I got sparked.

Ok, that's kind of a weird post title.


Moving on...


I wanted to share something I did a few weeks back. There's a cool online project out there, for those of you into writing or with an artistic streak, called Spark. If I remember correctly, Meghan first told me about it (THANKS!).


Spark pairs artists and writers. Each partner provides an inspiration piece for the other. Then, over the next ten days, the writer or artist responds to the partner's inspiration piece through their preferred medium.


There are a few Spark rounds per year (Feb, May, Aug, and Oct).


I've participated a few times, and it's been an interesting exercise. Sometimes writing to the inspiration piece is really difficult - not because the piece is bad, but because it takes me a while to get moving. 


One of the most amazing things about Spark, for me, is seeing someone's reaction to something I wrote. Another is the sheer breadth of skill and creativity that goes into each round.


Each round, from the writing standpoint, I don't expect to turn out a fully finished piece. I know I will end up with a rough draft that will get honed and stretched, twisted and smoothed later. That's fine for me.


This year, Spark 11, I got paired with a pretty cool artist/writer/blogger from the UK. She writes a great blog called Daily Bread. 


I was floored by Val's inspiration piece. It was a little difficult getting started because I felt pulled in several directions. I felt a ton of possibilities, with three or four stories kicking around in my head. 


After about a week of thinking about it, I realized I kept returning to one specific image. From that one, I started writing.


The result (my response to Val's work) is here.


I really loved her response to the inspiration piece I sent, too. 




Curious? Don't be shy, sign up for the next round, coming up in May.