Inspiration from each other

When I started writing I knew to take inspiration from the "little things" and from kids and from the funny things my children say and the look of a sunset and my personal experiences and memories and so on.  I was most shocked to find another vast source of inspiration though.  Other writers.

Now, I'm not talking about plagiarism here.  I'm talking about the wonderfully generous and friendly community of writers and the information they routinely share.  Thanks to blogs and Twitter, I have a vast and ever-expanding network of writer friends.  I read an astonishing number of blogs in a week.  I don't comment on a huge number of them, but I read a lot.  Writers are just so willing to share tidbits about writing, the publishing industry, agents, their own journey, and a million other things.  I also use Twitter pretty regularly.   Twitter lets me chat with many of these blog authors, leads me to other blogs and articles of interest, and gives me a place to vent my random thoughts.

But what do I really get from this glut of information and socialization?  Inspiration.  I'm inspired to keep writing when I know I have this community to support me and ask how I'm coming along.  I find little nuggets that inspire entire stories in a phrase someone uses or a writing exercise someone recommends.  I get loads of inspiration from all my critique buddies who give so generously of their time to comment on my work.  Inspiration abounds in a community made up of creative and persistent people!  If you are looking to find some of these great blogs and great folks, check out my tab at the top of blogs to check out.

And a little plug for one of the people that inspires me...

My good friend, Christie Wild, is having a contest you will want to check out.  She is celebrating her "bloggiversary" with a fantastic giveaway.  She is giving away some critiques!  I can vouch for the fact that she gives very thoughtful, insightful, and helpful (not to mention inspiring) critiques.  You will love to have her input on your manuscript.  So click on over and check it out!