The Secret of Happiness

This really doesn't have much to do with writing. But at the same time it does. If writing and going through all of this doesn't make you happy then why do it? I would urge all of you to do things; find the things that make you happy and do them! Go after them with all of your heart! I have struggled with depression like symptoms for many years and the one thing that I do that almost always cheer me up is writing. Even if I just write down a scene from something I watched on TV, a short story based on one of the many characters that I've invented with my siblings.

Recently I found a new musical (first thing that you need to need to know about me is that musicals or anything Broadway related is my favorite thing) called Daddy Long Legs and my favorite song is called The Secret of Happiness. Just listening to it reminds me that the large problems going on around me don't have to bring me down. I posted the video and the lyrics so I highly recommend that you check them out. Enjoy your night and the days to come this week! Let me know what you think of the song (and if you want any musical suggestions on what to listen to (: )

I've discovered,
the secret of happiness is,
Learning how to glide
I've discovered,
the secret of happiness is,
Just enjoy the ride...
Don't let your journey be tainted by pride and...
I've discovered,
the secret of happiness is,
not to mourn the past
I've discovered,
the secret of happiness is,
not to run too fast!
You can still beat them by coming in last,
cause,
the secret, the secret of happiness is,
I've discovered,
the secret of happiness is,
not to be afraid,
I've discovered,
the secret of happiness is,
all illusions fade!
Don't fear the future, you'll just be delayed, cause,
The secret, the secret of happiness is,
living in the now,
Living in the time it takes to blink, I think, is how,
we're meant to be living...
I've discovered,
the secret of happiness is,
following my will...
I've discovered, the secret of happiness is,
though we can run that hill,
happiness comes when we learn to be still, and,
the secret, the secret of happiness is...
the secret of happiness is clear,
the secret of happiness is near,
the secret of happiness is here...

Where to Find Inspiration: Pictures

This is the first part of my "Where to Find Inspiration" series. A lot of people I know struggle with how and where to find inspiration to write. I also struggle with this sometimes. Whenever this happens to me is usually the worst times because when I have nothing to write about that's when I want to write.

I describe my feelings as having an itch to write. I need to write it feels like. I will get on my laptop open up a new Word document or grab one of my notebooks and I feel all read to write but then I realize that I have no ideas and I just stare at the blank screen or page and feel utterly stupid and useless. 

When I have a purpose or an idea to write I can power through ten plus pages in an hour. But when my muse leaves me I get nothing done, or I end up writing the same line over and over again in new forms trying to get something down on the paper.

Now with this inspiration ideas they won't always work. I don't have a magical elixir to solve writers block, This is just something that I try when I'm still left with a blank page. If you continue to stare at something and nothing comes to you let me give you one other piece of advice: Take a break. Go for a walk, get some water, grab a snack, call someone in your family. Just do something to distract yourself from your writing and when you come back to it the hours or a couple days later; your eyes are fresh and you're not so frustrated.

One area that might be able to help you find inspiration is to find pictures. I use Pinterest because that makes sense to me but you can literally use anything. Tumblr, facebook, twitter good old fashioned Google. Even finding some old books and looking at the pictures might get your mind working.

For my current book project I made a separate account just for my characters, the places, the different social classes. When I'm writing and I get to a road block I can log on and then look some things over and usually one of the pictures I find inspire me to work on a new scene of fix up an old one. (Link to Merchament Inspiration is here to help give you a guidline if you really like this method XD).

I hope that this helps with some of your writers block! Let me know if you do anything that I suggest or if you like what you see with my Merchament boards (more details to come of that project!) Inspiration can come from the most unlikely of places. I'll write more about those in the next couple days. Thanks for reading everyone!

The What If Questions

Starting a blog is a lot harder than I anticipated let me tell you. First you have to design it. Then you have to make sure all of your social media sites and your biographies are in order. Finally you have to plan what you want to write. What is your voice? What do you want to tell people about yourself. What parts of your inner soul are you okay with sharing with the world? Starting a blog is a lot deeper than what it appears to be.

But I also feel this feeling of anticipation. What if no one likes me? What if I post these things and no one reads it? As a writer there are a lot of 'what if' questions that go through your mind. And honestly you can't get caught up in the 'what if' because then you will always have a reason not to write. Or you will write but you will never share it with the world.

Keeping your words, your voice hidden is no way to live though. There is a story, a poem, a piece of art that is just waiting to be shared inside of you. It's a piece that only you can say. Even if you only share it with one or two people you have no idea how that could impact someone.

The what if questions can either pull you down or lift you up; because they work both ways. You could always see the negative side to the questions. Or you can have it inspire you. "What if someone reads what I wrote?" "What if someone actually connects with my message?" No one can predict the future. And you never know what could happen before you try.

Throughout this blog I am going to be exploring a few different things:

• What it means to be an author
• How the heck I am going to get published someday
• Tips and advice that I have to share with you
• Random things that I adore that I think need to be shared with the world

Leave below any comments, questions, thoughts, corrections about what you read. And if  you ever need someone to share your work with and have no one else I would love to hear from you. Thanks for reading everyone!