Writing is scary but ultimately, hopefully, fulfilling. Becca and I often consult each other for inspiration in the hopes of finding that elusive fulfillment. From emails and instant messaging to lengthy phone calls, we bounce ideas off each other frequently. Recently, my husband (one of my biggest sources of inspiration) and I had the opportunity to vacation with Becca and her uber-nice husband. We visited some great sites, laughed a lot, and generally had a ball. So, on that note, I'm going to keep this blog light and fun and show you some of the things in my life including a couple vacation sights that inspired me as an author.
MUSIC is an enormous source of inspiration for me. The hubster patiently accompanies me to concerts on a regular basis. And takes some great pictures...
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| SHINEDOWN - Richmond, VA 9/2009 |
SEXY MEN
One word...dang.
I LOVE my Country. Wherever you live, I hope you love yours, too...
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| Mount Rushmore, South Dakota |
Who doesn't love to LAUGH? There's always humor in my writing.
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| This hunka burnin' love took a real shine to Becca in Sturgis, South Dakota last month. |
FOOD inspires me. Here's a great shot of my husband cooking for me.
Uh huh.
A romantic movie can provide writing fodder for months...
And, in case you missed it, SEXY MEN inspire me.
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| My good friend, Gerard. We're very close. In my dreams. |
Please leave a comment and tell what inspires YOU as an author or reader! I'm always open to new ideas! I'll pick one commenter to receive an Amazon gift card! Yay, a prize!
Valerie Mann
Author ~ Fanning Old Flames - Cobblestone Press
Hide & Seek - The Wild Rose Press
Mile High Club - Noble Romance Publishing
Great blog and can I borrow your hubby to cook me dinner?
ReplyDeleteGreat post! Loves Gerard Butler. As an author, I'm inspired by music and of course, the men. My muse likes to roll around the beach and watch golfer's on the golf course, but other than that, she drives me nuts.
ReplyDeleteHappy Writing!
All those things inspire me. Some of them have inspired entire books - except for the sturgis guy....I'd be getting the brain bleech out for that one AND slapping his hands. "Put a shirt on Mister!" ROFL I would add Mother Nature inspires me. The scent of the air, a dew-covered perfect spider web, the way the frost hangs on a frond of wheat...those all set my muse in motion.
ReplyDeleteAll of those things are inspirational. Personally, my top two are music and images. I'm even dorky enough to make playlists for scenes and moods. Sometimes if a song is key, ill loop it until everyone in the house wants to kill me!
ReplyDeleteGreat blog post!
*sigh* Gerard...Hey Val~ in your next dream could you tell him I said, "Hi!" And don't forget to make me younger too! :-)
ReplyDeleteNow you've done it, Val. The Gerard factor is not going to help me concentrate today! lol I told you my husband made him my screen saver, right?
ReplyDeleteAnyway, inspiring things.....well, I have NO idea. My brain is so tangled, that I can see a cow and the next day see a picture of The Rockies and the following day come up with an idea for some hot man (beefcake) vacationing in the Alps with a Bud Lite and his siter's best friend. I have no idea.
Otherwise, it's music, photography, kindness, my hilarious family and carrot cake.
Heather
Ha ha thanks for the kind words, Val. I am so glad you are here. Sorry it took me so long to join you. I think friends like you can be an incredible inspiration. Sometimes just walking down the street can offer unimaginable ideas as well, but I am with Margie on the idea that nature holds great inspiration. I find comfort and freedom to think when I am surrounded by the quiet of the garden.
ReplyDeleteWhat inspires me to write? Sometimes I wake up with a plot roiling in my brain. Sometimes I drive by a sexy man and my brain gives me a whole background for him, and a plot starts to generate. Sometimes a song's lyrics will start me to imagining it coming to life. And oddly enough, I've found that once a character's story has been told, he/she shuts up. Then invariably, someone else starts "talking" in my head, telling me THEIR story! It's a busy place!
ReplyDeleteNice pics Val! My best inspiration is my husband. 7 years together and he still surprises me with how multifaceted one man can be. I try to put a little of him in all my leading fellas. Of course, his friends are nuts and when he meets an exceptionally crazy one, he makes sure I meet them just in case they could be my next character!
ReplyDeleteGood thoughts, Val!
ReplyDeleteFor me, the oddest things can be inspiring. Music usually is, but the inspiration I get goes off in wild tangents. Sometimes I'm inspired by books, or images, or conversation, whether in-person or online. The sad part of all this is that my muses are sadistic. Even if my inspiration starts out relatively mundane and sane, they'll be sure to twist it around ninety degrees from normal sane reality.
But such is life.
@ellenkeener - that's what headphones are for, or so the Ur-Goth tells me.
@Heather - I understand the tangle, sort of. You saw the interview - Lady Gaga and LaRoux go in, Capricious comes out.
@Fiona - I hear you. Sometimes the ONLY thing that will make a scene stop repeating over, and Over and OVER in my head is to write it. That's even worse with less than pleasant scenes.
Like your blog spot and enjoyed the post (along with the eye candy). I'd like to suggest another hot nerd. Matthew Gray Gubler, better known as Dr. Reid on Criminal Minds. Yum. Yum.
ReplyDeleteI find music to be my greatest inspiration. My mind rides the waves of tune mingling with lyrics and silky voices. However, a couple ideas came from a few photos of sexy men. One book was inspired by the lovely view while driving in upstate NY.
ReplyDeleteGreat blog Val!
Oh yes, Mathew Gray Grubler works as a hot nerd.
ReplyDeletehahahaha! Love the hunka burnin' love photo. I'm just a reader here. I'd have to say my husband is my biggest inspiration. He's always there when I need that little push in life.
ReplyDeleteFor me, inspiration is everywhere. Music, photos, conversation, news stories....and the big game of what if? I think of some scenario, and i come up with an outcome.
ReplyDeleteLove the pictures!!
I'm sorry, I can't think - all those gorgeous males. My brain took a vacation. My time of day for relaxing is my long bath at the end of the day - which amazingly enough is where a lot of my ideas for new stories originate. My mind wanders and these ideas just seem to spring up.
ReplyDeleteIt is seriously hard to beat a good bath for think time. I forgot about that one. Nice.
ReplyDeletemean and movies seem to inspire alot of daydreams and of course books
ReplyDeletemeandi09@yahoo.com
We have a winner! Kammie, please contact me for your prize.
ReplyDeleteYay! Thank you so much! Sending email now.
ReplyDelete