Spring As Your Source of Inspiration

Turku, FI

Dear writers,

Now that winter is saying the last goodbyes, another guest is entering the house: spring. And when spring is around, you can already feel it coming. Spring carries so many changes: it is like a peaceful chant that awakens nature, bringing it back to the light. And the birds are the ones preceding it, spreading the good news to the world. And then, the trees give life to little green gems, while the field adorns the grass with colourful flowers, which are like bows celebrating the gift of life. When spring comes, the air smells different, the sun shines differently, and the world looks different. As a writer, the changes in nature around us can be incredibly inspiring, not only because of all the new interesting details we see, but also because of what we feel inside. While every season carries with it specific characteristics and unique feelings, spring is definitely my favourite. There is a specific type of joy, that childlike happiness, that I associate with this season, and while on the one hand it brings serenity to my heart, on the other hand it makes me want to jump and bike and swim and run with my arms open. I can start doing so many things, as if I were doing them for the first time all over again. These kind of experiences not only brings so much light to your life, making you appreciate all the tiny gifts of this world, but they also put you in your character’s shoes when they try something for the first time, and you, as a writer, need to use the right words to describe the right feelings. Is writing not so much easier if you can live these experiences yourself? That does not mean that your character’s situation must be the same, but that your experience can serve as a source of inspiration: all the feelings you felt, all the tiny little details you noticed, all the adventures you have undertaken. 

Ask yourself the following questions, and then, if you want, write down the answers so you can come back when you are going to need them. You can make this your habit: every time a new season comes, carry a small notebook with you and take notes. There are so many wonders in the world, both small and big, and they keep changing, as you also do. As the seasons and the years go by, you will notice how inspiring certain seasons of life can be. Answer these simple questions:

1. What do I associate with [season]? What feelings or emotions (calm, free, oppressed, melancholic, joyful, stressed, anxious, etc.)? What activities (outdoors, indoors, etc.)? What sceneries (mountains, desert, plain, sea, sandy, rocky, wooded, etc.)? What type of people?

2. What am I noticing this [season]? What feelings? What changes around me? 

These two questions can help you reflect on your ideas and perceptions of seasons, compared to your direct experience of them.  

Your characters are not the only ones to observe and live in the world for the first time; people can do so too by looking at what surrounds them with childlike eyes. 

So dear writers, feel the spring coming as a wave of inspiration, and let yourself be awakened by it. Indeed, once a tree awakens, beautiful leaves start appearing, and in the same way, your stories can grow too.

- Chiara