soupchef

I have an idea for a short story, but I'm not sure if I should go ahead with it. Here's my idea:

My story is about a 14-year-old girl named Tesia. She's generally this really sweet, quiet girl but she has a dark past. Her birth parents abused her and she has post-traumatic stress disorder. She was adopted at the age of 5 by a lesbian couple, who are really great parents, but they don't quite know how to deal with her issues.

Fast forward to high school. Tesia is bullied horribly by most of her classmates, who tease her mercilessy not only for having gay parents, but also because she has a severe speech impediment. One day, some guy starts harassing her, and she gets scared, so she punches him in the face, something which is totally out of character for her. Since her school has a zero-tolerance policy for violence, she ends up in juvie, where she feels she doesn't belong.

What do you think of this idea? Is it stupid, or should I go ahead with it?

riversource

Zero tolerance would have her expelled not sent to juvie.

But i would say go for it, either it works out or it doesn't but either way you're flexing your writing muscle.

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Alex44

I encourage anyone with an idea to go after it.

If it isn't coming out the way you would hope you can always stop or change things around, and if nothing else it is experience.

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CroZ

if she has to go to jail maybe replace the punch for something more extreme - compass stab for instance.

Rob

Leaving the background aside, then, your story is that a sweet girl with problems punches a guy and ends up in 'juvie'.

Not much story so far for us to consider.

Cheers,
Rob

mammamaia

no one can tell you if it's worth writing or not... it has to be your decision alone... any idea can be either a great story or a hopeless one, depending on how well or badly it's written...

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Foxee

I wouldn't ask a question like that in my subject line if I were you. It's an open invitation for people to click just to say, 'no.'

If you want to write it, write it. If you're that unsure about it. Write something else.

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Destroyer

Fourteen seems to be a common age, doesn't it?

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Cran

Yes, Destroyer, it is ... one of those milestone ages where big changes tend to happen ... I left home and school at fourteen, got my first full-time job, etc ... for others, the changes might not have been so drastic ... perhaps just their "world view", or some personal insight ... it's that, "I'm not a child anymore - I want the benefits of being an adult (even if I don't want the responsibilities), but the real adults just ignore me ... in history and in legends, monarchs were crowned and popes invested at fourteen, people travelled the world and had adventures at fourteen, people got married at fourteen ... I just want to drive the car and party all night with my friends at fourteen" sort of age ...

soupchef, if it's in you to write the story, then write it ... don't be concerned about whether it's a stupid idea ... some of the best stories ever written started out as "stupid ideas" in someone's opinion, and many popular comedies depend on such things ...

riversource illustrates a good point - if it's meant to be a serious story, then make sure of your details; do the research ... if your character must end up in "juvie", find out what it would take to make that happen ... if punching out another student gets her suspended or expelled, would that encourage her to run away? ... steal for food? ... break into empty homes for shelter? ... get caught?

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