Finding Inspiration in TV and Film

Happy Sunday Writers! I hope you’ve all had a good week.

As it goes, mine has been a bit of a rollercoaster. I have some quite difficult, stressful situations in my life right now, yet also my novel writing is going really well. I am finally out of my writer’s slump and less than a week away from finishing my first draft!

I’m adding another ‘Finding Inspiration in…’ post to the collection today. (See previously Finding Inspiration in Places, Music and Travel.)

TV and Film can be heavy distractions for writers, but if you’re feeling the need to relax in front of the screen there’s plenty of ways you can tie it in with fuelling your creative mind. Take a look;

1. Watch Films About Writing
There are plenty of films out there that tell the stories of writers and writing. From The Ghost Writer to Midnight in Paris to Finding Forrester. My personal favourite is Finding Neverland, an exaggerated version of the actual life of J.M. Barrie who wrote Peter Pan. This film showcases Barrie’s creative mind, his refusal to follow the rules and offers some beautiful shots of how he imagines the world compared to how it actually appears.
Watching these films always reminds me of my ambitions and leaves me feeling inspired and motivated.

2. Watch Documentaries
A good documentary will leave you enlightened and knowledge is powerful. You can watch documentaries about published authors, to keep you specifically focused on writing. Or, and I find this one amazingly useful, is to watch documentaries that follow suit to what you’re writing. This may not work for everyone, understandably. My example here is, sections of my book are told from the POV of a detective in London. So I watch documentaries about British Detectives to gain a deeper understanding of their procedures and their working lives. If you’re writing about something you don’t have much experience with then watching documentaries can teach you a lot.

3. Watch What You’re Writing
Perhaps a little obvious, but watch what you’re writing! If you’re writing a fantasy, watch a fantasy. If you’re writing a thriller, watch a thriller. As well as reading lots in the genre of your Work In Progress, watching films and TV shows in the same genre is just as important for getting you immersed in that mindset.

One Final Tip
Watch for exaggerations

One thing that can often be said about films and TV is that certain scenarios may be exaggerated or twisted to add drama to the story. As an example, police procedure in film and TV isn’t always exactly right, but if you’re writing about this you don’t want to fall into the trap of taking everything you’ve seen as correct. Be sure to check your facts, if you’ve been watching fiction.

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Do you find inspiration in TV and Film? What in particular comes to mind?

I’d love to hear your thoughts and suggestions.

Speak soon and until then
Keep writing,
M
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