​My son has the amazingly annoying habit of looking over my shoulder while I read, and since we get the newspaper on Sundays, he always reads over my shoulder. Today, he asked, “Who is Kamala Harris and what’s going on with her?” 
 
I looked at the column on the right and there was an announcement that she’s running for President. I relayed the message and his response surprised me. 
 
“Yes! Finally a woman and not just another man.” 
 
What prompted his excitement about a politician, I really don’t know. Maybe it was watching Captain Marvel last weekend. Maybe it was that he sees women in most leadership roles in his life since all of his teachers and doctors have been women—even his martial arts teachers have been women. Or maybe he has deep thoughts about gender in politics that go beyond our dining room. 
 
What struck me is that his viewpoint is so different than what I expected from him; he is nine after all. The article in the newspaper jumped out at him, whereas I glanced over it without taking notice. The whole idea that we would have different reactions to the same article struck me as interesting. 

​Why does this matter to writers?
 
Have you ever worried that spending time writing your book about the history of African-American aviators would go nowhere? Have you considered picking up a different hobby, worried that no one wants to read a book about driving Land Rovers off-road? Or what about the fantasy book series that has elements of history and science? Have you been concerned that publishers will laugh at the idea? 
 
Guess what: New and interesting ideas sell and they have the potential to sell well. 
 
Before J.K. Rowling was picked up for her Harry Potter series, publishers didn’t see a market for her books and thought of young adult fantasy as a money-losing genre. Before Ray Bradbury released Fahrenheit 451, the interest level in dystopian fiction had dried up. And before Stephen King published Carrie, no one could have predicted that the horror genre would be taken over by a Maine English teacher and become a best-selling sensation.  

​Is this true only of novels? No, not at all. 
 
Do you remember 2010? This was the time when films made it to the box office because they were written, produced, and directed by men. And their protagonists needed to be men, especially white men. But then Frozen came along, and suddenly Disney broke its formula by offering a story about sisters saving each other and any love story was secondary. Then we got Hidden Figures, Diary of a Teenage Girl, and Wonder Woman. It seemed like out of nowhere people were excited to see films made by and about women. 
 
About two weeks ago, a writer who had attended one of my memoir workshops reached out to me. He asked if his book idea was worth pursuing. Did it have any possibility of being picked up by a publisher? Was there any kind of market for his ideas? Would anyone want to read about his life? 

The answer is yes. Definitely yes. 
 
When you have an idea that is different, there may not be an open market in the first moment that you have the thought. You may not have the easiest time finding an agent or a publisher who is ready to take on that project and run with it. But that doesn’t mean the story won’t find its audience. Because if you have an idea that people want to read, then you have a market waiting to be tapped.

Just as my son surprised me that he wants to have a female President, new ideas can be refreshing, interesting, and liberating. Sometimes we get so wrapped up in what we think is true that we don’t always open ourselves up to what could become true. 
 
Who knew ten years ago that female-centered films would take over Hollywood? I don’t know that anyone predicted the change in the industry, but when it happened, the whole field shifted. 
 
The same can happen with your book idea. Just because your book doesn’t have a clear market or audience today doesn’t mean that it won’t have an audience when you are ready to publish. 
 
People are on the lookout for new ideas, and when something appealing comes along, people tend to jump on it. 
 
So, keep your pen at the paper. Keep working on your book and stick with your stories, even if the ideas seem unusual or unpopular. We can’t predict today what people will want to read tomorrow, so give your ideas the time and energy to develop. 
 

​Ever since I can remember, I’ve heard a second voice in my head. We all have the usual inner monologue, but creative people oftentimes have a second voice that narrates the creative process. I’ve referred to mine as the nuisance, the artist, and most recently, the beast. 
 
At the least opportune moments, the beast comes up with amazingly creative ideas and starts narrating in my head while I’m busy with another task. My beast is especially chatty while I’m driving or working out at the gym. And naturally, my beast never chooses to share incredible story ideas when I’m sitting at the computer. She only talks when I’m without paper and pen. 
 
The ironic thing is that I feel like I would lose my creative energy altogether if I didn’t have that second voice in my head. Without her, I might limit my pursuits and stop writing altogether. When she starts rattling off an idea in my head, the drive to write explodes and writing is all I can think about. She can drop a few words on me, and in an instant, all I can think about is getting back to my book and dedicating more time to the craft.  

