Friday, 25 January 2013

Weekly Inspirations #2


This is the second of what will become a weekly post featuring various things that have inspired me during the week. There will be snippets from my own writer's notebook, as well as links to any sites I have tweeted or re-tweeted. You can read #1 here.

These Hands
Image courtesy of PhotoCo / flickr.com

In My Notebook This Week


Hands - Hands tell a lot about a person and the kind of life they have led. What if the protagonist notices the antagonists hands and feels something is off about them but doesn't click until later on that they don't fit with the job he claims to do or the backstory he has given them? For instance, they are clean and well kept but he is claiming to be a mechanic, when she gets talking to a mechanic later on she notices how dirty and callused his hands are. These little telling details can be so important and help to flesh out a character. I have discovered a great site for helping with description called The Bookshelf Muse, they have a thesaurus for physical attributes (such as hands), another for weather, as well as settings, character traits, symbolism and more. I can highly recommend it.

Unusual sky - Between the hours of 9pm and 10pm the sky outside kept changing colour. It started off a deep orange, then went almost black (like it should be that time of night), then a sickly yellow to an almost lime green. The colour changes were due to the snow and fog that kept coming and going, but what if there was another more sinister or supernatural reason?

100 resolutions - I read a blog over on sar-rah.com that suggested making 100 mini goals for the year and I really like the idea. If I ever get around to writing one I will post it on the blog.

11967 days old - Robert D Smith has written a book called 20,000 days (see here). He claims that measuring your life in days rather than years can change your outlook and help you accomplish more. This idea really interests me and I have ordered the book. Once I have read it I will post a review.

Suicide hotline - This tweet had my imagination going into overdrive, there are so many avenues you could go down with this one. Ted Bundy, one of the most notorious American serial killer,used to work at Seattle's Suicide Hotline crisis center, in 1971 from @What TheFFacts

 Melting snow - The snow has finally stopped and the 7-8 inches of soft white stuff is slowly starting to melt and reveal all the unpleasant things people have dropped or failed to pick up (certain dog owners I'm pointing at you). What if the melting snow revealed something more gruesome? A body at the side of the road, possibly covered accidentally by a snow plough? A severed human head inside that of a snowman?

Tweeted Links


Inspiring/Motivating

Are You Ambitious Enough For Success? |by Chad Howse on Addicted 2 Success  

Worth a read?: A Quick Lesson In Miracles   

What Are Your 18 Things? Blogfest  via 

Overcoming The Fear Of Setting (And Not Reaching) Goals @dancoachcreative 

do you know Irena Sendler? you should by  , everyone should know her name & what she achieved

 How to Live a Legendary Life | Be Legendary by 

Who Am I?:  via  Good question

 The Martin Luther King, Jr. Guide to Inspirational Copy

Put your personality unapologetically out there like a neon blinking sign of THIS IS WHO I AM.  

 confession, a challenge, and movie references in this latest post: Unexpected Lessons | |  

30 Inspiring Dr Seuss Quotes  Definitely need to keep number 15 in mind when I 

How to Rock the World and Achieve Greatness as a Creative Person


Writing/Blogging

How To Get To The Root of Your Procrastination 

Brian Clark on Writing, Productivity, and Sitting Down to Dinner with William Gibson  via 

What's your theme? WOW! Women On Writing Blog 

"Some very good things have been written on an hour a day. . . "  

Query Critique CONTEST & Interview w/ Literary Agent, Sarah LaPolla of Curtis Brown Ltd!  

RT : Body Language Cheat Sheet for Writers helps you avoid clichéd emotional descriptions:  

Interview with YA Author Sandra Cox     

A Sense Of Inspiration by  

RT : Worth a read?: Why You MUST Keep Your Eyes On The Prize   

RT : At The Window Again   via

Friday Speak Out!: Remember to Read, guest post by Mary Caffrey Knapke 

Write Your Life's Script: How Great People Plan Their Life | Be Legendary 

My Favorite Writing Advice ~ Inspiration Has To Find You Working - 

Operation Awesome: Starting a Novel from Scratch 

Do you keep putting your writing off till tomorrow? Read Start now by   

Discover lightning writing   

Blogging for Authors and How You Can Help 

Dean R. Koontz And 5 Things Every Genre Story Needs -  - 

Paperback Writer: Writerisms Ten  very funny

 It's A Library Thing!  Inspiration, pride and fond memories.   

