Freelance Writing

Water is my natural element. I was born under one of the water signs (for those who care about such things) and my name is from the latin: ros (dew), marinus (sea), or dew of the sea. I've always lived within easy distance of the river and grew up a water-baby in a sea-filled outdoor swimming pool.

I find the sea calming, but it can also be wild and dangerous at times. There are hidden depths and areas where the current can pull someone down. Yet there is the beautiful sensation of walking along the edge of a sandy shore, with gentle water lapping over bare feet.

Then there is the well-known saying that 'still waters run deep' with all the connotations that might suggest.

So why not explore your own natural element to find creative ideas for a short story, a poem, a painting, or whatever it inspires.

'Sit in reverie, and watch the changing color of the waves that break upon the idle seashore of the mind.'                                              Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

'All streams run to the sea, but the sea is not full; to the place where the streams flow, there they flow again.'                                               Ecclesiastes 1:7

Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum is an ideal venue for the creative mind. Paintings, sculpture, ancient civilisations, once majestic animals and birds, astronomical genius - everything has the potential to release a writer's creativity.

So far, I've written two stories inspired by separate paintings and an article has been published about another. Instead of staring at a blank screen, why not spend a morning now and then being surrounded by such inspiration at a gallery near you.

'Our greatest experiences are our quietest moments.'                          Nietsche

All of the arts inspire my writing and creativity, but sometimes it is only music that can touch the heart. My husband plays the piano and we've established that I most love songs that are in a minor key. Even if the words are not spiritual, this is the kind of music that touches me most deeply. My favourite classical music is from the Baroque period: Bach, Albinoni, Vivaldi, Handel. Even when I'm writing, I like to have music playing in the background. If I can find something that fits in with the mood or period of whatever I'm working on then that aids the creative process even more! My favourite type is Scottish and Irish Celtic music, Medieval sounding music, Hayley Westerna, Enya, and selected pop music now and then.

If you are stuck for an idea for a story or poem, why not take the lyrics of a song and let the words inspire a completely new storyline. It might be a single word or a line that takes your creative mind in a different direction.

'The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart.'                                                                              Helen Keller

'Here will we sit and let the sounds of music creep in our ears: soft stillness and the night become the touches of sweet harmony.'                                                William Shakespeare

Animals and birds, mountains and hills, flowers and plants, seas and seasons - what a rich source of ideas and visual stimuli for creative writers and all for free. Of course we can travel to other countries to add to the variety on our own doorstep, but there is such abundance that it matters not where you live. How often do we notice the detail? I need to practise my own observation skills and what better way to do it than enjoy nature's own gifts in the great outdoors.

When writing fiction, it is essential to have a setting for the story - which season is it? What type of flaura and fauna does it have? Is it in a town or in the country, or at the seaside?

 'Nature is painting for us, day after day, pictures of infinite beauty if only we have eyes to see them.'                                   John Ruskin