Screenwriting : Feeding the Spark: keeping the flame burning by Elle Bolan

Elle Bolan

Feeding the Spark: keeping the flame burning

We talk a lot about the art of screenwriting, story craft and mechanics, pitching, loglines, our work.

But I want to know what feeds that creative soul of yours. What do you do that is NOT writing related to feed your creative soul?

Me? I play music, I paint, and... I do photography. Micro ecosystems and flames, for the most part. It's just a hobby I really enjoy, but it feeds my artistic meter.

Here's why. Writing can be exhausting, frustrating, and stressful when it's work. Deadlines, rejections, pressure. I think our hobbies we do just for us are just as important to our writing as the words themselves.

We must feed our spark. Keep the fires burning. For me, it's photography. What feeds you?

Maurice Vaughan

I watch videos, movies, and shows, Elle Bolan. I also look up things online for fun (it feeds my spark too), look at pictures online, daydream, and listen to music.

Juliana Philippi

Elle Bolan I meditate and sungaze in the mornings, I jog, I love to dance! I Flamenco dance, salsa dance, and do Zumba. I also just watch new shows and movies and enjoy being an audience member, regrouping and remembering the why...

Elle Bolan

@Juliana oh, I love dancing. It's catharsis in motion!

Elle Bolan

@Maurice, what kind of music do you like?

Maurice Vaughan

All kinds, Elle Bolan. Hip-hop, rock, R&B, classical, etc.

Bram Christian

Elle Bolan my favorite thing to to is go to the movies. I live the theater, and I believe there is where the true magic happens from the moment you step into the theater getting that first whiff of popcorn as I excitedly wait for the movie to begin and prior to that seeing the previews of the extraordinary films soon to be released and imagining seeing the film I make up in the big screen.

Elle Bolan

Bram Christian you know, I always fall asleep in the theater. I can't stay awake! I don't understand why, but I go out before act 1 hits full swing. Every time.

Bram Christian

Elle Bolan (chuckles) I totally understand as I’ve been there a few times but I stretch in my seat and take deep breaths to reinvigorate my energy.

Elle Bolan

Isn't that called snoring? Haha I kid, I kid.

Meriem Bouziani

Much of what I’ve developed so far comes from years of listening to podcasts and watching science and philosophy channels on YouTube. I’ve reached a point where I no longer revisit them, so perhaps it’s time to seek new material to spark fresh ideas.

Meriem Bouziani

your photo is so cute I love it

Elle Bolan

I took that one in a little nature reserve near my city @Meriem Bouziani. I have a love for tiny things. I have some of the coolest slime mold photos too.

Visiting new interests for fresh ideas is a great method! Keeps the gears turning.

Meriem Bouziani

Yeah we need to refresh our imagination all the time Elle Bolan

Michael Dzurak

I listen to and watch ASMR with images of a world similar to what I am writing about such as a futuristic city.

CJ Walley

I make replica props/weapons and convert toy vehicles into bluetooth speakers. Here's a rocket launcher I recently made.

Maurice Vaughan

That's cool, CJ Walley! The rocket launcher looks real.

Elle Bolan

@Michael oh, what ASMR sounds do you like??

Elle Bolan

@CJ Walley whoa! That's seriously cool! That rocket launcher is very convincing. And you turn rc cars into speakers??

Kirsty Louise Joyce

I dance, as that feeds my soul and is also a great way to clear energetic blocks!! A few years ago, I was also creating small arty gifts, e.g. scrabble & button art, family trees, and themed 'messages in a bottle' gifts.

CJ Walley

Elle Bolan, yeah, I take toy vehicles I find at charity shops into little portable bluetooth speakers and give them to people as gifts. I'm such a geek. Here's a VW Transporter and A-Team van I recently did.

Maurice Vaughan

They look incredible, CJ Walley! That's a great idea! Have you thought about using them in your movies too?

Elle Bolan

I'm so jealous of that A-team van! It would look great with mine and my husband's vintage toy collection. He's gonna freak when I show him. @CJ Walley

Aleksandar Lahtov

I work out, keeping my mind fresh and clear for new creative inspirations.

John Fife

I like to draw and paint and cartooning. I've been drawing and sketching since I was young so it serves as my solace.

Mark Films

Grinding 24/7 with extreme focus...

Michael Dzurak

Elle Bolan My favorite sound is rain. Coupled with a good graphic or video, window view or walk through a city, it's very soothing for me. Puts all else on the backburner for a while and lets me focus better.

Erik Gagnon

I sneak away to my vinyl album collection, find a classic that fits my mood, and work on a jigsaw puzzle. Removes all the noise in my head and gives me a fresh start to tackle the world when I reemerge.

Banafsheh Esmailzadeh

I listen to music mainly and space out lol, or watch/read something and space out. I rediscovered Kill Hannah and still love them as much as I did in high school, and as an adult I really appreciate how romantic most of the lyrics are. It’s waking me up in so many ways :D

Jim Boston

Elle, I like to use music to feed that creative soul in me...whether it's listening to music or performing it. (Mostly, for me, it's listening.)

Kseniia Zhuravleva

I used to be inspired by movies. Now, writing is work for me, so as soon as I start writing, the inspiration comes on its own.

Other topics in Screenwriting:

register for stage 32 Register / Log In