This may be controversial, but I think the belief that one must be "passionate" about what they're writing screws up more people than it helps. First of all, it's difficult to maintain. And it sets an unrealistic expectation. Try CURIOSITY. That will take you farther.
Being *curious* (as opposed to feeling you need to be "passionate") will lead to something deeper: like intimacy, even love for what you're writing. PLUS, when you feel like you have to be "passionate" all the time, it puts you in a mindset that makes you miss the little wisps...
..and more often than not, the "little wisps" are where the magic is. But when you think everything needs to be super-charged, you can miss the subtle things. (& don't even get me started on the idea of "inspiration" being crucial.)(Spoiler: I think - like "passion" - it's not.)
Okay fine: In my opinion, waiting for "inspiration" is a fancy, self-important way of procrastinating. And it makes you think that good ideas come with clouds parting and symphonic swells. (They *can* - but they don't *have to*.. and they usually don't.)
My job as a writer is to write as well as I can, regardless of whether or not I feel "inspired." Often I have *breakthroughs* (which feel like inspiration) - and they can really push you on. But usually they are the result of long, arduous mulling & living with "not knowing."
The key, I think, is to create (often FIGHT for) the physical and emotional)space to allow for a kind of quiet that lets me recognize the more subtle notions. Then, if I follow those - with curiosity - I often find myself in a place I never imagined. And I find great joy in that.
