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The Will to Create

I found this interesting quote the other day as I was browsing Goodreads: "We cannot will to have insights. We cannot will creativity. But we can will to give ourselves to the encounter with intensity of dedication and commitment. The deeper aspects of awareness are activated to the extent that the person is committed to the encounter." -- Rollo May People have asked, "Where do you get your ideas from?" I think it's a pretty common question that authors are asked, but the truth is that few of us have any clue what sparks creativity. This time two years ago, I had ZERO creative ideas. I had no desire to write any fiction, and my goal was to focus on the other areas of my life outside of writing. Then one day, I decided that I wanted to write again, and the ideas just started coming. So fast did they flow, in fact, that I had finished a comic book script, a novel, and the rough draft of The Last Bucelarii (Book 1): Blade of the Destroyer by March of this year. So it can't really be turned off and on at will. There is no way to say, "Today I want to come up with an awesome idea" and it will happen. There is no control over creativity and insight, but you can have control over your DESIRE to create. When I said, "I want to start creating again", my mind was suddenly flooded with ideas. I was committed to the idea of creating, and so my thoughts started heading in that direction. Soon I began to find connections and creative ideas in everything (video games, books, exercise, driving, etc.), and I can no longer turn off the flow of ideas. So, don't bother worrying about whether or not you CAN or CAN'T come up with good ideas, but focus on the DESIRE to create. When you shift your mind toward a desire to create, you'll find that it will come to your naturally. Be committed to that creativity, and it will happen!