 5 Top Tips For Approaching Book Reviewers by Amazon Hall of Fame Reviewer  

 9 Twitter Basics You May Not Know via  

How to Monetize a Blog  via 

5 Tips to Create a Page-Turning Plot by @JEFISHAM guest posting on Mystery Writing is Murder  

Monday Question: WTF WIP? via  

RT : Writing, Running, and Saving Oneself from Lunacy.  Guest post on 's blog.

 OneWord 60 Seconds: Sound  via 

3 Ways to Change Your Thinking Today by 

Excerpts from "How to be Perfect" by Ron Padgett via  Love this

 Behold My Cringe-Worthy Blogging Fails (and Why They Don't Matter) by  

The Other Side of the Story: How Do You Teach Writer's Instinct? By 

Goal-Keeping from the Greats -  

Dear Abby: Writing Exercise - Los Angeles Mystery via 

“ This is my inspiration for today. It just might work :D ”

 "Welcome to the World of Writing: My Advice for New Writers" New post    

10 Things To Do Before You Give Up On Your Dreams - Guest Post by Gideon Stevens - Archived Blog Post  

Good  RT  "How To Write Without Thinking - Seven Sentence Tips" | 

How to write when you can't get motivated  

4 Areas of Mental Focus for Writers - 

Enemies of the Art Part 1--Approval Addiction  via Really struck a cord with me 

"The Best Kept Secret To Being Original" |  |

50 Simple Ways to Build Your Platform in 5 Minutes a Day via    

Sympathetic Characters Part 3: Noble Souls via 

Writer Unboxed » Can Acting As If You’re a Writer Make You a Writer? Via  

CALLIHOO Writing Helps--Feelings Table  Need a better word than 'happy' to describe a character's feelings? Useful table

 "The Most Important Blog Post I've Ever Written" | SHARE |

"What is your mind like when you sit down to write? How do you tame it so that you can write?" 

 Want to write an ebook? Do it in a week 

Characters Who Surprise Us by  

Brilliant interview RT  "I deliberately seek out books that challenge my worldview."  

Look Again—Writers Doing Nothing 


Quotes

I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear. Martin Luther King, Jr. 

"Have the courage to be who you are and pursue it with passion. Be different. Be bold. Embrace your ambition." David Howse 

 “What good is the warmth of summer, without the cold of winter to give it sweetness?” ~John Steinbeck

RT : "Respond to every call that excites your spirit." ~Rumi

 "If you want to write, write. This is your life..."  

"Words need to be crafted, not sprayed. They need to be fitted together with infinite care." ~ Norman Cousins  

"If a sentence, no matter how excellent, doesn't illuminate your subject in some new & useful way, scratch it out."~Kurt Vonnegut

It's hard to beat a person who never gives up. -Babe Ruth

 So true RT  "It takes a lot of courage to show your dreams to someone else." - Erma Bombeck

 I need to stick this one to the side of my screen RT Nothing will work unless you do. - John Wooden

 "No matter where you go or what you do, you live your entire life within the confines of your head."Terry Josephson - Especially

Don’t get it right, just get it written. JAMES THURBER  

"Keep writing, keep faith in the idea that you have unique stories to tell, and tell them."-Robin Hobb 

So true RT  "The most wasted of all days is one without laughter." - e.e. cummings
Pictures/Funny/Cute/Other

best animal photobombs ever… | clayzmama says……  Brilliant

 the cutest faces EVER…no, seriously….EVER! | clayzmama says……   They really are 

Adorable pic 

Famous Wrong Predictions – How Could They Be So Wrong!!!!!!!–Seven Sentences  

Ha! What an idiot RT  Football fan caught on camera reveals 1) He's an idiot, 2) He's an idiot who c... 

Heh heh —> How many writers does it take to screw in a lightbulb? via 

Laugh Out Loud Life Lessons: Week 2 w/Yours Truly  

15 Perfectly timed Photos from @wherecoolthingshappen Some of these are hilarious, all of them are amazing.

 Curiosities: Cats Don't Care  Funny and cute 

10 Beautiful Frozen Lighthouses  Stunning and a little creepy
What have you written in your notebook this week? Have you read anything inspiring or helpful, or just plain funny? Share in the comments below or contact me directly, I'd love to here from you.
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