Today in my Bible reading I came across a Scripture that hit me over the head. You know that type? You're reading along and all of the sudden something pops out? This is what I saw:
Fire tests the purity of silver and gold, but a person is tested by being praised. Proverbs 27:21 (New Living)
Usually we think it's the negative reviews and critiques we have to watch out for. Those are the ones that can derail us and set us off into a hole of self-doubt. Right? Sure, we can be impacted by negative reviews, but what about the positive ones?
Now I'm not saying we shouldn't listen to praise from our peers, family and friends. We all need encouragement. But something I was very surprised to find when my first novel got published was the temptation to believe my own press. Not that I got many huge, glowing endorsements or beautiful reviews in prestigious publications. Sometimes my test came just from someone telling me, "After the years you put into it, you deserved to be published." It would be very easy to think, "Yeah, I do deserve this."
The problem with that type of thinking, for me at least, is it can (notice I say can) lead to a wrong attitude about why, as a Christian writer, I'm doing what I'm doing. The truth of the matter is I don't deserve anything more than the next gal.
This same principle can apply to critiques of our as-yet-unpublished writing too. If someone tells us we're the next Jane Austen, and we let ourselves believe it, it could possibly make it harder for us to receive constructive criticism from an editor. After all, we write like Jane Austen. Why would we need to change anything?
You see what I mean?
So the key in all this is not to beat ourselves up and never receive praise but to remember every good thing comes from above. If our writing or our job or our ministry connects with someone, it's because of God's grace and His giftings in our lives. Not because we're better than anyone else. This will help us keep a balanced perspective when the good reviews roll in, but also when the bad ones come (and they will). Neither one should derail us.
It started when I was a kid taking riding lessons. Then we got a cute Appaloosa pony named Raisin which my sister and I rode for a couple years. I turned twelve or thirteen and for some reason lost interest in these magnificent animals. We gave Raisin back to her original owners (a happy ending for her) and eighteen years went by with me being horseless. I don't think I ever really forgot this love though. It comes out in my stories. My first novel Thicker than Blood (started when I was fifteen) features a young woman living on a ranch where horses are a part of her everyday life. My second novel also involves the animals.
Now I've started being around horses again, learning what makes them tick, how to communicate with and train them, and how to ride again. As I slowly progress, I'm learning some things I can apply not only to my horsemanship skills, but to life too.
Yesterday I was watching a DVD by a trainer named Mark Rashid. I'm learning a ton from this guy. I love his philosophies and gentle techniques. I heard him say, "It's only a big deal if you make it a big deal." He was talking about your horses' behavior (or your mistakes), but I realized how important this maxim is to life too. How many times do we blow a situation way out of proportion when in fact it really wasn't worth worrying about?
Through horses I'm learning to take a deep breath, relax, and enjoy life a little more. It's not all about training and striving for success. There's a place for all of that, but sometimes it's okay to just get on and take a trail ride. Enjoy the scenery. Thank God for what we have. Horses have been a great reminder for me to stop and smell the . . . er, well . . . stop and smell something!
Recently over at the Scribble Chicks blog (where I post on Fridays) a reader asked this question:
I'm not sure if this is just me or all writers, but I always have so many emotions when writing or thinking of a story. This isn't always bad but it can be hard to be on the top of the world one second and on the bottom the next. How do you deal with the mood swings that come with being a writer? Again, this might just be me...
Here's how I responded:
It's not just you. Trust me, ask any writer you know and I bet they'd agree with you on this a 100%. I have had so many ups and downs during the process of writing that it's not even funny. One minute I love the story, the next I hate it. One day the words flow like a river, then next it feels like pulling teeth to write a sentence. This is completely normal. Sometimes I want to bemoan the fact that writing can cause all these crazy emotions, but then I realize that we can use these emotions to our benefit.
I'm noticing that many, many creative people feel deeply. It's how we're wired. It's what gives us the drive to do things like sit in front of a computer for hours on end writing about imaginary people!
I believe recognizing the fact that feeling all the emotions you're feeling is completely normal is the first step in conquering them. Because even though we can use them to our benefit, let's face it---it's not fun to go through a low time.
Here are some tips:
Step away from the computer (or notepad) and do something completely unrelated to writing for a little while - this will help you recharge. Try not to think about your writing at all during this time. Sometimes a break is just the thing you need.
Often we'll feel low when our perfectionist tendencies kick into gear (this is what happens to me, at least), so give yourself some slack and permission to just write. Don't edit, just write. You can edit later.
