What inspires you? How do you inspire yourself? #writebravely

Posted on by writershilpa

 

I have been participating in an Ink drawing Challenge called, Inktober  since the beginning of this month. Here, just as in the ProBlogger Blogging Challenge,  we have prompts for each day. I haven’t used many prompts as such because I have so much to inspire me that is all around me:  nature, my pet, the festive season, life! The prompts do come in handy when the mind goes on a strike. But, otherwise, I prefer looking around me for inspiration.

Be it artists or writers or any creative people, the  inspiration we need is all around us, at our beck and call. Be it the greenery that surrounds us, the birds, the bees, the dragonflies that make the sky so much livelier, our pets, the beaches, people who pass us  by on the street, the entire Universe!  Our Creator has provided us with ample inspiration to work on, and yet we grumble about the lack of any. Maybe we are too lazy to look around, I mean, really look around.

How present are we in our surroundings, in the moment we live in? Hardly, to be frank. We visit a park, or the beach, or even the mall, and all we do is click selfies, or take pictures to be shared on the social media for its intoxicating adulation. Are we  even present  when we  click those pictures? How often do we  think of using the world around us as a muse for our artwork, or our writing, or any creative activity we indulge in? Sorry, I digress. Or, do I?

So, we were talking about inspiration.  I  look for it in the world I see when I peep out of my window, or view when I step outdoors, or even when I leave my thoughts aside and focus on the world around me, on the life around me. That’s really where we find a thousand stories waiting to be told. That’s where we find our muse waiting to be used to create a work of art.

The ink drawing challenge helps immensely in learning to focus on our surroundings. The dried leaf fallen off a tree/the little stray pup happily  romping in the mud/the snail that trails about in slow-mo/ that woman we pass by on our way to work, who invariably sports a large bindi on her forehead and adorns her wrists with a  hundred bangles in varied hues/that friend of ours with a sexy voice/that child whose giggles we find so contagious…the list is endless.

All we need to do is FOCUS, on the outside – look, look carefully for things we may otherwise not notice. And, FOCUS on the inside – on our mind and learn to divert its attention from the useless worries that occupy so much space,  and bring it to the moment we live in. It is really very easy, and yet, very difficult! For, it’s not always that we will make use of the inspiration that meets the eye. Our mood may not agree with us. Heck, life may not  agree with us.

But, that’s where the challenge lies, isn’t it? Shooing the lousy mood away, shutting the bad thoughts out and simply concentrating on creating…as if our life depended on it.  Because, trust me, at times it does! Life, for us artists, depends on our creativity; our sanity depends on our creativity. It’s just that we need to learn to inspire ourselves. Guide those immobile fingers and the mind in the right direction despite not knowing the destination and create just because!

So, go ahead and create. Look around, there’s inspiration in abundance out there. Just pick any and create – for yourself, for your happiness and your contentment.

 

So, what inspires you? And, how do you inspire yourself?

 

Linking this post with The WriteTribe Problogger October 2017 Blogging Challenge.

#writebravely   #writetribeproblogger

Write Tribe

 
 

Published by writershilpa

Do you know the secret to living a happy life? Eat. Pray. Love. Or, watch what you eat, wish well for all and fill your heart with love! That's precisely what I try to do through my blogs: 'Metanoia', the wellness website, and 'The S Word', my blog for essays on life. Welcome to my virtual homes!

33 thoughts on “What inspires you? How do you inspire yourself? #writebravely”

  1. Just today I was telling someone that I wanted to try Ink drawings and I get to read your lovely post:) Yes the message is loud and clear I have to try it . The snail looks awesome.

    Liked by 1 person

  3. Indeed, we have lost the art of enjoying the current moment. We end up clicking pictures and selfies to be posted on social media instead of actually taking the pleasure of being mindful in that moment. I have been practicing restraint on my urge to click pictures rampantly when I see something interesting. I still click a few for the sake of collecting memories but there’s always an attempt to stop going overboard. Your ink drawings are beautiful. Way to go, Shilpa!

    Liked by 1 person

  7. That is so true. Inspiration is all around yet. And the point about being in the moment rings true… Coincidentally that’s what i wrote about yesterday. Great minds think alike 🙂 I have been following your inktober artworks and am absolutely amazed by how everyday you come up with so many awesome ideas. Beautiful work 😀

    Liked by 1 person

  9. Thanks so much Shilpa, I needed this 🙂 You are so right when you say the lives of us creative people depend on inspiration. Really, where would we be without it.. And that snail is amazingly done by the way!

    Liked by 1 person

  10. Very true, Shilpa. Inspiration is all around us. If only we stop with the fidget and focus instead! Nature is my inspiration too. Sometimes I feel that I’m writing about the same things over and over, making the beautiful nature look dull through my words. And thus I stumble with lack of inspiration. But deep down I know that it’s my complains about the lack of inspiration that makes it worse. Such a thought provoking post, Shilpa. 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Impressed by your candid confessions, VInitha! Yeah, we all do that, at some time or the other. But, waking up and realising our folly, realising there’s so much around us to help us in our endeavour sorts everything out, isn’t it? That’s what matters.

      Like

  12. Firstly your pen and ink is just fabulous; I have been loving each one of them for their intricacies and dleight in seeing the inspiration behind each one too!
    I agree with looking outside for inspiration; prompts do help but fresh ideas seem to really come in the fresh air. My morning walk is my musing time on posts I wanna write; I cilck pics of nature for inspiration and design my posts around them. The next one from Write tribe is gonna have one of the pics I took the other day on my morning walk!!!

    Like

  13. Your posts and Write Tribe’s this Monday together make me think you guys are writing how I think. Like you, I find inspiration all around. On the road, in my home, in the office and around people. 🙂
    I love your zentangles. They are amazing. How I wish I was a bit arty 😦

    Liked by 1 person

  14. I have actually never been short on ideas. Everything around me inspires me – people, conversations, what I read and see. But yes I am all for mindfulness. There is so much distraction around. We feel uncomfortable when we are not doing anything hence the excessive gadget time.

    Liked by 1 person

  16. I get inspired when someone says u can’t. I wnt to prove I can.This is the way my drawings started. I was as slow as a snail but learnt patience through impatience. Art is therapy which takes you to another world.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. That’s so true! The mere words, “You can’t” can leave us either feeling let down, or inspired enough to take up the challenge to prove that we can!
      And one thing I have always believed in, is ‘slow and steady wins the race’.
      I am happy you achieved patience and peace through your art. It can truly heal our soul!
      Thank you for visiting!

      Like

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