How do you get inspired?

[agentfink]

I get inspired by reading books, comics and watching movies/tv... and real life of course!

But I like to think I am being active in my viewing. My husband and I like to talk about story building and character development, so a show gives us a chance to really dig deep into it. Reading a novel always gets my imagination going and gives me a springboard to add in my story.

With comics, always looking at how the page flows. Studying how writing and art combine together.

[carloswebcomic]

I don't. I sit down and brainstorm.
I have a method which is picking a subject then try to come up with a joke around it. I come up with 3 jokes to make an arc then a one off to clear my mind.
Rinse and repeat.

[02W1N]

Most of my inpiration though... has been from my youth. I had this strange skill that made me remember a lot of dreams in the past. And in such detail, I could write pages all morning after every night! Nowadays, it's a bit slimmed down. Cause of all the hard work and lazyness. XD But I occassionally daydream and see myself walking around in a new situation with things that could happen or go wrong. I like to think different and look at things with all kinds of different perspectives.
Ofcourse, Inpiration is often manipulated depending where the external sources come from. If I want to daydream that I'm flying, heck ya, seeya in the sky!

[Tiny_Waffle_of_Doom]

Mostly crap from life. Even if my comic is like four episodes long right now.

[indagold]

literally anything. I could be walking in a train station and be inspired by a weird person or a tree, or an image on a sign. I once found a design doodled on a desk in my high school and used it for design inspiration.

[joannekwan]

I get inspired by shows and movies I watch, music I listen to, people and places I pass by, anything and everything really.

[vocaloidno1fan]

im the same as joannekwan
i get inspiration from almost anything and everything- including my own emotions
the only thing i DON'T get inspiration from is schoolwork 0 - 0

[mac]

hmmm thoughts?? for my current series its just me venting, but generally ill just think up a thing then stuff happens

[emkay]

pretty much anything! i find specific inspirations related to the story itself and then there's art inspirations that inspire me to draw the story. the webcomic idea i'm working on right now is mythological, so i get specific inspiration from reading philosophical texts and my favorite myths, like Norse mythology.

then there are my art inspirations. fantasy comics with whimsical atmospheres, like A Matter of Life and Death, Slavonica, Spire, and The Firelight Aisle, really inspire me to draw more. and a few favorite artists too, like kinomatika, freckled-knights, lousysharkbutt...and way more but i don't feel like going through all 261 blogs i follow lol.

music is also inspirational if i can relate it to one of my characters. I Am Machine by Three Days Grace, Feel Invincible by Skillet, Control by Halsey, Undisclosed Desires by Muse, Unbreakable by Fireflight...there's a lot of good ones that i listen to and can picture the character(s) perfectly.

and there's also inspiration to be gathered from reading tutorials, watching educational videos, and just examining what other artists and writers do in their work. like @shazzbaa said in the picture, i'll read something and think 'ooh i should have a character or couple like that'. CinemaSins in particular has really made me go through my story and pick out all the plot holes and overused cliches.

[shaneoid77]

Ethics inspires me. I studied it at University and I find it fascinating. You'll find my current project on the surface looks like a cheesy superhero comic, and that's part of the fun. However, I'm aiming to tackle juxtaposed ethical stances, not just between the heroes and villains, but between every character.

What makes an action 'good'? Does it come down to the desire to do good? Or is it only the outcome which yield good results, regardless of the motivation? I could touch on the bigger pictures such as the conflicting stances of Utilitarianism vs. Deontology. Issue 3 coming has an ethical quandary which I hope readers can debate over. I feel Superhero comics are a great medium to work with these ethical conundrums because you can dramatise and exaggerate them to an extreme level.

On a visual level I find myself inspired by the extreme end of comic book art, athletic poses and potent builds. Again the Superhero genre I find especially good for building an all-round talent in comic artistry, because you not only get to draw people standing around but you also get to put them in such a variety of athletic poses and really get to know how the body and muscles look in them.

[timinabox24]

I have notebooks and lists full of random stupid thoughts I have during the day that I could potentially make into a story

[Louistrations]

Inspiration usually strikes when I'm in the middle of an important meeting at work; y'know, the ones that require my utmost attention. Or late at night when I'm trying to fall asleep...

[Isky]

You people inspire me, but video-games also helps.

[respheal]

Music. Definitely music. All of the major points and most characters in all of my stories have some song behind them.

For my current comic, the album Ever After by Marianas Trench was a major player. The idea of "toy soldiers" came from that album (although it went in a figurative direction...). Basically, there's a certain group of people referred to, in a derogatory manner, as "toy soldiers".

The song Myosotis by M2U & Nicode turned into the villain's theme song. Heavenly Blue from AldNoah Zero inspired the climax...yeah, it goes on. I've got this whole playlist.

[ahhvecadoes]

Playing the Sims, honestly. I use it as a story building tool and it's how I created the main characters of my current comic (two different save files tho).
I also RP as one of my characters currently to flesh her out better. If I get in a rut with writing scripts, I just go and do some stuff on there.

[Valalaraptor]

When I sit on the exercise bike for 20+ minutes at a time, I think about my comic so I don't have to think about being on the exercise bike for 20+ minutes. Music helps too.

[vongcw]

Reading books/comics and watching old computer games. And the odd movie. Recently just watched Alice:Madness Returns clips and the older American McGee's Alice. Loved those games (no 2 only for its visuals though).

Aetherwar is inspired by Lovecraftian tales. Even the title Dunharrow is a play of Lovecraft's the Dunwich Horror. The horror element of my story largely moves like a Lovecraft story, slow creeping, then all encompassing. I often go back and read some of his works free online.

But besides that, Neil Gaiman is a cannot be thrown away influence on how I write. Then there's Alan Moore's League of Extraordinary Gentlemen and Watchmen, that I always reread too. I'm not sure where I got my liking for slightly more contemplative subjects though. Huh....

[kencoon7]

I usually get my ideas when I am taking a shower.
I tried taking notes but the ink kept running all over the place so I stopped that.
Now I try to remember it until I am dry and out but then I forget to write it down...
Old age really isn't that much fun most of the time.

[Herofeeder]

Bathroom .go in to it without your phone .take a seat and dont try to read the products on the shelf next you.
thats how i get my material.
and i got to tell you its utter crap

[Misscoveredinpaint]

Going outside and interacting with people. It can be watching people on the street, or hanging out with friends. But If I don't go outside and experience new stuff my ideas get repetitive and old. Talking to other creative people really gets my thoughts going. Sharing ideas with a friend always inspires me to get out there and create!