Same sources.
Author and artist Amy Tangerine writes in her new book, Craft a Life You Love, "Artists know that looking at the same sources for inspiration over and over again will actually cause creativity to stagnate."
She then advices, "... to find inspiration in new places."
In an effort to do so I took advantage of the Behind the Book Author Series yesterday to listen to a talk by Jennifer Egan, author of Manhattan Beach. Although, I was unfamiliar with her work, I thoroughly enjoyed listening to her tell about the process she used to write her latest novel.
She inspired me to take advantage of those opportunities that present themselves each day. I find that if I don't stretch myself to read, or explore new venues then my writing suffers. The key to writing is ideas, and those don't always come out of thin air.
Originally, I had crossed the event off my calendar because I had no idea who the author was. Today I find myself looking forward to my next visit to the library in hopes of checking out one of her books. Moreover, her story of her own father peaked my curiosity about my Irish-American roots.
As she discussed her family of origin I could relate to what apparently seems to be a common thread in the Irish culture. It actually answered some questions I had about my own upbringing, and to think I almost missed out on a new source of inspiration.
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