Every author has their own way of viewing the things and experiences surrounding them in their lives, and believe it or not, even a simple pebble on the side of the road can be taken as a piece of inspiration for an author's future work. One can believe that everything that revolves around an author can be considered a puzzle piece for their bigshot inspiration, which can soon become the very foundation of their future novels. And this is, of course, second nature to Keri Stewart, the very author who will be featured in this article.
But this brings up a question, then—what inspires Keri to write in the first place? Well, the answer to this question is quite simple.
Keri stated in her interview with TAOT’s ambassadors that her inspirations mainly come from her own life, as well as her feelings and reactions to her experiences and life events. She added that this type of inspiration is fitting for her lyrical poetry, as her lyrical poetry is more emotive-based. Aside from her personal life experiences, nature is also what sparks her ideas to write.
“I live on a street that has wild blackberry bushes next to the sidewalk[,] and I find them to be so poetic, especially with all the beautiful dragonflies zooming around. In the summer [,] with their full bloom, it remains a wonderful place to find inspiration and feel poetic."
Of course, these are only two of the many inspirations Keri has that give her the drive to write new ideas for her poetry and short stories, and even social media such as TikTok serve as an inspirational tool for her to find more ideas to play around with, an example being a video that she later calls the “squirrel baptism”. Keri also noted in the interview that she keeps a list on her phone’s notes application, which includes every phrase, image, or event in her life that gives her inspiration.
Everyone knows that authors are formed from their experiences in life. Authors were once blank slates, too, but it all simply takes a person or an event to inspire them, igniting that spark that will soon bloom into a novelist, a poet, and more. In Keri's case, she mentioned that one of her friends inspired her to write in sixth grade, reasoning that at that time, most of her friends in her social circle were writers and would spend their time reading each other’s works or writing online.
“I remember a couple of times my friends and I asked our homeroom teacher if we could spend lunch in the classroom to write, and almost every morning in middle and high school [,] I would wake up at 5 a.m. just to get a couple hours of writing time before school started.”
It is not a surprise that at some point in an author’s journey in writing, it’s inevitable that one will encounter problems, especially in trying to find more inspirations that don’t share uncanny similarities with the previous ones. Keri has definitely experienced such a problem in her time as an author, no doubt, and expressed that writer's block or a lack of inspiration has happened more times than she can count. However, rather than viewing this as a problem, she views it as a mere part of the journey.
“A lot of the time[,] you can’t just wait for inspiration to find you. You have to put the effort in and find it for yourself. Sure, writing is fun and a great way to express yourself, but it is also a commitment to finding inspiration in the world around you.”
She expounded on this matter from her own perspective as well, saying that it’s “[...] beautiful to be able to find that inspiration for yourself because it really makes you more aware [of] and appreciate the world around you”. If there is one thing one can commend about this approach, it’s that it’s quite true that commitment plays a part in the journey of an author, and that inspiration will always start with the one who yearns for it.
Currently, Keri has finished her manuscript for her upcoming book entitled Frolicking on
Blackberry Lane and she hinted that it is set to be released on the 14th of January 2024. She explained how authors such as Gertrude Stein, E. E. Cummings, and William Carlos Williams inspired her to write this, and during the time she wrote her manuscripts, a plant pathology textbook also gave her inspiration alongside nature as a whole. “I knew that when I started writing this book[,] I wanted it to connect to nature so that it could be a book about feeling present in one’s life and connected to everything," Keri stated. For her, this book makes her feel present and expresses that, out of her published books, this may just be the one that means the most to her.
When authors write, naturally, feelings get in the way and even become one of the most powerful weapons an author can have when weaving their worlds with their pen. And, well, who says emotions cannot be inspirations? Keri definitely has something to say about this matter, expressing that gaining inspiration meant capturing sentiments in the process of writing. She explains this feeling to be something that she needs to really write down on paper, unable to stop the feelings from pouring down unless everything has been written down for her to see. Keri also adds that the feeling of being “inspired” often leads to her losing track of time as she gets lost in her own writing, but sometimes that feeling may dissipate. When it does, Keri’s solutions are to either play some tunes in the background or look through objects around her. “Sometimes the lack of inspiration can feel annoying[,] but I know that it’s my job to find inspiration[,] as it won’t always come to me,” Keri said.
But with all of this talk about inspiration, it never really works out unless there is motivation playing a part in a writer’s process of writing. So, Keri is asked what her motivations are for writing, and she tells us that her motivation comes from her love of wordplay and how words sound together. Keri finds the sound of reading the words aloud or in one’s mind beautiful and pleasing. However, above anything else, her motivation is also rooted in the sweet feeling of accomplishment after creating something that “didn’t exist until it was written down". “Amazingly, none of these poems could exist without me having thought about them and writing them down. I just think that the act of creation is such an interesting concept and actuality," Keri explained, finding this motivation of hers simple and yet quite mind-blowing to think about from time to time.
After this inspirational talk about an author’s inspirations, one can really comment on how an author’s inspiration can go a long way in the writing journey, but it also brings up a new question, especially for those who are still stuck trying to find the best inspiration to start with their stories. Will I ever find the inspiration I need for this story to happen? The answer? Keri brings to us some words of wisdom as someone who has been working through various types of inspiration, which led her to write so many poems from them alone.
“I always tell people to keep a list of everything that inspires them and to encourage them to be more aware of the things around them. It could be on a notes app, a journal, a sticky note, or even your arm with a pen. If you think of an idea[,] then it’s important to write it down to not forget it. It’s also important to keep track of what makes you inspired so that you will be more in tune with those things in the future. You never know where you’ll find inspiration unless you look for it.”
Well, there you have it. Inspiration is everywhere, but it comes to you when you let your determination and yearning flow through your soul, finding that inspiration that will soon be your foundation. Thank you, Keri, for your wisdom for our future writers and even current authors out there!
Our author, Keri Stewart, is a writer who has been going through this journey for nine years, and since January, she has published five poetry books under her name. She works as a poetry columnist for Outlander Zine, a content editor for Main Street Magazine, and the founder slash editor-in-chief of Meadow Mouse Zine. Her works have been featured in Potted Purple, Portrait of New England, and many more. Originally, she started writing fantasy and mystery novels up until high school, when she fell in love with poetry. Her style of poetry involves lyrical and free verse poetry that focuses more on evoking emotions in the reader than the plot of the poem itself. Aside from poetry, she has taken a liking to forming short stories that focus on surrealism. Apart from her life as a writer, outside the pen world she has created with her poems, she studies psychology and is a creative writing minor at the University of New Hampshire, and she takes an interest in movies, botany, and music.
Remember, dear authors who are reading this article, that inspiration is everywhere. If it shaped Keri Stewart to be the poet she is now from the inspirations revolving around her life whether physically or emotionally, then it can happen to you, too!
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