Watch a funny movie with a friend or family member. This'll lighten your mood. We writers can be way too serious sometimes!
Remember that God is right there with you ready to lift you up---but often we need to take the first step toward him. Ask Him to help you. He will, because He loves you!
Write through it. For some the best cure is to keep on writing no matter what you feel, and eventually you have to do this anyway, so why not get some words under your belt!
We are often our worst critics and way too hard on ourselves. Remembering that will help.
A piece of writing advice I read years ago went something like this, "Don't hold back your greatest ideas until the next book you write. Use them now. You never know if that book of the future will get written, or even get published."
I've had to remind myself of this advice many times. A great idea pops into my head, but I think, "No, I'll wait 'til the next book for that one" or "I can't write that now---what if I can write it better in a couple years?"
Sure, if I'm doing things right, I'm always going to be writing better with each year that passes (I hope!). Maybe I will be able to tell the story better down the road. Or not. That's the issue. I don't want to hold onto my best ideas, because more good ideas will come later!
An example. In my first novel, Thicker Than Blood, I have a character who doesn't even show up in any scenes but was someone who got mentioned in the thoughts of another character. Her name's Abby. Now I liked the name Abby. Enough so that I didn't want to "use it up" for such a minor character. I tried changing it (she was going to be Nora, another name I like). It was a no go. This character had become Abby in my head. I felt like I wasted a good name! But as it turns out, as I wrote my second novel I had the wild idea to include this Abby character. And she took over the book! Which goes to show me the advice I heard was right. Don't hold back good ideas, or character names, for later.
Every book I write needs to be the very best it can be... right now. And this is good advice for life, too. Didn't Mark Twain say, "Don't put off for tomorrow what you can do today?" Which goes hand-in-hand with Jesus' words about not worrying about tomorrow, for tomorrow has enough troubles of its own.
Let's live life to its fullest today, no matter our vocation!
The March/April issue of Writers Digest Magazine features an inspiring interview with author Elizabeth Berg by Jessica Strawser. In Q&A format she tackles some subjects that hit home for me at this stage of my writing. Perhaps they'll encourage you too. Here are a few of the questions. Pick up a copy of the magazine to read the complete interview, including her take on life after Oprah picking her book up as a selection and how it impacted her career.
Are you often surprised by where stories take you?
I am, and that's part of the mystery and the joy. I never want to know. To me, it would be like doing homework---it would be so boring---if I knew what was going to happen. So, I'm kind of like the reader every day. I go into my study, and I don't know what's going to happen. It's exciting, you know?
I love her enthusiasm here, and her emphasis on the joys of writing. So much is placed on the negative, and here she doesn't emphasize that.
A lot of your characters seem in some way empowering---do you ever set out to empower your readers?
In the most self-protective of ways, I don't think about the reader when I'm writing. I just think about the story. After it's done, I think a lot about the reader. But in the end, always, you need to write what's in your heart and soul, and let the chips fall where they may. Let's say you try to accommodate this imaginary reader, and you produce a work you're not particularly happy with. That will always stay with you, that you didn't write what was true for you. Whereas, if you do write what's true for you, and someone doesn't like it, well, you know, that stings for a minute, but it goes away.
Bravo, Elizabeth, for sharing these words! I totally agree---we must write first for ourselves, and let the chips fall. God puts particular stories in our hearts for a reason, and I need to be reminded of this every day.
So many successful writers talk about writing as agony.
Sometimes I think people say that to keep the competition down! We are in such need of fresh voices, and I worry sometimes that emerging writers pay a little too much attention to what other people say. If I could say anything to aspiring writers, it's to keep your own counsel, first and foremost. There's nothing wrong with listening to what other people have to say---I used to be one of your readers who would gaze longingly at those pictures of people who are published and think, Oh man, what must it be like? But there is something inside of a person that makes them be a writer in the first place. That's a strong and true thing. And you can have your head turned very easily by the business of writing. It's so important to keep it church and state---keep it separate. The process of writing and creating and answering that very unique call inside yourself has nothing to do with agents and sales and all that. And I can tell you as someone who's enjoyed a lot of success in my career that nothing matches the feeling you have when you get it right on the page, when you please yourself in that very intimate way---that's always the best thing, no matter what happens. For me it is, anyway.
This is advice I needed to hear. And it's so true! On this side of the journey, with my debut novel on shelves (and I have so far to go, I know), this advice rings true. We would be wise to heed it. Thank you, Ms. Berg, for sharing.
