Looking for Inspiration
Digital Diary: Entry 1
As a screenwriting student I’m constantly hearing from professor’s “write what you know”. But what do I know?
Inspiration can take place in many forms. A lot of us young writers pull ideas from our own favorite projects. Someone who has grown up a big Star Wars fan is more likely to write their own western space drama before a budding romcom. It’s a simple connection. Write what you want to watch.
But it’s not that simple. Just because I love crime shows doesn’t mean that I am capable of writing a complex legal drama. At least not yet. So instead, I’ve been trying to focus on reflection. My experiences and interactions are great places where I can find inspiration for current projects.
I especially focus on inspiration when I travel. Seeing new places and trying new things are the exact catalysts that drive stories in the first place, When I visited Paris last summer as I walked around I tried to envision the lives of the people that lived there. How did they end up there? What was their childhood like? How did this city inform their story? As an artist I think on of the best things you can do it travel. Whether it’s a new country, new state or just an hour from your house seeing new things is important. You never know what image or experience can spark an idea.
In October of 2025 I had the opportunity to listen in on a panel of writers from the FX show Mrs. America. One of the writers spoke about how a scene from the show was a direct recreation of an event that happened to her in her childhood. Although the show was a historical drama based on the very really life of Phyllis Schlafly she was still able to pull a moment from her own life and use it within the episode. That comment was a like a lightbulb moment for me. Up until then I thought that my projects had to be directly related to the events in my life. That to truly write an Oscar winning script some insane event had to happen to me in order to truly create an authentic story.
That’s not the case at all.
The truth is that I can write about anything that I want. The events in my life should inform my creativity not fuel it. The characters in my story can be a blend of the people that I know and interact with. A charming mentor can be a blend of the different teachers that I have had in my own life. Certain small moments I have experienced or witness can be becomes plot points that add to a larger story. If I fell in a pool at a party when I was eighteen (which is completely false. . .) that can be a funny moment for my MC in a coming of age story. Even if nothing else in that movie has ever happened to me, there are still pieces of me within the MC that were informed by my life. From there it’s about expanding the idea through my own creativity.
There’s no right or wrong way to write or story. There is also no rules on how that idea originates. The important part is finding an idea that you are passionate about. Those are the ideas that will get you excited to write and those are the ideas that will create a great story.
Thanks for reading!
Rian P. Barr
