Thread: What do YOU do, specifically, to aid in the creation of ideas?

Let’s assume you have a basic idea for a story.

And let’s assume you write out as much of it as you can, and then you realise you’re about 50% short, for a novel-length story.

What do you do next?

Do you study cloud formations?

Do you run snippets through your mind from a part of the story already written, to see if other angles will occur to you?

Do you stick a pin in a page of the dictionary and hope the stabbed word will bring something to the surface?

Or is your technique something else entirely?

I go to my job. I work with foster children. That spurs tons of ideas.

If you want to write about foster children, I suppose it would.

OX, what's your current WIP? Just curious.

Sometimes I go on a site like Fark.com and read the ridiculous news stories to get ideas. Most of my SF stories come from randomly browsing howstuffworks.com, wikipedia.org or some random site. Usually it will start at one topic that I quickly wanted to look up and then I start clicking links within the article and end up in a completely different place, sometimes that gives me neat ideas.

When I'm really stuck and feel like I haven't written in a while I use prompts.

Originally Posted by NathanBrazil

OX, what's your current WIP? Just curious.

Do you want the short answer?

It’s a novel, about the lure of gold.


Slightly longer answer/tentative jacket blurb:

“The son of an Irish convict grows up in New South Wales determined to overthrow the recognised government. He plans a daring gold robbery, which he carries out with help from a previously-honest English immigrant farmer, to obtain funds for outfitting his rebel army. The gang make off with their booty only to abandon it as the police close in. Its location remains a mystery for over 150 years, when an enterprising pair of rascals devise an excitement-laden plan leading to its eventual recovery.”

I try to work out stories in the grey time between getting in bed and falling asleep, letting my imagination unravel as my consiousness fades.

I have a big file of ideas I've gotten over the course of the years. When I'm stuck, I read through that. I used to use a clipping service. When I'm really stuck, I strike up conversations with other people.

Honestly, I do the Laundry. That's where my mind flies. I find my mind blank most of the time in front of the PC, so I go to the laundry, do things that require no use of my mind, watch the water swirl and wholla and angle occurs to me like, "If God can't do anything about a situation, then he must be bound by law!" That kind of stuff. Then I write it on a piece of paper to research it in the Inet to see if someone else had the same idea. Then I would do the laundry again. so I guess that's why the Laundry takes five hours when I do it. haha

OX- Is there a specific part of your WIP you're struggling with? Do you use interviews to add authenticity to your characters (obviously only when possible)?

Originally Posted by NathanBrazil

OX- Is there a specific part of your WIP you're struggling with?

Sorry. Go back and read my edited OP - the 50% bit.

Do you use interviews to add authenticity to your characters (obviously only when possible)?

Not sure I understand. Do you mean do I question my characters, or something else? And if the former, you've lost me completely.

He means interviewing other people to add flesh to your characters, Bruce. Like if you're writing about a rocket scientist-go talk to one.

OX- You're right, I'm not looking at the issue carefully. But I find solutions to these kinds of problems usually take the form of Ivory Tower solutions. I would like to see the raw material and tackle the problem head on. How much of the WIP can you show here?

Originally Posted by moderan

He means interviewing other people to add flesh to your characters, Bruce. Like if you're writing about a rocket scientist-go talk to one.

Yeah, right, gotcha. Like if I'm writing about a 19th Century maidservant, I'll just saddle up my trusty time machine . . .

OX- That's why I tacked that on there "(obviously only when possible)". 'Cause I knew you would jump on it, if I didn't.
Back to my last question. How much of your WIP can you post here?