Where do you find your inspiration?

Lately I’ve been finding artistic inspiration in my dreams. For the last 5 years, minus about 6 months, I mostly had really horrific nightmares that I’d pretty much forget after I was awake for 5 minutes. I chalk it up to hormones changing, I’m in my early 50’s.

For the last 6 months or so, I’ve been having what I’d call “vivid” dreams. I chalk that up to the Melatonin that I now take for insomnia. Now my dreams are highly detailed, even though they are not in any way realistic, mostly not scary nightmares like before, but just random stuff, but often with very detailed dialogue and often art, which I either see, or am making in the dream. I finally decided to keep post it notes next to my bed. Sometimes I’m simply too sleepy to turn on the light and jot it down, but a few times I have done it. I am trying to keep a collection of those and try to actually draw/paint/photograph these ideas.

I also get ideas when I’m hiking by some of the lakes in my area. Mostly photography, but also ideas for paintings. I have the paint and the brushes and the canvas, but I’m usually too busy to get started.

Me and one of my good friends go to dinner once a month. She’s an old childhood friend that I reconnected with about a year ago. We come up with dialogue for TV shows that we like. It’s completely organic. We’ll be talking about something, or someone we know, and then one of us will start laughing and say, “That would be perfect for such and such a character on that TV show.”

I get ideas for cooking things that seem to come completely out of the blue. Like combinations or treatments of food that I had never thought of before.

@Kardamom I really like your answer. I’m glad that you find inspiration from your dreams. I’ve heard some people do, an come up with amazing ideas. My dreams are mostly about how I think a show will go next, or I create a character in my head, or I sometimes imagine living a different life.
Some odd reason though when I do create a character in my dreams it’s always a young child going through a rough time and then just playing out there life. Some things get graphic with violence, abuse, etc. I don’t know why I have such odd dreams but they don’t scare me An I’ve actually never had a nightmare, im serious.If I ever had a nightmare..I would 100% remember it & remember jolting out of my sleep.
Wish I could go hiking. But I don’t really live near any good hiking trails or mountains. Plus if I did hike I would need a lot of water, food, and make sure I take allergiy meds before going. I have bad allergies and asthma.

You don’t find inspiration it finds you. Don’t force it.