Inspiration vs influence: is there a difference?

Collaborative article by Becky Bye & Jennifer Kyte

Becky and I recently had a little exhange of ideas about the difference between inspiration and influence. If you have any thoughts to add, let us know!

BB:

There's a house in the village where I live that just gives me the willies. I don't know what it is about it, but it looks like something that just crawled out of a Stephen King novel. 

On my early morning walks, when the village is cloaked in the amber hue of street lights, I make myself stare at the house, just for a few seconds, almost daring it to do something spooky and prove me right; the twitch of a curtain perhaps, or the ghostly glimmer of a pale face at the window. Of course it never does, but that does not mean that it never will.

On one particular morning as I stare defiantly at the tall dark windows, the flame of inspiration ignites within me. I clutch hold of it tightly, my fist bunched to keep the butterfly fragility of the idea from flitting away from me before I reach a pen and paper or my keyboard. As soon as I get home, I type furiously away on my laptop and the beginning of a story is born.

I suppose I should be grateful to the old place, after all, it has momentarily relieved me of my crippling writers block that has left my unedited novel disregarded for the last few years. As I type, the last book I read pops into my head- The Silent Companions, by Lucy Purcell; a historical drama, which evolves as a ghostly murder mystery. This book, I realise, has particularly influenced me, as my story begins to take shape. I pause with my fingers hovering over the keys and wonder: is there a difference between inspiration and influence?

JK:

 Is there a difference? Technically inspiration is an emotional response, whereas influence is having a measurable effect on something. But the two things have definite points where they overlap.

Wikipedia says:

In Greek thought, inspiration meant that the poet or artist would go into ecstasy or “furor poeticus”, the divine frenzy or poetic madness. He or she would be transported beyond his own mind and given the gods' or goddesses own thoughts to embody.  

Inspiration comes and goes; influences can last a lifetime.

Becky is inspired to write a story about a creepy house that she passes every day, and the style or approach she takes in writing this story may be influenced by her love of a book by Lucy Purcell (which combines two of Becky’s loves; history, and supernatural mystery, so it’s no wonder this book resonates with her).

Let’s say I pass by a creepy house and it evokes in me a similar spark of inspiration to write a story. I’m not much of a ghostly mystery reader. My creepy house story is more likely to be influenced by my love of magical realism or portal fantasy, so would probably be closer to a Haruki Murakami story, or involve a portal to another world.

But there is a definite overlap between the terms here: As well as being an influence on Becky, supernatural mysteries are also an inspiration; they spark off something emotional in her. Becky passes a creepy house that resonates with her long-term interest in things of a creepy nature, and: boom, she is lost to “divine frenzy”. 

Nothing is original, we’re all influenced by outside sources, what’s magical is how one thing can resonate with different people in different ways to create original works. Everybody’s brain is wired a little differently. I have a little mantra written on my studio wall to refer to every time I feel despondent about my work:

Remember I can only be myself – a filter of things that come to me and attract me. What I write is mine. I don’t need to emulate others, though I can filter influence through my lens. This means nothing I create is wrong, I only need to make sure I create enough material that I can edit out the less interesting stuff.

Recently I overheard two artists from neighbouring studios talking about their work (the walls are thin in my studio block). One said "I'm not really feeling it today." By "it" she meant she wasn't inspired. This is the point where the two terms do differ. No-one can be struck by the divine frenzy of inspiration at all times. Nor can you force yourself to feel that way on command. As a professional artist or writer there'll be plenty of occasions where you just don't feel it. But you can still create nonetheless because there is always influence to fall back on, and this can often put you on a path towards inspiration again.

Now over to you, if you have any thoughts to add, let us know via the contact form; I’m happy to add more to this article if there’s more to be said.