After six years, I returned to Italy in October. The trip gave me time with family and a break from the routine. It also provided something Bob Dylan noted in his memoir, Chronicles: Volume One—experience. And from experience comes inspiration.
Like my dad, whose lifelong love affair with Italy was partly the subject of What She Takes Away, my first novel, autumn is my favorite season. Falling leaves, the smell of woodsmoke, the angle of the light are pleasures. Even more so when a writer experiences them elsewhere.
This autumn my elsewhere was Lake Como. The change of venue sparked my imagination and my writing, A change can spark yours, too. Before airport security lines and delayed flights, I was inspired by travel. Going someplace new, even revisiting the familiar, made me feel my life was going somewhere and that my writing was, too.
Over the years, the need for caution and contingencies eclipsed the value of these benefits. When I thought about travel, especially overseas, all I could see was trouble. So what was different this time, and what were the benefits?
This year I planned the Italy trip a step at a time and accepted that my efforts and their outcome wouldn’t look as they had before. Freed from the burdens of perfection and predictability, I flew out of JFK (on time) to Milan. Rail construction en route from the airport to Como forced a track change and a mile walk to a connecting station. As a result, I got exercise, met new people and became adept at using scheduling apps. All new experiences, all new opportunities.
I’ve been to Como twice before. The last time, forty years ago. Since the novel I’m writing now is set there, I needed to know the Como of today. I also needed more of the story. And that’s what I got. Equipped with the fresh perspective that comes with being in a different place, I recognized gaps in the current storyline and holes in the characters’ backstories. But I didn’t just see what was missing, I saw what could be.
Casting off the inherent boundaries of the world left behind—even comfort, predictability and safety—the writer is free to explore and discover. This opens us to new opportunities. That’s where real growth lies, in our work, our lives, ourselves as writers.
Tip: Writers don’t have to go far to write great stories, but new venues open the mind. To broaden your perspective, try writing in a new place or somewhere you haven’t been in a while. If possible, spend a few days there. Don’t just use the time to write. Try living the time and jotting down experiences and insights as they arise. You’ll be surprised at how a place sparks the ability to see beyond place to what can be.
Reference
To sharpen travel memories
for later use, use a blank journal, preferably pocket-sized, to jot down insights,
experiences, memories and ideas longhand.
Happy writing!
Adele Annesi is a curator for the Ridgefield Independent Film Festival. Her bestselling cultural heritage novel is What She Takes Away (Bordighera Press). Her MFA in creative writing is from Fairfield University, and her long-running blog for writers is Word for Words. Her podcast is Adele Annesi on Writing.
