Inspirational Stuff?

[zephyr6257]

Would you/would you not read inspirational/selfdevelopment articles or not? And if it not, what would change your mind?

 

[Nihilego]

This doesn't look much like a discussion to me, so I'll move it to OVP. If it works out it can always be moved back. For future reference, please read this and feel free to PM me if you have further questions.

 

[Kura]

I read them often yes! I love reading inspirational stuff as an artist! It always makes me in the mood to create more and it's a good feeling :33

 

[Oryx]

Inspirational stuff too often comes off as corny to me. And when I'm down and really need a pick-me-up, some random person's words aren't going to do it for me. They'll just make me think about how different their life is from mine and how these things happen once in a blue moon and that's why there's a whole book on it, etc.

So no, I don't read pre-packaged generic things meant to inspire people. I am inspired by friends that have the right words to say though.

 

[outfox]

No Enemies Within by Dawna Markova.

Kind of a self-help thing. I haven't actually read it but a friend recommended to me and raved about how amazing and inspirational it is and I've never found anything to do with that information I didn't need until now. Here you go!

e: here I am for some reason remembering you asking for an inspirational book but that's not right. So disregard the above but I'll leave it for whoever wants it, and I'm going to respond to the actual question now.

I find those kinds of articles useful most of the time, and motivating. I'm always open to new ideas and approaches to life.

 

[Starsprite]

So no, I don't read pre-packaged generic things meant to inspire people.

I agree with this completely. I hardly ever get inspired by something if the only purpose of it is to inspire. Stories do inspire me very frequently, just not the types that market themselves as inspiring. Those types just seem a little less genuine to me.

 

[s0nido]

Those personalised inspirational speeches or words would affect me more than random stories or articles designed for inspiration. Though nothing inspires me to do anything for very long. XD;

 

[zephyr6257]

Inspirational stuff too often comes off as corny to me. And when I'm down and really need a pick-me-up, some random person's words aren't going to do it for me. They'll just make me think about how different their life is from mine and how these things happen once in a blue moon and that's why there's a whole book on it, etc.

So no, I don't read pre-packaged generic things meant to inspire people. I am inspired by friends that have the right words to say though.

Hm. I like your point there. Inspirational stuff, by itself, is corny. Especially if they're just generic quotes quoted from other writers mashed up together.

I was thinking though, what if inspirational content would be written in a modern, uptone, down to earth style? Something reminiscent to how your friends speak. Not something written for an obese 40 yearold male in midcrisis. Something which youth could understand.

Would it be possible, or would it still be corny?

 

[Shining Raichu]

The last thing I want to read is a story about an attack victim's remarkable recovery from the edge of the grave or how a wheelchair kid learned to walk. I don't find that inspirational and moreover I don't really care whatsoever lol. I would care if I actually knew the person but I don't find strangers inspirational.

 

[zephyr6257]

But that's not my point. Inspirational stuff shouldn't just be about some random stranger. Heck, who knows if the writer made that story up! I think inspirational stuff should be about the reader, and the reader alone.

A good inspirational author should be able to make a reader realize their own problems, and show how these problems affect their lives. The author could then show the solution in small parts, which contrasts the problem, creating tension. The author could throw extra stories about his own life, to keep the reader hooked, increasing the tension. At the point of explosion, the author writes about bliss, how the solution to your problem erases all the tension away from the reader.

This would "relieve" the reader, putting him in the state of being "inspired."

Now writing a story about a random guy who lost his arm, and fell into a ditch, but was able to climb out of it, doesn't sound as interesting, does it?

 

[Elite Overlord LeSabre™]

No, I've never bought into that inspirational stuff. If I'm going to be inspired by something, it has to be something of my choosing, not something that's being stuffed into my brain with "THIS WILL INSPIRE YOU! BE INSPIRED BY IT!" That method doesn't work for me.

Of course, I've been inspired by stuff that wasn't marketed to be inspiring at all. But those things just struck a certain chord within me that I could relate to, even if it wasn't intentional. Things as varied as used-car shopping guides and road maps, to be honest.