Creating original symbols and motifs

by Melissa
(California)

Hello,

Can you please give me some advice on how to come up with original motifs/symbols for a poem or a song? For instance: ''The moon's a harsh mistress'', ''Love is like the sea; leaves you on your knees. First it pulls you in then it takes you over.'' etc...I can only think of stupid cliches. I want to come up with something special, something unusual. Any ideas on exercises or websites or anything that can help me develop this?

ANSWER

You may stimulate creativity through close observation on a regular basis. If you want to describe something in a new way, closely observe the object and describe it as accurately as possible. Practice this on a regular basis and you can train yourself to "imagine" in fresh new ways what you have never seen or experienced.

You may find it helpful to read through some the ideas on this page and practice one or two: https://www.be-a-better-writer.com/creative-writing-activities.html