This month marks the twelfth anniversary of Paper Beats World. Don’t worry, this isn’t going to be some long emotional nostalgic post that I cry while I write. That’ll be later this month. Today, I want to acknowledge something that is kind of my super power. It’s something I aspired to as a child, and I think I’ve achieved it.

I have yet to run out of content for this blog. And honestly, I don’t think I ever will. I also don’t think I’ll ever run out of ideas for books or short stories. I have rarely, if ever, looked at a blank page for long.

Did you ever read the mystery series The Cat Who by Lillian Jackson Braun? The main character, Jim Qwilleran, was a journalist. He prided himself on being able to write 1,000 words about anything. Reading these books as a kid (yes, I did have a weird childhood), I decided that’s something I wanted to be able to do, too.

More than that, though, I have a crippling fear of running out of things to say. But it turns out this isn’t a superpower anymore than writing is. It’s a skill, and it can be learned.

So here are the things I do to make sure I never run out of ideas. Some of them are actionable; you can start doing them today. Some are a bit more philosophical. Try one of them, try any of them, try all of them. See what ideas you come up with.

I write everything down

I’m one of those people who always has a notebook with me. And I write things down. Things that I notice, that are interesting or infuriating. Thoughts I have while reading, or riding the bus. I never assume I’m going to remember, because I can promise you I won’t.

My notes are never pretty. They are not usually very interesting. They probably wouldn’t make sense to anyone but me. But they often lead to observations that are later made into stories or blog posts.

I freewrite

Yes, I’m banging this drum again. Freewriting is the number one best thing you can do for your writing. It’s often in these unstructured times when I come up with some of my best ideas. Sometimes it’s a fix for a problem in my current novel. Sometimes it’s a brand new story idea or some revelation I want to explore more in a post. Sometimes it’s some deep emotional realization, but that’s another post for another time. The point is that there are often good things to be gained from letting your brain off the leash.

I hang out with people older and younger than me

My roommate is a Gen Z person. He helps me keep an eye on what younger generations are up to these days. I also talk to a lot of older people in my day job.

This is a gift. Different generations see the world through entirely different eyes. I learn things from people both older and younger than me all the time. And this leads me to realizations and lessons I’d have missed if I was only hanging out with people my own age.

For a while, I struggled learning things from people younger than me. I had a bit of a chip on my shoulder. I think that came from not feeling as though I’d established myself yet. I didn’t feel like I’d shown the world what I could do. Now that I’m 40, and consider myself to have at least a little bit of success, I’ve humbled my damn self a lot. And that’s only benefited me.

I keep up with the news

To a point. If I didn’t put some barriers on how much and how often I pay attention to world affairs, I might have taken a bath with a toaster by this point. But I do pay attention.

The state of the world makes me angry. It makes me scared. And it gives me things to write about.

Art imitates life. If you’re an artist, it’s your job to capture part of the world you live in and explain it in your art. There will be history books later that will give us facts and figures (and death counts). We are here to tell later generations what it was like to live these days. What it’s like to wake up, go to work, go grocery shopping, do the laundry and wash the dishes while ICE agents are kidnapping people and our ‘president’ is stealing everything not nailed down and picking fights with other countries like a drunk after happy hour.

I consume things that cause a spark in me

I watch a lot of YouTube. A lot of writing content, of course, and horror content. I love me a good three-hour-long deep dive into urban legends. But I also watch things that just catch my interest. I like watching Answers With Joe, for instance. I like Mickey Adkins, a therapist. I also like this woman who’s a mortician. And I’ve been following the manager of a legal brothel on Instagram for forever.

Interesting things are interesting. And a writer can be inspired by another shiny thing that catches our eye. We’re kind of like cats. Or people with undiagnosed ADHD.

I love learning about new things. Useless things that I will never have to know, but are fascinating. These all feed into my writing. And, frankly, my overall enjoyment of life.

I live

I am forty years old, and I have seen things. I have done things. I have experienced good and bad days. I go on trips, go to the doctor, cook food, and sing along to music in my kitchen. I watch good TV, listen to new music, and investigate new hobbies. I have endured horrors. I have lost people who were my entire world. I have met new people who stole away my heart. And I am always eager to experience something new. Preferably good ones, but we can’t always be so lucky.

Writers cannot write in a vacuum. Many of us fantasize about quitting our jobs and going on writing retreats. I’m tempted to say that if I didn’t have quite such a full life, I might write more. These posts might be on time more often, and I might publish more than one book a year.

But I don’t think I would. I think that if I shut off that valve of living, it would strangle the creative valve. Writing doesn’t come from just pure imagination. It comes from experiencing life. All the great, glorious, and gory moments together. Every tear I shed has worked its way onto the page. Every love, every laugh. My work is an amalgamation of things that scare and delight me. If we’re honest, I think we’re all like that.

So that’s it. That’s how I’ve yet to run out of content, and probably never will. Now, it’s your turn. What do you do to come up with ideas? Let us know in the comments.

Paper Beats World is a labor of love. You can support us by liking this post, sharing it and commenting. You can also support us on Ko-fi.