Last week almost every day of my writing felt like pulling teeth. I'd sit down at my laptop, bring up my chapter and . . . stare at the screen. Then when I'd start to type, something didn't seem right. I knew I needed to push through no matter what I felt, but still. It's one thing to be at my muse's mercy, it's another to sense something isn't flowing.
I should've learned this by now. What I finally realized was I was forcing situations on my characters. I had one direction I wanted the plot to follow, but my poor character was having none of it.
I've attended several years of the National Book Festival down in D.C. I've heard the likes of Sue Grafton, Nevada Barr, Mary Higgins Clark, John Sandford, and Clive Cussler talke about their characters as if they're real. As if they run the show. They'd say things like, "I got to Chapter 3 and my character wouldn't do what I wanted." I remember looking at these authors with skepticism. They sounded insane. Um, excuse me, but aren't you the author of these fictional characters?
Yeah, well, that was before I had characters of my own to wrangle. Now I know what they mean. It's all about the human condition, I suppose. If you have a character with this personality put into this situation, then 9 times out of 10 they're going to respond thus. And I was trying to force a round peg into a square hole.
So I gave up and let my character do what she wanted.
Lo and behold, I got unstuck! The words flowed again. Does this mean my characters know more about the story than I do? Hmm. Scary thought.
And just in case you're wondering, this character is the lead in my third novel (working title Flesh and Blood). Her name's Brynn Taylor, and she's definitely got some issues. I look forward to watching her figure her way out of them. :)
The first time it happened was after reading a book that was everything I wanted my novels to be. The plot moved me, the characters were real, and the message was powerful. You’d think I would’ve been inspired to head to my keyboard, but instead I felt like throwing in the towel. Every time I sat down to write my own fiction I would think about this other author. There was no way I could write like her. My characters were cardboard. My plots lame. What was the point? How could I possibly write that well?
I didn’t realize I’d fallen into the comparison trap. All I knew was that I was miserable and ready to quit. In desperation I asked for advice from novelist James Scott Bell. He’s been my writing mentor for almost ten years, and as usual, his words hit home. He assured me I wasn’t alone in feeling this way. All serious writers and artists have been in my shoes, he said. What I needed to understand was that no two writers are the same. I had my story that no one could ever write like me.
Doubts come to all of us. Even best-selling, award-winning authors like Francine Rivers or Frank Peretti. It helped me to realize that others who are much further along on this journey still struggle at times. It showed me feelings of inadequacy are just that—feelings. They often have no bearing whatsoever on the real quality of what I write. We’ll always need to improve in our craft, but there are times when we must forget about what we lack and ignore the negative thoughts swirling in our heads.
As Jim Bell said, we all have a story to tell from our own unique perspective. Several years ago a bunch of CBA novelists got together to prove it. They decided to each write short pieces of fiction based on the same strict guidelines. All the stories had to include the same first and last lines. They had to include a case of mistaken identity, pursuit at a noted landmark, and an unusual form of transportation. Do you think these stories ended up sounding similar? Hardly. The authors wrote an amazing variety of tales (one even wrote in the point of view of a dog). Why were none of them the same? Because all the authors came to the challenge with their own toolbox of life experiences, and they wrote from their one-of-a-kind view of the world. (Those stories were published in book form, by the way. Check out What the Wind Picked Up.)
Jim shared something else with me. He compared writing to what God does with spiritual gifts. Not everyone has the same gift, but when we develop what God has given us, it contributes to the whole tapestry of the body of Christ in the world. He told me I needed to be the best C.J. I could be. And if I gave my full attention to my own writing, not comparing myself to anyone but just digging deeper into my story, the doubts would go away.
What would happen if we stopped looking to others for validation? My writing is never going to be like Karen Kingsbury’s. But on the other hand, Karen’s writing is never going to be like mine. Or yours. That’s the way God designed it. We’re all different, to reach different people. Someone who will snatch up the latest Ted Dekker might never crack open a Janette Oke.
In his latest writing how-to book The Art of War for Writers Jim says: “One of the biggest obstacles of all comes from comparison with other writers and worrying about your status in the publishing world. This is the way to ultimate madness. The writing life is crazy enough without you making it worse on yourself.”
Escaping the comparison trap is not only vital to your mental health as a writer, it’s also biblical. “Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else . . .” Galatians 6:4. So dive into your writing without distraction. There are readers out there God is preparing right now to read the stories only you can write.
