To Be Inspired

At this point in time, I am not a bestselling author with years of professional writing experience under my belt. I may be at heart, but in the physical sense, I am not...not yet. I expect to get there someday, though that isn't what draws me back inescapably to my keyboard day after day. Despite my relative inexperience, I think I might still have something of value to the aspiring writer in the way of advice. At the very least, it is an idea that I'm sure any writer, or even any artist, can feel sympathetic about.

The idea is very simple. Inspiration is a gift, but unlike most gifts, this one has a limited time offer. That's why, when inspiration hits, you need to shut up and listen. No matter if you are at work or watching your favorite TV show or getting ready for bed, heed the call of the muses, my friend. You'll regret it if you don't.

I don't know how it works. It's mysterious, almost mystical. That's what makes it so different from any other thought you have throughout the day. When it comes to you, it feels like magic, like faith, like you've left this physical world behind for something altogether more spiritually satisfying. It chills you more deeply than winter ever could and makes the hair on the back of your neck dance electrically. It makes you want to burst out in peals of laughter and tears. Amazing, awesome, incredible. These words are impotent to describe it.

The funny thing of it is, no matter how earth shaking a sudden burst of inspiration is, it can go just as quickly, leaving you wondering why you're standing in the middle of the grocery store looking like the Cheerios box just told you the meaning of life. Trust me. I've been there. And given that I am not the first person to claim that "inspiration is fleeting," I'm guessing others have been there too.

So, here's what you need to do. Always carry around a writing utensil of some type and preferably something to write on as well, although your forearm will work in a pinch, unless it's very hairy, then I don't know what to tell you. But whatever you have to do to get your inspiration down, do it. Stop, drop (everything) and write! Because if you say to yourself, "I'll get it in a few minutes. There's no way I can forget an idea this good," in a few minutes, I think you'll end up being sorely disappointed. Even if you do remember what it was that got you so worked up, it just isn't the same. It doesn't strike you with the same significance as it did.

There's another benefit aside from just making sure you got the message right. The muses love to talk to people who listen. I think you'll find the more you respond to inspiration, the more frequently it comes to you. And don't keep it bottled up either. Inspiration is a message to you. Maybe this message comes from your higher self or some other divine source. But whoever sent it, if you share it with others, you will inspire them. They'll get a peek at this soul-moving moment and be moved by it.

Of course, it is important to remember that not everyone "gets it". And it may be that some are turned off by it. But don't censor yourself by being afraid of what others might think. Art is an expression of how you see reality. It is a release for those of us who have too much inside us to share any other way. If we suppress that, we are lost. We are imprisoned in a bland external shell where we secretly go insane as our desire to be understood and accepted for what we are consumes us.