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I try to put myself in situations similar to the ones I'm writing about and go from there. It gives you a lot of unique, personal insight into what you're writing about. If you're actually watching a storm from your window or driving through one, your first thought is unlikely to be, "It was a dark and stormy night." Let your mind wander. It might remind you of something from your life-- this makes for excellent metaphor and characterization. It gives it that "real" aspect. I've done truly certifiably crazy things for inspiration, but to write, you must live. There's no better way to find authenticity.

Try to make unusual comparisons. First think of your object and then think of something else that shares the feature you want to remark. Try to give things a "personality."For example, if you want to talk about the "dark and stormy night", say "the sky mourned in the sun's pitiful absence"

Think about making your own little universe, right in your head.

Get a really good thesaurus. You'd be amazed how different a sentence can sound with a few replaced words!

Use unique verbs. They're really versatile, and if used well, they can make the word choice a success.

Good luck. Sorry I couldn't give better advice.