Daily Inspiration

Prompt: "Apparently, my coffee cup is a ninja."

Suggested Listening: Fatal Tragedy - Dream Theatre

Quote: Other things may change us, but we start and end as family. - Unknown




Write a scene that isn't supposed to be read. It may be the antagonist's first act of villany, or the protagonist's last bathroom break before the climax. Take yourself out of your comfort zone for this one scene just to see what happens.

Daily Inspiration

Prompt: "What's the monkey for?"

Suggested Listening: Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - The Beatles

Quote: Listening to cool music does not make you cool. -Maddox



There's a fine line between devotion and obsession. Don't let your devotion to writing be an obsession - allot yourself a certain amount of time in front of your notebook or keyboard and once that time has passed, don't go back to it until tomorrow. Want to type more? Want to keep writing? Go ahead - but when it becomes a need to continue instead of a desire, give yourself a pat on the back for what you've already done and leave your work where it is.

Again, I promise that it will be there when you get back.

Daily Inspiration

Prompt: "Are you going somewhere, or are suitcases in living room the new "It" thing for decorating?"

Suggested Listening: This Love This Hate - Hollywood Undead

Quote: You either need to get fast enough that I'm not stepping on you, or get out of my way so it isn't an issue. - Yours truly, Seriah




The Mighty. If you've never seen it, you're missing out on something big. It's an inspirational movie about a dim-witted giant of a boy, and a brainiac kid with a degenerative condition who create an amazing symbiotic relationship. There's a line near the very end that every writer should be able to relate to:

He showed me I could read a book, so maybe I could write one too.

Sometimes, in order to keep writing, we need to close the notebook or turn off the computer and go look at what somebody else has written. (Yeah, you can totally cheat with this. "Why, just look at how hard somebody must have worked on the script for this TV show!" ) Just take it easy for a few days and read a good book.

Daily Inspiration

Prompt: There are invisible pink unicorns in your living room.

Suggested Listening: 21 - The Cranberries

Quote: About a year ago, out of the blue, I just wrote a bunch of songs. - Rick Moranis



We all need some nice, relaxing time to ourselves. You can't find it when you're out and about living your lives, and it's hard to find it when you're sitting behind your desk and glaring at a story that just doesn't seem to want to be written yet. The solution? Step away from the project - slowly, no need to alarm anybody - and go take a bath. Doesn't have to be long or romanticized with candles and bath salts, but a bath will help wash away all the negative thoughts that are keeping your writing muse from being heard.

Daily Inspiration

Prompt: The daily Soup & Sandwich combo.

Suggested Listening: Thunder Rolls - Garth Brooks

Quote: Through music we may wander where we will in time, and find friends in every country. - Helen Thompson



Characters need hobbies. Writers, more often than not, need distractions. Go to the local community college, rec centre, or the local Y, and sign up for a class. Try something you've never considered doing before - if you've never spun clay, sign up for a pottery course; try knitting or cross stitching; quilting, embroidery, shoe-making, fashion design, and painting are all good choices. Join a spin class or try your hand at Yoga. You can even validate getting yourself a gym membership. Doing something like this accomplishes two things:

One: It provides a scenario you might not have thought about before, and maybe inspires you in a way you didn't think was possible from behind your desk. Maybe a secondary character is a closet karate guy, or has an obsession for collecting stamps from WWII Europe.

Two: It gives you a chance to get out of your chair at least once a week and do something. Writing is important, but don't chain yourself to your desk.

Don't have the money or time to join one of those classes? Then pick a day of the week and every day, just go for a walk.

Daily Inspiration

Prompt: Two chairs on the lawn.

Suggested Listening: Prelude 12/21 - AFI

Quote: Compassion is not weakness, and concern for the unfortunate is not socialism. - Hubert H. Humphrey



Reward yourself. If you meet your daily wordcount, buy yourself something nice - like chocolate or ice cream. Finished all your goals for the week? Take the weekend off and go camping or something. Don't try to punish yourself for forgetting a day or missing a goal, just consider it a preemptive reward and spend the next day or week working to validate it.

