What is Inspiration and where does it come from?

When you say to people you are an author one of the first questions they generally ask you is “Where do you get your ideas?”.

I always find that interesting because for every author it’s different. Some will listen to music and get their idea. Others will read a newspaper article and an idea will strike them. Getting inspiration for a story is as unique for every author as the words they write.

So where do I get my inspiration? Well, usually it’s a scene that pops in my head. For instance, the idea for Bound by Her Ring, my February 2012 Escape release, came when in my mind I saw a woman standing in a ballroom. She is surrounded by people laughing and drinking, but it’s like she’s completely alone, lost in her own little world. My immediate thought was what’s wrong with her? Why does she seem so lonely? From there the story evolved. It went through a couple of rewrites, but that scene in the book never changed.

With my January 2014 release, Tango Love, I used my background in ballroom dancing as inspiration for the story. I wanted to include a dancing scene and I think it was after watching an episode of “Dancing with The Stars” I knew the dance I would use had to be a Tango. There’s something completely sensual about the dance. The sharp, staccato movements, bringing your head close to your partner’s before turning away quickly. It’s a classic romance, the push-pull of attraction. Playing coy and flirting with your partner. Fighting that attraction until ultimately you have to give in.

This is what has happened with Melinda. She’s always found James attractive and desired him from the moment he applied to be her housemate. She’d kept her desire secret until one night, when they were both out at a nightclub, James arranges for a tango to be played. He sweeps Melinda into a sexy, embrace and when the dance finishes, Melinda is left standing in the middle of the dance floor, wondering what the heck happened between them.

Where ever or however our inspiration strikes, it always leads us on a great journey and as authors, we hope you as readers enjoy the journeys we’ve created.

On her very first school report, her teacher said “Nicole likes to tell her own stories.” It wasn’t until after the birth of her daughter and having fun on the community board of eharlequin.com that she finally decided to take the plunge and write a book. Nicole joined the fabulous Romance Writers of Australia and eventually linked up with a great group of girls and formed ’WINKGirls’. The stories she writes are contemporary romances with either a medical setting or in the boardrooms of high powered businesses. Nicole enjoys taking two characters and creating unique situations for them. Apart from writing, Nicole is busy looking after her very own hero–her wonderfully supportive husband, and her two fabulous kids. She also enjoys watching sports and, of course, reading.