Friday, February 21, 2014

I have this idea






See, I have this idea for a story.  It isn’t developed enough, or as Stephen King has written, it doesn’t have enough “moving parts” yet so I can’t tell what the theme will be. I have only a sketchy conception of who the protagonist might be.  It keeps skipping from one genre to another.   It reminds me of a small girl running around the room giggling while she sings, “You can’t catch me,” and pretends she is The Gingerbread Man.

Will this idea grow up to be a short story or even a novel?  I don’t know. It suddenly and unexpectedly started to show a sense of humor.  Will it become a funny story?  The concept is rather grim.  I don’t see how this could turn into something humorous. But I've been surprised before.

It’s an intriguing situation.  I’ve noticed that, although some writers tell the same story over and over again, the writers I enjoy reading most challenge themselves one way or another.  JK Rowling, for example, wrote a mystery under a pen name.  If the main point of writing, for her, was to make money, she could have used her own name.  The book would have sold faster than ice cream on a hot August day. 

The idea and I are in the flirtation stage. Yep. There she goes.   I’ll let you know what happens.   

12 comments:

  1. Sometimes I feel like I'm arm wrestling an idea. When that happens, there are two outcomes. I either nail it or I don't.

    Other times, the story comes into my head in its entirety and I feel like I'm transcribing a story--those are usually the most successful--for readers, not so much me. It's seems as if the struggle is part of the process, which is a bit sick. Who wants to struggle when something can be easy?

    I'm dealing with a story now that got much too long, and yet as I try to sculpt it out of a huge block of stone, I don't have the vision of what to cut away.

    It's difficult. I hope your elusive creature stands still long enough for you to take a picture, study it, and write it.

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  2. I have always had lots of ideas, the problem comes with weeding out the good ones from the bad. Perhaps that is like your dating analogy -- flirt, first date, going steady?

    I do agree that telling the same story bores me as a reader. Most often when I stop reading a series it is because I've become bored (although sometimes it is because the author has become a sloppy writer.)

    ~ Jim

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  3. Love the analogy about the Gingerbread Man - I can picture the chase.
    For me, it's more like catching sight of a butterfly and then, if I am very still and very careful, the butterfly will alight on my shoulder. Which is not to say I'm waiting for inspiration. It's just that the idea flickers in my mind for days and I've got to give it time in stillness to fully "land."
    Sorry, I'm pre-caffeine.

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  4. Thanks, EB,

    You describe the process very well.

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  5. Jim,

    On a one book a year schedule even the best writers can turn out repetitive novels.

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  6. Shari, For me sometimes the flickers are major elements of the story such as the ending or the lead character. Sometimes they are less central to the story. The second type are harder to catch.

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  7. Warren, I have lots of bits and pieces of ideas or characters that I'm never sure quite what to do with them. And then often when I'm creating new characters, a character I've had stored in my mind finds a place. The same is true for ideas. They don't always have to be a major component for a plot, although sometimes they are, but just a little bit of added spice. I'm looking forward to reading whatever you create with your idea.

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  8. I'm working on a sci-fi story right now and not certain quite where it's headed either. The premise is good, but will I be able to flesh it out??

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  9. I've always got way too many ideas flickering around in my head, and it's hard to nail them and to make them go in a useful direction. Sometimes I just write bits that may or may not turn into a story.

    I'm finding that dealing with the similarities in series books to be a big question msrk. People who are rabid fans want those repeated things and familiar feelings, and they want the same type of ending. I've had people say, "Oh, I love it when that happens. That's what I look for in every book." There's a comfort factor that I'm sure sophisticated readers find boring. I cringe when someone says they are going to sit down and read the series all at once. I'm pretty sure they are going to get impatient with the necessary backstory although I try hard to keep it to the essentails that have to be there if someone picks up, say, the third book without reading the others.

    I'm sure that sooner or later your inner self will prsent the story in a more finished form and you will wonder why you ever thought it could go in another direction.

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  10. Several story ideas are playing hide-and-seek with me, too. I hope one holds still long enough so I can catch it.

    I look forward to reading your story in its final form.

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  11. I'm in the opposite camp, by necessity. I knock out three, short works every month for a series. Too often I'm flying by the seat of my laptop. When I do get time to chew over a plot, to spin it around, I usually relish it. I find that that the talented and skilled writers discover a creative process that works, or they find a way to make their situation work.

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  12. Warren, I think one of the great pleasures of short story writing is the opportunity to chase down those ideas. I hope this one works out for you. I like the combination funny and dark--think Elmore Leonard.

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