Reading to Break Writer's Block

I can identify with a point Thomas Jeffries makes in his article featured on Boundless today about the best response to writer's block. He writes:

I need to read.

That's right, no fresh air for me. No vigorous exercise. No peaceful meditation. My remedy for writer's block is a healthy dose of quality prose, maybe even some poetry.

I'm going through this right now trying to get a book written before July. At the time I should be writing in every spare moment, I have a stack of books on my bedside table and more on order from the library. But that's what pushes me on and stretches me beyond my own little world.

I also appreciate the point Thomas makes about which book can best stretch writers. He continues:

Sometimes it's something I've read before, other times I go back to the old standbys — classic pieces that never fail to inspire. Occasionally I'll go back a couple millennia or more, because — despite the barriers of time and translation — modern writers can still learn plenty from the most inspirational (and best-selling) book of all.

Over the years, I've read writing coaches who find inspiration for their writing from the Bible even if they aren't believers. They praise its simplicity, its strong appeal to the senses, its stories and its poetry. I've been able to appreciate more about this recently as I've been digging into the Literary Study Bible that Crossway produced as a companion to their ESV translation. The insights in this study Bible go beyond entertaining English majors like me, they remind us all of the creativity the Holy Spirit brought to communicating the logos.

For the writers among our readers, how has the Bible inspired your writing?

Comments

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1. A writer said the following at 11:42 AM on Apr 30:

The Bible actually makes things daunting, considering it has about every story element inside.

That and the fact that it says "there is nothing new under the sun."

Oh, well, it's OK to be beaten by the best. :P

2. Andrea-Elena said the following at 2:14 PM on Apr 30:

Well, so glad you asked, Steve. Just today I reread a poem I wrote that was inspired by several chapters in the Book of Exodus (and probably quite influenced by A Woman's Heart: God's Dwelling Place Bible study, by Beth Moore).

Pictures in my mind, similar to paintings that serve as illustrations in a children's book, stirred up the thoughts and drove the inspiration for the piece.

To read it, click here: "Stories at Bedtime."

Another passage that cries out to be illuminated via poetry is Psalm 19. The metaphors color a vivid description of Christ---at times with gentle, flowing brush strokes that ribbon down one column of the page and up to the other page; at other times with bold, deep lines like borders and outlining. (Hmm... are we talking writing, painting, or embroidering here? Heehee!!!)

Ah yes, come sibs in Christ: let us traverse together the wonderful world of metaphor!!!

3. Michele said the following at 2:21 PM on Apr 30:

Back in college, I signed up for a British Literature course that ended up being a survey of British poetry, from the Elizabethan era through Milton. Some of the hardest studying I ever had to do was in that course - we studied Spenser's The Faerie Queene for nearly 1/3 of the semester, because my professor had done her dissertation on it. To this day, the only way I was able to connect with that poem (and most of the others we read) was because of the Bible. Our professor demanded that each of us have access to a King James translation, so that we could understand where the writers of that age were coming from. Since then, I always turn back to the Bible for inspiration, even if I don't think I need it. If it was good enough for Shakespeare, Spenser, and Milton (and their cohorts), it's more than good enough for me.

Thanks for sharing these articles on writing this week. They've been tremendously inspirational and helpful!

4. Sarah P. said the following at 3:29 PM on Apr 30:

The Bible inspires me because it is the story of the world. No extraneous material included; Incas and Aztecs are fascinating, but they and all the rest of history are basically flesh on the essential skeleton. In this Book, all the rest has been pared away so that Jesus is clear and bare to the naked eye.

The Bible provides us a model of epic, of poetry, and of essays.

Ultimately, it shows us the kind of story that Christians are capable of writing - tragicomedy. Those who can't see beyond this world, if they are honest, can only write tragedy.

5. Rachael said the following at 3:34 PM on Apr 30:

I like that Jeffries suggested to look to the Bible for inspiration.

I often feel inspired, but I don't always immediately (or ever) record my thoughts. I take notes during the sermons and Sunday School lessons. Sometimes these serve as inspirations for blog posts. Recently I've felt inspired by the story of Mary of Bethany because her story was a topic in a Bible study, and I guess my venue for writing about ended up being a comment on this blog :). I may blog about it sometime in the future.

I want and need to spend more personal time in the Word, though, and use that more often for inspiration.

Thank you for the reminder.

6. Riley said the following at 5:39 AM on May 1:

"...gird up the loins of your mind..." 1 Pet.1:13

Just beautiful.

7. Andrea-Elena said the following at 11:49 AM on May 1:

Riley, excellent pointing out of a meaty metaphor. =) Other than as beautiful, how did that particular comparison strike you? How would you explicate it?

Anyone else know a nice'n'chewy metaphor from the Bible that you'd like to share?

8. Eliza said the following at 1:01 PM on May 1:

I haven't counted, but I'd bet $50 that the most commonly used metaphor in the Bible is that of prostitution or adultery...

9. Heather said the following at 11:56 PM on May 1:

Proverbs has lots of good metaphors. "The king's heart is like rivers in the hand of the Lord," and the one about how someone who sings songs to a troubled heart is like taking off your jacket on a brisk day. (I have trouble quoting the last one verbatim). I try to emmulate the feel of the Psalms and the Proverbs (especially the ones from Lemuel "which his mother taught him").

Gerard Manly Hopkins, George Herbert, John Donne and Christina Rossetti wrote beautiful devotional poems that remind me of the Psalms. I think that's what makes them so good.

10. Pete said the following at 5:09 PM on May 6:

I came to this site because a number of my classmates did for a paper we're all doing for our law and society class. The topic is gay marriage. Please, I don't need two cents from everyone on how to write this, as I have my own convictions. However, if you read the first line below, where it says, "Note: Links to external sites . . . blanket endorsement . . . " I sometimes feel that, in this class, my faith is under attackand almost feel like I'm supposed to endorse gay marriage (no way). The professor used to attend, years ago, a C&MA church, studying to be in the ministry; I did ask him why he left, as I had been before burning out and almost not wanting anything to do with God.

I had to write a paper a few weeks ago on Karen Armstrong (google her), who is supposedly an "expert" on something. I had to check her credentials out and found that, basically, she had an ax to grind, so I wrote on this. I have no idea how I did on the paper (will find out tomorrow when I get it back during my final). I just felt that faith was under attack, as was God and I had to do the best thing I knew how to do and that was to rip apart her credibility and stand up for God in the paper.

Now, as a writer myself, am staring at the screen, trying to write this lengthy paper on this subject. Sorry for ranting, I'm just kinda frustrated.