You know how everyone says that children’s imaginations run wild? They’re absolutely right, but it’s as if when you’re preparing to enter the real world, you have to sacrifice most of your imagination to make room for more important things.
When I was younger and before the struggles of school dragged me down, my imagination was alive, it was vivid and I had very little restriction on how to use it. I would come up with entire worlds in my head and have the ability to put it all on paper; I could write for hours on end and had notebooks filled to the brim with ideas.
School took the enjoyment of writing away from me, taking my imagination and the wonders that came with it. I suddenly found myself with no ideas at all and I couldn’t find inspiration in any way shape or form.
It took me until late last year to find any hint of an imagination again but I was disheartened when I discovered that everything I was creating in my head was cliché. There was no truly original content like there used to be and I was stuck in a rut.
And so I read. I’ve always read books but I truly concentrated all of my time and effort on it; I was reading stories online, on my kindle and in the classic form of paperbacks. I reread everything on my bookshelf and I scavenged for new content but all I could tell myself was “you’ll never be as good as your favourite authors”.
That was until a realisation hit me and I convinced myself that I cannot possibly be the only person in the world who doubts their capabilities. Surely my favourite authors who I look up to so much must doubt themselves too? And so I decided that it’s okay to doubt every sentence I write and what’s more, it’s okay to write clichés!
If clichés are the only ideas you can think of then please, do yourself a favour and write them to your heart’s content. If you want to write novels or short stories for an audience then don’t be afraid that you won’t find one if you’re not coming up with insane, never-been-done-before ideas because the audience for clichés is huge. They’re everyone’s guilty pleasure. I personally love them more than anything and if the success of stories I’ve read online is anything to go by, the rest of the world does too! We love them because they’re safe, they’re comfortable and we know exactly what to expect.
It’s pretty obvious that not everyone wants to write a novel, or perhaps they’re daunted by the process and if you’re one of those people then try to write poetry. This is an incredibly intimate form of writing, allowing you to vent and let all of your deepest thoughts tumble out onto a page. You can get away with short, blunt sentences and allow your thoughts to spill freely, but the biggest obstacle to overcome is banishing the idea that poems have to rhyme. Poems are a form of art, as is any type of writing, so embrace this.
Write letters even if you have no intention of sending them. Tell people how you feel in written words if this is the only way you know how. Write angry letters, love letters, reveal the deepest truths about yourself. It’s been said that emotion is what fuels words so what better way to emphasise this?
If you have an idea in your head and can picture it being on a screen, write a script or a screenplay! I had to do this for a college assignment and it’s as if I have a whole new outlook on writing. Once you’ve done a script, you have the majority of your story right there in front of you and all you need to do is add a few details to turn it into a novel and you’re done. I think a lot of people overlook this type of writing because they think it’s only for people who are interested in the media industry.
Write short stories, novels or even fanfiction and publish it on Wattpad! You’d be amazed at the range of people who use this site, and yes, fanfictions are read and written by adults too. If a fanfiction is really good, you might even find that your readers forget they’re reading one in the first place!
If after trying your hand at all of the suggestions above you’re still lost for ideas, go for a walk. Yes, everyone says it but it’s true, it helps. You don’t even have to people watch, just be outdoors. I went on a two hour walk in Croyde Bay last Summer and was bombarded by so many ideas I had to stop and type them up on my phone. Maybe just a long car journey and a good playlist will be enough, but either way, a change of scenery really does work wonders!
Last but not least, don’t let yourself or anyone else convince you that your ideas aren’t good enough because someone out there will appreciate them.
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