I was flipping through the latest issue of ImagineFX, and discovered a painting technique that actually works for me. You open a blank canvas at the size you want, and grab a big round, mostly opaque, black brush and start painting the canvas. Just random strokes here and there...weird forms and shapes...light grays, whites, and blacks. You try to make it look somewhat intriguing at this stage. Then you sit and stare at it, like you stare at clouds, and try to find a subject. From there, you just refine, paint lights and darks, etc...until you think it's done. This really works for me, because I often get bit by the art bug, but have nothing exciting to paint, and even if I did, I usually can't translate what's in my mind into reality.