I shared this post over at the Scribble Chicks blog today, and I'd like to share it with you too:
Have you ever hit a point in your writing where nothing seems to flow? Where it feels like you're pulling teeth to get out one single sentence? Rest assured, you're not alone. Every writer feels this way from time to time. Here's something I'm learning that helps unstop the pipes and allows your creative waters to start flowing again ... living life.
Sometimes as writers we will devote so much time to pouring out our thoughts and emotions on the page that we don't take time to refill. The well runs dry. If that's you today, why not try this: take a day off and play with a ten-year-old. Go to the movies. Pull out a pad of paper and just start sketching what you see. Or ask someone who works in the profession of your main character if you can follow them around and soak up what they do.
I found the latter suggestion especially helpful recently. Several of my novels take place on a working cattle ranch. And when you're working on a ranch, you're going to be riding horses. For the month of January I've been volunteering at a local horse barn. In the morning we feed the horses and turn them out to their pastures. In the evening we bring them in and feed them again. I've learned a ton just from being around these great animals. But I've especially learned from watching others much more experienced and seeing how they handle situations. Soaking in their expertise has helped me immeasurably.
So if you're stuck today, may I suggest take a deep breath and chilling for a bit? :) It's okay to take a break. Trust me, you'll come back super-charged and ready to tackle that next chapter!
I shared this post recently over at the Scribble Chicks blog, and I thought you all might like to read it too:
Most writers think about their stories and characters at all hours of the day. We'll be in the shower and a scene idea will pop into our head (and we'll scramble to write it down on the wall with a bar of soap). We'll be making dinner and a snappy line of dialogue will appear out of nowhere. This is especially true if you're brainstorming for ideas of what to write.
After I wrote my first novel Thicker than Blood, I really struggled with what to write next. Should I write a sequel or something new? I bought a little notebook at Barnes and Noble, called it my Novel Notebook, and started jotting down ideas. Early on in the book I made myself answer the question, "What I really want to write about is ____". I got the idea from James Scott Bell in his book Plot & Structure, and I figured if it worked for him, then I could give it a try.
Weeks passed. I kept writing in that idea book. I asked myself the question, "What I really want to write about is ____" again. I had an answer, but I still didn't know if it should be a book. I had so many different snippets of ideas, but I kept shooting them down. I was floundering and miserable.
But that's not really the point of this post. :) Fast forward several months, even a year. I eventually decided on an idea and started writing my second novel. Then one day I finished it and happened to go back to that original idea notebook just for fun. I discovered something that shocked me. Every one of those responses to the "What I really want to write about" question I had incorporated into the novel . . . unconsciously.
Or maybe not.
There often comes a point in our writing when we have enough information (even if it doesn't feel like it), and the breakthrough will come when we sit down and write. You know more than you think you know about your story. Why not try the unfettered approach today? Just write. Trust your instincts. I bet what you really want to write about will come through.
Today I bring you a terrific guest post from up and coming author K.M. Weiland. Enjoy!And be sure to visit K.M.'s website to find out more about her latest release, Behold the Dawn.
Special contest! K.M. is giving away a copy of Behold the Dawn to the readers of this post. Everyone who leaves a comment today will be entered in a drawing to win.
The Myth of Being in the Zone
At one point or another, all authors have found that delicious groove called “being in the zone.” The Zone is that enchanted land, in which we can do no wrong. Our words flow from our fingertips onto our keyboards with lightning speed, every one of them singing with the perfect expression of our intent, every one of them beautiful and powerful and vibrant. We write for hours, our energy level so high it’s practically bouncing out of the top of our skulls. When we finally tear ourselves away from our story, we’re so pumped that we alternate between wanting to run around the block and resisting the urge to shove our newly minted words under the nose of anybody we can talk into reading them. Without doubt, The Zone is one awesome place.
Too bad we can’t stay there all the time.
The sad fact of the matter is that The Zone isn’t exactly the easiest place to find. It would be wonderful if there were a map, a list of surefire steps, that could lead us there every time we sit down to write. But most of us are lucky just to find our accidental way there once every couple months. Instead, we spend most of our time slogging along, disciplining ourselves to poke out a paltry page or two, groaning at the end of the day with the knowledge that we’re probably just going to have to rewrite it tomorrow.
Joni B. Cole describes it:
…the creative process has two components. There is the fun part, when we are captivated by our own genius and prolificacy. And there is the Are we having fun yet? part, when we feel anything but creative, yet must still fulfill our commitment to write 300 words a day.