​If you have an inner creative beast, then you know what I’m talking about. That inner voice that whispers sweet everythings in your ears and seems to have the pathway to exceptional creativity laid out in front of her. That’s the one. 
 
A lot of writers have talked about this situation. Elizabeth Gilbert gave a Ted Talk where she discusses her writing process and how she is overcome with magical ideas and must stop everything she is doing to write them down before they’re lost. Maya Angelou wrote about being overwhelmed with a creative idea from an inner voice and having no choice but to stop and write when the moment hit. 
 
I used to ignore my beast, but after a while, I realized that if I fed her, my creative process became more efficient and productive. I can’t necessarily pull the car over mid-commute to collect the ideas she whispers, but I can support the creative process when I’m not writing. 

​Here are some ways I feed that inner voice: 

Get Up and Move
 
Ray Bradbury talked about walking as a vital element in his creative process. He walked most nights after the sun went down and even got himself into trouble. As the story goes, one night police officer questioned him extensively about why he was walking around town at night (which later became the impetus behind his short story “The Pedestrian”). 
 
Of course, many writers are active and make a point of getting outdoors. Stephen King walks every day. Henry David Thoreau, Isabella Bird, and Sarah Orne Jewett were all known to be outdoor enthusiasts. Of today’s writers, Jon Krakauer, Tom Wolfe, and Jim Carroll are all active outside of their writing. 
 
Writers are well-known for spending long hours sitting at the desk, but getting up and moving are likely ways to feed the writing beast. When you move your body, you alter your body chemistry by releasing endorphins, deepening your breath, releasing toxins, and boosting energy. Exercise is a personal choice: Some writers are drawn to weight training, whereas others prefer a hike through the trees. 
 
I’ve found that when I exercise, my thoughts are clearer, my stress level is lower, and my ability to focus on writing is higher. Spending time moving the body can help ignite your creativity.   
 

Create Something Different
 
Most of the creative people I know do double duty. They write, but they also crochet, paint, or garden. The writing process isn’t just finding the right words for the right piece; it’s also fueling the fire on a continual basis so that you can keep writing. 
 
Many writers deal with some form of writer’s block. It sometimes looks like staring at a blank page with no ideas on what to do. Other times, it feels like a total lack of motivation to write anything. It can also look like a downward spiral where each day it’s harder to write. 
 
Sometimes, it can feel overwhelming just to sit at a desk, and sometimes writers lack the mojo to start writing anything. When this happens, feed the creative beast with some other type of creativity. Stop writing, create something else, and then come back to your writing.
 
Crochet, garden, carve wood, restore that old motorcycle, take photographs, draw. Whatever your back-up creativity process is, use that as a way to feed the creative beast. When you engage in a creative exercise, it opens up the pathway to writing and allows you to restart that engine.  

​Read Outside your Genre
 
Even though it’s hard to make time to read, we have more reading options available to us than ever. Some of my coworkers listen to audiobooks while commuting, I have several friends who use an e-reader, and a colleague swears by listening to podcasts. 
 
Although I believe that reading ink on a paper page is the ultimate reading experience, I don’t think that means other forms of reading and ingesting material should be discounted. 
 
I always have an audiobook going in my car, and I get a lot of ideas for my writing from listening to audio books. I read the newspaper on Sundays. I'm reading at least three books at all times. 
 
The benefits we gain from reading are nothing short of phenomenal: developing empathy, expanding our understanding of other cultures, extending our professional development, and increasing comprehension and processing abilities. 
 
Reading also supports the creative process. It feeds the creative beast. When we read outside of our genre, we come across many tools to use in our writing: different sentence structures, facts and opinions that we could integrate into our stories, methods of description, and different ways to present ideas. 
 
Sometimes, reading in the same genre that we write can stifle our creativity. It can limit our thoughts and even encourage us to overly imitate another writer’s style. In contrast, reading outside of our genre can create new pathways for ideas, style, and presentation. 
 
The little voice in the back of your head can be a powerful tool when you’re putting the pen to the page. If you support your writing process by feeding the creative beast, then your process is likely to be more efficient and productive. The creative process includes more than just writing. It is also about becoming better versions of ourselves, expressing our creativity in different ways, and learning on an ongoing basis. Feed your creative beast, and may the ideas keep flowing onto the page for you.