Daily Inspiration

Prompt: A garden in an alley.

Suggested Listening: What Are You Looking For - Sick Puppies

Quote: Words mean more than what is set down on paper. It takes a human voice to infuse them with deeper meaning. - Maya Angelou


Take from the above quote what you will, but I've always found it to mean that if you believe in something you're writing, you need to be able to vocalize it. If what you're writing makes your blood sing and your spirit soar, say it. Explain your ideas to other people, get a movement going.

Today, take what you've written and read it out loud to yourself. Don't edit, don't revise, just read it out loud. You can even give your characters funny voices for the dialogue, if you want to.

Daily Inspiration

Prompt: An alien the size of a grape hiding in the produce section of a supermarket.

Suggested Listening: The Assumption Song - Arrogant Worms

Quote: Because I could not stop for Death,
He kindly stopped for me -
The carriage held but just Ourselves-
And Immortality - Emily Dickinson



Can't bear to look at the screen anymore? Is nothing flowing right? Go ahead and leave. Go about with the rest of your day and let out all the negative thoughts. A day away from the screen won't kill you and your story won't magically vanish because you aren't there working on it. Don't worry about losing a day, or missing your wordcount goal, or anything like that.

Take care of yourself before you take care of anything else.

Daily Inspiration

Prompt: A willing participant in a dangerous game.

Suggested Listening: Need You Now - Lady Antebellum

Quote: Hating people is like burning down your own house to get rid of a rat. ~Henry Emerson Fosdick




Don't look back. No matter what you've written previously, keep going forwards. Editing fixes all evils. Don't let yourself get bogged down in what needs to be fixed before the project has been completed - once you're finished, print it out, take your editing pens, and make the thing look like a dying, bloody animal if you want. But don't change a thing until you type "The End."

Daily Inspiration

Prompt: "When the fire went out, strange orbs of light began appearing."

Suggested Listening: Oceano - Josh Groban

Quote: "Life is what happens to you when you're busy making other plans." - John Lennon



If you're having a slow day - can't focus, too many distractions, too many self-imposed walls - get away from the desk and step out into the world. Try hiking the local nature trails, or just visiting the nearest garden, even if it's your own. Stopping and smelling the flowers can do wonders for relaxing your mind and helping to get your creative juices flowing again. Why not grow some ivy or a flowering plant in your writing area?

Daily Inspiration

Prompt: Ice Cream in the freezer that has an expiry date of August 4th, 1985

Suggested Listening: May It Be - Enya

Quote: "I'm not ready to die. It petrifies me. I go alone. I go to a place I don't know. It might be painful. It might be the end. My thought is that it is the end." William Shatner




Think of your writing area as a train station, and your physical body as the train. Now make yourself a schedule to stop at your writing "station" every day, at the same time every day, for the same amount of time every day, and build up a routine. Once you have this set pattern of arriving, writing, and departing, it will be easier for you to write every day and keep the pattern going.

Miss a day? Arrive early, or late? Don't worry, the trains don't always run on time either, but they always arrive eventually.

Daily Inspiration

Prompt: A tarnished silver ring abandoned on a restaurant table.

Quote: Hold your own, know your name, and go your own way. Details in the Fabric - Jason Mraz


A writer's tools are like extensions of our souls. Let your tools reflect your personality. For the next few weeks, skip the five dollar coffee and the two dollar muffin and save up for a leather-bound notebook and an engraved pen with your name on it. Using beautiful, quality utensils can do wonders for your self-esteem as a writer, too.

Remember: You are worth it.

The Introduction

The Happy Notes is a companion blog to Leading Into It (a list of alphabetized titles) and Post It Notes (an idea-generator blog) and was created as a resource for writers who have found themselves running a little short on creativity or ideas.

The Happy Notes is a collection of visual and written prompts, inspirations, and motivational quotes to keep your fingers attached to the keyboard or the pen in your hand. Updating (almost) daily, there will always be something here to keep you inspired to write whatever it is you're writing.

Enjoy!

~Seriah