Undoubtedly, we always leave our desks after a day of being in The Zone, feeling a hundred times better about our writing than we do on the non-Zone days. But does that mean that our non-Zone writing is worthless in comparison? Very, very happily for us—no, it does not.
My recently released medieval novel Behold the Dawn was one of those special stories that just flowed. I still look back on it with a sense of wonder, reading some of the passages and thinking, I couldn’t really have written this, could I? I had some of the best Zone moments I’ve ever had while writing this story. But I’ll tell you secret: those moments were few and far between.
Zone writing—those high points of inspiration and motivation—is one of the biggest rewards of the creative life. But, surprisingly, its presence is not a determining factor in the worth of our writing. Writing isn’t always about channeling creativity and inspiration; most of the time, it’s about approaching our craft like disciplined workmen who have to get the job done whether they feel like it or not. Because we can’t always ride the high wave of our right-brain creativity, we have to realize that the hard-working, logical left side of our brains is just as important—even more so.
Just because you’re not in The Zone, just because you’re struggling, just because you finish a day of writing feeling like every word you wrote was worthless—doesn’t necessarily make it so. The Zone is far too elusive to depend upon it for our creative worth. Learn to accept the reality of the non-Zone moments and realize that they can be just as effective as the heights of inspiration.
About the Author: K.M. Weiland (http://www.kmweiland.com) writes historical and speculative fiction from her home in the sandhills of western Nebraska. She is the author of A Man Called Outlaw and the recently released Behold the Dawn. She blogs at Wordplay: Helping Writers Become Authors and AuthorCulture. About Behold the Dawn: Marcus Annan, a tourneyer famed for his prowess on the battlefield, thought he could keep the secrets of his past buried forever. But when a mysterious crippled monk demands Annan help him find justice for the transgressions of sixteen years ago, Annan is forced to leave the tourneys and join the Third Crusade.
Wounded in battle and hunted by enemies on every side, he rescues an English noblewoman from an infidel prison camp and flees to Constantinople. But, try as he might, he cannot elude the past. Amidst the pain and grief of a war he doesn’t even believe in, he is forced at last to face long-hidden secrets and sins and to bare his soul to the mercy of a God he thought he had abandoned years ago.
The sins of a bishop. The vengeance of a monk. The secrets of a knight.
How can you know God’s calling you to be a writer? It's a question all of us have asked ourselves. If you knew you were called, then you'd stick through the tough times a lot easier, right? You'd press on and pursue your dreams knowing you were on the right track.
The other night my dad and I were looking at our cat, Cubby, and my dad commented on how gnarly he was looking. He is 12, so I figured it was just age. But then when I looked at him closer I realized he was shedding up a storm. As in clumps of hair sticking out at all angles.
So when I should've been heading to bed, I dug out the ol' brush and started in on him. I ended up with enough hair to weave a sweater! Cubby loved this extra attention, and the brushing part probably felt like the best scratch he'd had in awhile.
I got to thinking ... how can I put this experience into a blog post? Ha ha. No, seriously ... :)
Then I thought of Eustace Scrubb. Remember him from C.S. Lewis' Narnia series? In The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (read no more if you don't want plot spoilers) he was really a rotten chap for most of the story. Greed finally got the better of him, and he turned into a dragon. That was fun for awhile, but eventually he just wanted to be a boy again. Only he couldn't turn himself back anymore than he'd purposely turned himself into the dragon. He cried and wailed, but he couldn't shed the dragon skin.
He finally called out for help, and Aslan, the kind yet not-a-tame-lion to help him peel away the dragon skin, his old nature, and become a new creature.
It was the same way with my cat. He couldn't brush away that old, dead hair anymore than Eustace could peel away his dragon skin. And I can't remove my old nature---those bad habits, wrong thoughts and things I wish I wouldn't do but do anyway. By myself that is. I can't do it on my own. That's actually a relief to realize. It doesn't have to happen in my strength. All I need to do is cry out for help, and my Aslan, Jesus, will help me. It's that simple but I forget it so often.
Who would've thought my shedding cat would teach me that? :)
I recently spent a weekend doing a puzzle with my dad and sister. We thought it would be a fun activity. We'd spend a couple hours putzing away on it, and before long we'd have it completed.
