• Inspired work stands separate from normal life. Inspiration is not driven by money or status but the work itself takes hold of a person.
• Inspiration is not earned. It is a gift.
• Inspiration is not something you can control.
• Inspiration is not controlled by one person. Inspiration has a tendency to raise a sense of possibility in others. In turn, the inspired person performs his own feats and inspires others.
• Inspiration is fleeting and cannot be contained.
• Inspiration demands a certain posture of awe and mystery.

According to Vladimir Nabokov, inspiration comes in phases.

1. Prefatory glow is the feeling of wellbeing that removes awareness of physical discomfort.
2. An instant vision or lighting bolt of inspiration that forms the nucleus of a work that will g...