But if you know the craft, you know how to cure cliches: sketch a list of five, ten, fifteen different “East side lovers meet” scenes. Why? Because experienced writers never trust so-called inspiration. More often than not, inspiration is the first idea picked off the top of your head, and sitting on the top of your head is every film you’ve ever seen, every novel you’ve ever read, offering cliches to pluck. This is why we fall in love with an idea on Monday, sleep on it, then reread it with disgust on Tuesday as we realize we’ve seen this cliche in a dozen other works. True inspiration comes from a deeper source, so let loose your imagination and experiment.
– Robert McKee, Story.
kototyph 