The irony doesn’t escape me. I have attempted to write a
little something on the topic of inspiration now quite a few times, and each
time I find myself struggling to find the very thing I’m trying to blog about.
My first attempt was on a plane, some thirty thousand or so feet up in the sky.
I felt that six hours in a confined space, while my fellow passengers lost
themselves in a variety of interactive entertainment, would be the perfect
opportunity to at least get the bare bones of the subject on paper to be later
fleshed out when I was back on more solid ground. These thoughts evaporated
quickly, like the small beverage the stewardess had handed to me just prior to
the opening of my notebook, and I found myself instead jotting down
observations of that day so far. Why do I always go looking for inspiration? Inspiration
is the one who slowly creeps up on me, jumping out and grabbing hold when I am
alone, isolated and not expecting it.
So it’s caught me, and more often than not it’s caught me
with my pants down both metaphorically and physically. An idea has sparked and
it has to circulate and brew in my head to stay alive until I’ve been able to
make note of it. The response to a question of “what if?” or my mind working
through an annoyance or situation I’ve experienced. Guilt even. If I’m luckily it’s playing out in
my head like the scene from a movie, which just leaves me the task of getting
those images translated into words and onto paper.
And it’s not that I couldn’t find it on the plane because I
was in among other people, nor is it true to say that all my ideas have come
during moments of isolation. Like almost every other aspect of pure creativity
there is no one answer as everyone is different. Whether alone or in a crowd,
busy in thoughtful or physical activity, there is no predicting exactly when inspiration
will strike. Just be sure to have a way of recording it when it does.
“Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working.” –
Pablo Picasso
Great post! I do think isolation helps, and also limitation and simplicity. I get my best ideas on walks in the woods. Simon lived in a cabin in the woods for a month in January a few years ago and he reports that the long dark hours with no electricity and in the middle of nowhere sent his brain into a frenzy of inspired creativity. Jack White talks about how he always limits himself so as to be always inspired - usually to 2 or 3 elements http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJgY9FtDLbs
ReplyDeleteIn this world we are bombarded with the idea that we have ultimate freedom - no limitations, and perhaps this is not so great for creativity. Maybe limitation inspires new ideas, because we feel we are lacking something so we need to create something to fill/ meet that lack.