Um, we were wrong. Maybe it was the word "Master" in the title of the puzzle that should've clued us in. Or the fact that it was 700 pieces. But we spent the ENTIRE weekend pulling our hair out trying to finish. It was crazy! So many times we wanted to throw in the towel (or at least throw the puzzle out the window). But we didn't. We persevered. And finally finished.
This got me thinking about how writing a novel is like putting together a puzzle. You start with a box of pieces. Those are the ideas, snippets of dialogue, and new characters you want to write about. They're all jumbled together in the box of your mind screaming to be put together into a cohesive whole. This is especially true if you're the type of writer who doesn't do extensive plotting ahead of time, like me. Some people call that "seat of the pants" writing. A more than apt description.
There are times I wish I were a plotter (usually when I'm staring at all the puzzle pieces in the box!). I wish I could have a blueprint to follow as I'm writing my novel. But there's something amazing about the joy of discovery, too. When the pieces slowly fall into place, and a picture forms. Aha! THAT's where that character goes. See? I knew she fit somehow.
When I cross the finish line and slip the last puzzle piece in place and type "The End", boy does it feel good! Almost as good as completing a mind-boggling, 700 piece puzzle. Sure, I had days when I wanted to quit. I felt like banging my head against my keyboard when it would've been easier to pull out my front teeth than type another sentence. But if I'd given up, on the puzzle or my book, I wouldn't have enjoyed the pleasure of seeing the finished product.
So let me encourage you not to give up. Whether you're writing your first novel or putting together your first puzzle. It'll all be worth it in the end.
And yes, above is the the finished puzzled from our weekend of hair pulling. :)
I was a teenager when the group Sierra released their self-titled debut CD. One of the songs from the album was "No Stone to Throw". Even as a teenager its message and the story within the song of a hurting woman named Maggie inspired me. The music video they made for the song isn't a big-budget production, but its message is powerful. The theme of Christians not judging is one I hope to deal with in my novels. Someday I may even write a story about a character like Maggie.
Next up in my Advice for Novelists series, in which I ask authors, editors, agents and publicists the question:
"If you could say one thing to aspiring novelists, what would you say?"
...is an author who's published several popular novels. Her advice:
First, I'm going to pass along something Dee Henderson said to me long ago: Find that one thing that makes you unique, and then become really good at it. For example I love contemporary romance, with a touch of suspense, and I lived in Russia -- so I took that combination and wrote a series of books set in Russia, and because I knew my topic so well, it came through in my writing and gave me a unique voice. SO -- make a list of everything that makes you "unique" and then see if any of those topics can be developed into a novel.
Secondly -- keep a writing journal -- a collection of phrases, and plotlines and characterization techniques and even titles that draw your eye and particularly touch you as a writer, and take the time to figure out why. This collection will shape and sharpen your own writing as you hone your voice, and your stories.
Finally -- don't get stuck on one project. Keep moving forward with story ideas, keep learning, and keep writing. (and write lots of things - newsletters, blogs, for your church, your family -- everything counts when you're honing your skills!) If you are faithful to be a good steward of the writing gift you've been given, God will use it!
--Susan May Warren, author of The Noble Legacy series, Mission: Russia series, and more. Visit her online at her website to learn more.
I was listening to a teaching CD the other day by Rev. Dr. Ladonna Osborn and something she said really stuck out for me:
"Thinking for a Christian is waiting for the Holy Spirit to generate a creative idea in you."
What a profound statement.
As creative people we're constantly searching out our next story idea, our next blog entry :), our next letter to friends . . . but why is it that so often we dig and dig by ourselves without waiting to hear what God might be speaking to us? I'm just as guilty of this as the next person (see my recent blog entry Is it me or God?), so don't think I'm pointing fingers here.
I don't want to forget that God is just waiting to speak to me, and He does all the time. It's ME who either doesn't hear, or more often than not, doesn't take the time to pause and LISTEN.
As Christians, we're supposed to be a little bit different from everyone else. We're not supposed to think like the world. I encourage you to take time to pause and wait on the Lord at some point during your day today and listen to the ideas that pop up in your head. And don't let your mind talk you out of receiving a creative idea just because you think it's you and not God. Chances are it's the Holy Spirit nudging you, like He so beautifully does.
Think about it. Your next creative endeavor could come straight from the Lord Himself! Will you receive it?
I wisdom dwell with prudence, and find out knowledge of witty inventions. --Proverbs 8:12 (KJV)
Today in my Bible reading I came across a Scripture that hit me over the head. You know that type? You're reading along and all of the sudden something pops out? This is what I saw:
