Goodreads asked David O. Stewart:

How do you get inspired to write?

David O. Stewart Inspiration comes in many forms. It all starts with the idea behind a book -- either for a novel or a historical book. There has to be a great story that I want to know more about. If I'm not fascinated by the story, there's no way I can work on it for months and years. Then there's the inspiration that comes from reading a great book -- recently I was knocked out by Joseph Kanon's novel LEAVING BERLIN -- and wanting to give that kind of pleasure to other readers by writing something just as good. And finally there's the inspiration of the day, which usually involves solving a problem.
For my histories, I may need to figure out why James Madison had such low expectations for the Bill of Rights he wrote for America, or how George Washington learned such mad political skills that he won every key election in his life UNANIMOUSLY. For novels, it may be understanding why a character would want to do something or how to extricate that character from a thorny problem. The whole writing enterprise is an endless challenge, which is the best part about it!

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