Finding Inspiration to Write When You’d Rather do Laundry–by Rebecca Zanetti

Thanks to Kelly at Books-n-Kisses for this awesome month-long event, and thanks for including me!

Anybody who thinks it’s easy being creative on demand is freaking crazy.  In addition, many people (who haven’t written a word yet) believe there’s a magical muse who sits on a writer’s shoulder and whispers pure brilliance into her ears.  Crazy, right?

The muse is on vacation, the kids need lunches for school, the husband can’t find his dress pants (probably because they’re still at the cleaners), and you have three editors waiting for content.  So you have a few choices.  Wait for the damn muse to show up (could take months), grab a glass (or bottle) of wine and go hit the beach, or try to get inspired and meet your deadlines.

I know.  It’s a tough choice.

So I’m going to say something here that a few people might disagree with.  Let the creative brilliance of others inspire you.  I know some authors don’t read books while they’re writing because they don’t want to be influenced, and I kind of think that’s crazy.  Your voice is your voice, and even if you love somebody else’s book, I don’t think you’ll copy them.  Not even subconsciously.

So, read a good book that you love.  Think about the characters and why you like them.  Or why you don’t really like them.  Think about the plot, about the twists, and about the ending.  What inspires you in that?  What parts did you skip?

Or…and this is my favorite way to kick the creative side of my brain in the butt:  watch a television show or movie that you just love.  If you’re struggling with a sex scene, go watch something sexy.  It doesn’t have to be explicit or even R rated.  Some of the sexiest, tension filled scenes don’t have naked parts in them.  It’s the tension that’s inspiring and intriguing.  There are a couple of scenes in Weeds with Mary-Louise Parker that are, rather, um, hot.  The one with Mark-Paul Gosselaar in the bar does have naked moving parts, just so you know.  And he plays a surly bartender perfectly.

Having problems with your villain?  Go watch a good villain.  Timothy Olyphant in Live or Die Hard is awesome because he’s sexy, smart, and complex.  Study him.  Think about your villain.  He or she can be nothing like Timothy and yet be complex in totally different ways.

I almost have my husband believing that when I’m watching a long-running marathon of Supernatural that I’m working. J

If you really don’t want to read or watch television, study the people you know.  Don’t just think vaguely about them, figure them out.  The blond football mom who always has a flirty smile for your husband?  Go past your annoyance.  Figure out (feel free to make this stuff up) why she’s so flirty.  Maybe she’s insecure.  Or maybe she likes to flirt.  Or maybe she just needs a kick in the face.  Who knows.  But figure her out, and maybe create a character with the same qualities.

People are everywhere.  The stranger at the grocery store hovering near the gossip magazines.  Why does she do that?  Get inspired by her struggle of whether or not to buy.  It’s intriguing.

And at the end of the day, what you need to do is write.  Sit down, put on some music, and let your subconscious take over.

If you’re a writer, if you want to be a writer, you must write.  Read all of these articles by so many amazing authors for this Books-n-Kisses event, and then, if you take nothing else away, know that you must sit down and write.

You can do it.  I promise.

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Let’s check out Rebecca’s upcoming releases:

Marked

Dark Protectors #7

Release Date December 22, 2014  Preorder here: Amazon| B&N

A little about Rebecca:

New York Times and USA Today Bestselling author Rebecca Zanetti writes dark paranormals, romantic suspense, and contemporary romances.  She’s sold from the slush pile, from auction, from pre-empt, and most recently from a short conversation with an editor that turned into a five book deal.  She believes strongly in luck, karma, and working her butt off…and she thinks one of the best things about being an author, unlike the lawyer she used to be, is that she can let the crazy out.  Currently, she is writing the bestselling Dark Protector series from Kensington, with the tenth book, MARKED, being released in December; the bestselling Sin Brothers series from Grand Central, with TOTAL SURRENDER, book 4, being released in March of 2015, and finally, the Maverick Montana series from Entangled, with RISING ASSETS, the third book, hitting the New York Times and the USA Today Bestseller lists.  Find Rebecca at:  www.rebeccazanetti.com

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Rebecca is kind enough to offer two copies of Claimed to two lucky readers. 

To Enter for a chance to win. 

Please leave a comment or question for Ms. Zanetti.  

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*this giveaway is sponsored by the author*

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Make sure to check out all of the other stops on this month long tour HERE and enter the grand prize giveaway.