. We make about a dollar. It is terrible. But then again we don’t work either. We sit around in our underwear until noon then go downstairs and make coffee, fry some eggs, read the paper, read part of a book, smell the book, wonder if perhaps we ourselves should work on our book, smell the book again, throw the book across the room because we are quite jealous that any other person wrote a book, feel terribly guilty about throwing the schmuck’s book across the room because we secretly wonder if God in heaven noticed our evil jealousy, or worse, our laziness. We then lie across the couch facedown and mumble to God to forgive us because we are secretly afraid He is going to dry up all our words because we envied another man’s stupid words. And for this, as I said, we are paid a dollar. We are worth so much more.”

There Are Days…

Posted on by under Personal Life Reflections

There are days where I’m filled with so much inspiration that I can’t accomplish anything except new prose.

I can try to go about my normal life but time and time again, it’s proven pointless. I can’t shut the inspiration off. I have no control or choice in the matter.

On days like this, from the moment I wake up, my brain is so overwhelmed by thoughts and words beyond me that I forget how to perform even the most mundane tasks. I am like a zombie unable to relate to what’s going on around me. My only relief is to succumb to the Source and write it all down.

I suppose if you were to ask me my name on one of these days, even that would take me a second to remember.

Today is one of those days.