I went to Nantucket this past weekend, and it was pretty magical.

No, I didn’t see a giant white whale or see Emily Gilmore at the Whaling Museum. (Even though that would have been amazing.)

I was doing something that I should be doing all the time: I was paying attention.

I noticed that the gregarious groom waved us over to the reception during his recessional. I smiled when I noticed the locals waving at the bride instead of cursing when we stopped traffic on our way to the hotel. I asked the younger guys about their shenanigans the night before (and got tons of book material from that alone). When I was sailing, I finally understood why the Greeks call the water “wine-dark.” I literally stopped to smell the wildflowers.  

As a result, I have TONS of new ideas for my book.

My professor in college once told me that we should live our lives like we are always on vacation because we notice things more then. As writers, I think there is a particular truth to that. 

If we want to get ideas, we have to keep our eyes wide open. So be as aware of your world as if you are on a trip. You never know what idea or piece of inspiration you will find.