Taking advice from fellow writers and creatives | #113
Looking at my fellows for inspiration
Hello, this is Celeste. I have been writing poems since 2017 and my low-fantasy crime novel Project Dylan since 2022. Letters for Creatives is the place where I share my thoughts on writing, creativity, resources for creatives, and interview creators and authors.
ICYMI:
As I keep writing my fiction recently, I am making my progress slowly towards 23K words. Even though I have never written 23K words for a project, it seems that I am not feeling anything.
Since I have been writing for this newsletter for more than three years, it comes to the point that I need to recalibrate and reflect where I am going with all these projects.
It is a great time for me to integrate the idea of Shoshin into my process.
But instead of forcing myself to do certain things like I used to, I have been leaning more towards listening to my intuition and take things slow. As social media has been pushing creatives to always be creating content to keep people coming back, I feel the need to take a step back and let time tell me my next step.
I have asked authors and creatives about their ways of dealing with creative blocks and where they find inspiration. You can read all the interviews in the archive.
These are their responses from the interviews:
Remy Bazerque
Do you think that the way you direct films influences the way you write scripts and/or novels?
Most certainly, I am a visual storyteller first and foremost. I spent a large portion of my life thinking images.
When I write, I definitely need to visualise things a lot. I have to see how it plays out concretely and I am keen for this visual aspect to present on the page.
I like the idea of a mood, of a visual mood board for a book to make sure to give everything a certain palette, like when we do in film. But I find it a lot less instinctive, I am learning every day when it comes to writing prose.
How do you usually make it easy for you to visualise things? I have written pages and pages of back story and development as I write. I have also have a little mood board for mine too. The most difficult part is figuring out the timeline and outline.
Images come naturally in my head. But for instance when I make character sheets, there is always some sort of mood board. Sometimes when I am uninspired with a description, I toy around with AI 'art' generation. I play around with images, try different references until I find something usually unexpected that gets my creative juice going.
I find outlining very hard, the feeling of having fun quickly recedes when I spend too much time on that.
Finding the balance between outlining and being spontaneous with the story has proved to be one of the hardest things. Too much time on the outline, I lose my spark. But not spending enough time outlining always lead to problems that pops up later in the manuscript.
Colin Tan
You need to try to schedule some time to write. Even if you don't feel like writing, you can eventually crank something out. The more you write, more stuff comes. It is very easy to fall into a rut and then you don't write anything for a long period.
Try writing about not being able to write. It always works for me. What I mean is, try and describe how you are feeling, put it down, try and mould something with it. It is kind of like a muscle that needs exercise.
Bret Alain Hart
Where do you get your inspiration for your poems?
The inspiration comes from many places. I would get a random phrase in my head and write it down. It can be based on a piece of music that moves me or something I see in nature. I will then form the start of a poem.
What advice would you give to someone who just starts writing poetry?
The best advice I can give to someone starting out is to just keep writing. It is the only way to get better. Read other poets as well, they will inspire you.
Kathryn Vercillo
Can you tell us who influence your work the most recently?
Currently, it is Substack women writers who are sharing their authentic truths about the complexities of creativity and being human. Rachel Katz, Lisa Olivera, Priya Iyer, Wendi Gordon, Hetty Cate de Cossy, Kimberly Werner - just to name a few.
Every Friday I do a digest rounding up the amazing things I am reading. I am trying to engage more deeply through elaboration and drawing connections and it really influences my work in significant ways.
I have been re-reading some of my favorite writers on writing, including Gretchen Rubin, SARK, Julia Cameron, Natalie Goldberg, Rebecca Solnit.
Jo Bahdo
Did any authors influence your writing style in Secondary Poems?
I read a lot of every genre and I try to read from as many authors as I can. I think they all leave a trace in my writing process. The most influential in Secondary Poems is, however, Ocean Vuong.
Alexis M. Romo
What is your favourite book on writing? Or is there a fiction book that inspires you with storytelling or character building?
I don't think I could pick one book or author that inspires me. Many authors and poets inspire me to write and explore different genres and styles. The one thing that continues to serve as a point of inspiration is this quote I read a long time ago:
"Write the story you wish to read." I don't remember where I read that or who originally said it but I always keep it in mind.
How are you handling everything, as a writer who has a day job?
It is hard, especially now because I have two jobs and I am taking two classes. So, it is definitely a lot for me right now! But I do write everyday. I normally do my morning pages (which are three full loose-leaf handwritten pages) and jot down some ideas in my phone notes when I take breaks.
Jason Franks
Where do you usually find inspiration?
Everywhere! In the news. In magazines and articles and history books. At work. In other stories that I read. Sometimes I just hear a new word or phrase that triggers a story.Â
I am a very analytical person. Some of my best ideas have come from looking at other people’s stories or character and figuring out how I handle them differently.
Rachel Chak
Can you talk about your creative process when it comes to your DJ sessions?
It has been such a non-linear process that I am still figuring out, but I will share what I have observed so far. Every mix that I have done has taught me a different creative process when I allow it to.
Some have been a bit more planned with a concept in mind, and others have been so spontaneous that they surprise me too. There are also periods where I take a break from mixing on the decks, but I would feel more energy in the crate-digging side to DJing — going down rabbit holes to find new artists, getting to know my influences and their influences, learning about the cultures and stories behind sub-genres I am drawn to, going out to shows of DJs I have been following, and just experiencing other forms of creativity.
But I find that even after periods of taking a break from the decks, I will feel drawn to get back on the decks because something is craving form and I need to process all the new sounds and experiences that I have collected.
My mixes feel like journal entries to me, a way for me to capture and revisit chapters in my life through sounds. It is a really intimate and chaotic process, but I love uncovering the layers of it.
Alisa Bacon
What brought you to start making your digital garden?
I got interested in digital gardens after reading Maggie Appleton's post about them. At the time, I was kind of in a slump about my internet presence. I liked being online, but I was getting sick of social media and the ways I derived validation from it. I considered blogging, but I didn't feel like I had enough content to keep it alive.Â
Digital gardens are more about growing and connecting pieces of content over time, rather than pushing out disjointed posts chronologically. And this ethos really spoke to me: it felt like a low-stakes way of getting my ideas out there in a way that works for me without the pressure of feeling polished or final. I felt like gardens really fit the niche I was looking for, and they also helped me realize that I have full freedom about how I show up online.
Maia Wilson
What do you do when you find yourself bored or complacent?
I often run into these blocks and I find the banal is what gets me motivated again. It is making and drinking a matcha latte, doing yoga, going for a walk, calling friends or family, or cooking a meal while listening to music, a podcast or watching something. It is the simple things that get me going again because little thought is required for those tasks which allows the mind to wander and get creative again. Or when listening, I am able to hear ideas from others and new trains of thoughts begin.
Lilith Noah
Where do you get inspiration for your writing?
Every poem I have ever written has some of my experiences in it. They are not always 100% accurate but I can only write about things or feelings I have experienced.
But inspiration comes in many forms, sometimes it is a phrase I have read, sometimes it is something a friend has said and sometimes it is just looking out of the window and seeing the trees and streets full of people.
If you like this letter, you can support the newsletter by:
Clicking the little heart
Sharing this letter
Prompt #7:
When you are stuck, stop writing for the sake of writing. Explore somewhere new in your city. Do something that used to inspire you.
Check out the creative challenges from 2023 and 2024.
Take care,
Celeste