It can actually be pretty terrifying (probably too strong a word but when you rely on artistic inspiration for your bread and butter, it's probably pretty accurate). Thankfully inspiration is everywhere, and if you're a regular contributor to any of the fantastic Twitter based writing / art prompt threads that are curated by fabulously creative folk, you're already off to a flying start.
Brandon T. Snider has also come up with a pair of brilliant little books to give your drawing and writing a heck of a boost.
"Draw it Out", as the title suggests, is an invitation to get your doodle on. We're getting used to books that invite you to crack out your pencils, pens, crayons and other art materials and get straight on with the important business of drawing.
Brandon has come up with a great mix of mini-doodle ideas but also some great exercises to get your creative juices flowing and serve as warm ups.
Draw your dream house, draw your name in 100 different ways, draw a page filled with stars or circles, or draw a full head of curly hair.
There are tons of prompts and lots of tiny spaces to fill with your own efforts in a book that's absolutely brilliant for toting around with you during the day, fitting easily into your bag (or should I say MY bag as I've firmly kidnapped "Draw it Out" and have been busily doodling away in it - though from time to time Charlotte steals it back to draw some of the better illustrations in the book!)
Writers aren't left out either...there's also "Write it out"...
Character and plot development, crazy situational stuff, even writing about your own life to serve as inspiration for fictional characters.
There are tons of ideas here to get you making notes and scribbling down story and plot elements. In fact why not pick up both books to help you come up with a picture book masterpiece!
"Draw it Out" and "Write it Out" by Brandon T. Snider are both available now from Sterling Publishing (Kindly supplied for review).