I love Pinterest. I keep a tab open at all times set to their ‘everything’ category (pinterest.com/everything) and browse through daily for fun recipes, decorating stuff and beautiful images. Whether you’re a writer or a designer, I highly recommend it – sometimes even when you’re not writing or working on a project, this kind of visual collage will give you new ideas or at least put into visual form a concept you’re still working out.
To help me better imagine characters, setting and concepts for my books, I’ve started keeping a Pinterest board for each. Every time I spot something that I think is exactly what I’m imagining or even just something that feels like the style of my book, I pin it. As a designer, I know that unless I self-publish, I won’t get to art direct my own book covers. But I’m such a visual thinker, that my Pinterest boards at least help me set the mood and direction I’m looking for, and who knows? Maybe they’ll help give a future publisher an idea of where I’m coming from and I could share them someday.
Above is a snapshot of my ‘Moth’ board, where I’m tucking away all sorts of goodies for my young adult series. The first book is tentatively titled “Like a Moth to a Flame,” and moths and the magical mythology surrounding them is a prominent thread throughout the series.
What do you think? How are you using Pinterest these days?