Totally off-topic: Has anyone else noticed the moon has been blue recently? But inspiration? Maybe! EDIT: That is Blue Child! Back from the swirling Nether. And I knew this, but for some reason I am a noob. ><
I use the term “inspiration” loosely, as I feel it has multiple meanings – both narrow and broad. You can be inspired to do something specific. For example, a gorgeous sunset might inspire a particular poem or painting of that sunset. But you can also be inspired more generally. My post about writing quotes for inspiration is an example.
Most times, I find general inspiration most helpful, as it often kicks me in the pants just enough to continue me on my merry writing way.
Two more inspirations of the broader category came to me today. One was from my favorite Warlock, Pon, of Fel Concentration (who also happens to be one of my awesome guildies!), and a comic she sited by Oatmeal about the writing life.
The second was a post on WoW Insider. Not only was it fascinating to hear about someone who actually got to live and breathe the makings of the game that inspires so many of us, but I really liked the fact she included a Top 5 for aspiring 3D artists. I thought it to be great inspiration for us writers as well, with a bit of tweaking.
The Slightly-Tweaked Top Five Tips for Aspiring Writers
- Be meticulous about every step of the process. Your effort will shine through.
- Reach out to others for critique, and do not discriminate amongst your critics. Your best critics will appear in the most unlikely places.
- Network naturally. Just put your work out there for others to see. When people see you taking and giving feedback, and improving from it, friendships are created!
- Figure out what you are passionate writing about, and do it!
- Don’t be afraid to just jump into something new – be it a new genre or even a new medium!
Thank you to Poneria, Oatmeal, and Jessica Dinh for further inspiring me! I hope they inspire you too!
~ Effy
Awaiting the Muse 
That’s actually Azeroth’s second (and smaller) moon the Blue Child. Azeroth has two moons, but for some reason the Blue Child was removed sometime around the Burning Crusade. (I’m not sure exactly when — I’m a Wrath Baby myself.) At the beginning of MoP they added the Blue Child back again. Each moon travels its own path through the sky, and sometimes you can see them together.
OMG, you are totally right! I even knew that, but for some reason it slipped my mind completely. I even read somewhere that Blue Child had returned.
< — Noob lore nut
It is now my goal to screenshot both of them together.
Thanks for reminding me! 🙂
~ Effy
That’s an excellent shot! It makes me think of our recent eclipse. Hmm, I didn’t really know about the Blue Child. I’m pretty sure I had seen it but didn’t think much about it back then.
Great tips too Effy 🙂
Yah, the game-side story is Blue Child’s sky path had some sort of bug, and they had to remove it so they could fix it. Apparently it took BC, Wrath, and Cata to finally fix it. 🙂 The lore-side story of Blue Child’s disappearance would be interesting to know. heh
But for anyone familiar with the WoW books, they do mention both moons.
In fact, in Moonlight, I mentioned the second moon, but I could not figure out a good way to talk about Blue Child without getting too far off course. Hence why I am totally annoyed with myself. For some reason, I had in my head I was looking for a green moon, even after looking all this up before I wrote Moonlight.
I have my moments, I suppose…
~ Effy
I didn’t know that about the Blue Child – thanks Khizz for that. And as Cym says, good tips there Effy 🙂
Thanks, Navi, but it is Jessica Dinh deserving the credit. I really just modified her tips.
The funny part is, I know a while back there was a month where everyone wrote tips about becoming a blogger. I totally missed out on that for some reason, but I guess I can post something along that line now. 🙂
I just feel that expressing yourself is one of the most important things you can do, and I enjoy sharing anyway I can spread that feeling. My blog is the best thing I could ever have done in that regard. Perhaps something that randomly inspires me might do the same for someone else!
~ Effy
I always read in the morning on the iPad which I’ve given up commenting from so just came back to say thanks for those great inspirations! Loved them all!
Thanks, Tome! And I know exactly what you mean. Since I started using Google Reader, especially when I read on my phone with it, it has become increasingly difficult to just pop over and make comments while I am thinking about it. I always have the best of intentions to stop by later, but there is the whole “ohh shiny!” part to get past at that point. 😛
~ Effy
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