29/10/2017

"Friends Little Helpers". Well, that’s not exactly how the title of that song goes. But then I’m sure you’re aware it is “With A Little Help From My Friends”, even if you are not a fan of either The Beatles or their “Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band” album. Now, Ringo Starr is certainly one of the more underrated drummers, let alone singers. But with such mercurial music figures around him, it can be understandable.
But that is not the point. Ringo certainly used a little (and a lot) of help from his friends. So should any writer. And it doesn’t necessarily have to be a friend. It could be anybody that is willing to share their ideas, stories, views, images, even the people that are trying to earn money from it. Today, at least, it is not a problem to access all that. Look at all the online and printed resources available!
From the more ‘mundane’ as sources like Facebook (as some might think) to specialized journals, all those books…
Of course, the point is not to just simply pick up somebody else’s idea and copy it, but let it serve as an inspiration to develop your own, upgrade it, simplify it, whatever. Just as long as it doesn’t turn you into a copycat.
If you solely take a look (and that is an extensively large look) at the online source of ideas available, the choice is staggering. The most widespread social media like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and often maligned G+ do not have to be a source just to watch what your not so good friend who you are connected to anyway had for breakfast or whether your neighbour’s cat peed on his carpet (even though those can also come in handy) but a goldmine of good ideas that somebody intentionally or inadvertently put up.
The large idea and news sources such as Medium and Flipboard which you can usually tailor to your needs are a given. Let alone some specialized sites, where your writing needs and political/social affiliations play a part, like, lets just mention three out of million possibilities — Futurism, Bandcamp or philosophically inclined Aeon.
Or, how about that deluge of e-mails you get from thousands of writing guru’s you don’t even remember you subscribed to? Sure, they want your money for their course, webinar or the book(s) they wrote, but then, even if you just read their pitch, there’s an idea or two hidden there. Not much time? But, if you’re out of ideas, you should have some time to fetch one, don’t you?
The key is that writer’s need ideas, they simply don’t come out of thin air, and any help, even little help (from your friends) from Ringo Starr will do.

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