It's a grey day today. Yeah, I know. Americans spell that color grAy. But today, with the leaden clouds outside my window and haunting music echoing through my empty house, I'm going for the British spelling because I'm in the mood. Creepy things inspire me.

But must one be inspired to write?

I get asked that question a lot. What if you only have a small window of time to capture words on paper and you just don't feel like it?

Surprisingly, that's where some of the best prose comes from, after you cross the panic threshold, that is. Once you start watching the minute hand tick away and hear the blank screen screaming accusations at you, anger kicks in. You know you've got to get something down so you don't feel like a complete loser and voila. That's when you can finally let it rip and pound out some really good writing.

Slightly psychotic, I grant you, but that's the work of a writer.

Don't worry, though. If even your anger is MIA, Writers Republic did a fantastic post on ways to find inspiration for your writing. Check it out

here

.