Notes

Generating Story Ideas
Generating a tale idea can often be akin to a painful birth. Every writer has already established experience with writer's block. But that usually comes in the midst of writing a story. There are different approaches for handling that type of block.

But what happens once you simply go out of ideas? Where do authors and story tellers come up with the ideas for story after story, developing a seemingly endless way to obtain entertainment for the masses?

The key question isn't "where do story ideas result from," it's -

Where do GOOD story ideas result from?

The seeds of stories exist all around us in our everyday lives. A lot of my short stories grow out of personal experience. The real or semi-true versions of these events usually serve as fodder for entry into contests. I tend to write these stories for inspirational categories.

But, our little personal life experiences could be boring to others - particularly when we adhere to the absolute truth.

So, think about fiction?

The real world

Fiction will get its roots in true to life, as well. For example, a pal of mine is focusing on a short story in regards to a man who loses his job and goes on a small rampage on the freeway. The roots of his story result from a real-life event in Chicago. Just browse the daily newspaper or internet news groups and you have a complete crop of potential stories in any genre for which you write. Each story can be purposed to your requirements - there's always a fresh angle to be written.

Writing prompts

You will find a whole host of writing websites that offer story prompts. Daily. That's a lot of story ideas for you yourself to look through. Writer's Digest is one of those sites. Even if the prompt doesn't quite fit what you're looking for, look for an angle that does.

The epiphany

Epiphanies are a number of the greatest sources for writing inspiration. They are those moments with time when sudden realization dawns on us such as a lightning bolt. It sizzles through our brain and frequently causes us to stop whatever we are doing to ponder this realization and its own consequences on our lives.

A definite epiphany that hit me recently was that middle age is hell. Additional info - that's a classic misconception my epiphany told me. The epiphany came into being one day when I came across that a small spot of discoloration on my leg was...God help me...a patch of varicose veins. I wasn't ready for that. It had been at that time when it dawned on me that middle age was much worse than being elderly because by enough time you're 80, you don't care what new ailment or "disfigurement" pops up - you anticipate them. In middle age, however, old age starts to appear and you also are in no chance ready for it. This is the inspiration for my next short story.

Reading

Just how many times do I must tell you to read and never stop. Read everything. There exists a large number of story ideas within the writing of other authors. You don't need to have a totally new and unique idea - hardly anything is. But you can take the same topic and write it from the different view, from a different group of characters, or simply write it better. Of course, I'm not recommending plagiarism. You need to that which was written and spin it into something new and unique for you.

Journal

Keep a journal. I'm not a diary sort of person, but I keep a story idea journal. There are lots of times I come up with a great idea, but I know the idea isn't right. Perhaps I don't have a unique enough spin to interest people, or I haven't developed the proper purpose for it.

For instance, I have a story I would like to write called Dark Glass. It's been sitting on the burner for about per year now because I haven't had the right purpose for this - is it a short story or a novel? Knowing get more info determines the sort of story line you will need to employ. I don't possess that yet. I have some ideas, I have a beginning, however the ending and the writing must wait until I understand what my purpose is in writing it.

Brainstorming

Finally, we arrived at brainstorming. This is usually a technique I take advantage of in article writing. I usually write articles in batches, therefore i need to begin by creating a set of topics before I could put pen to paper. First, I start out simply by immersing my brain in thinking about the topic and write down everything I can develop. When I go out of ideas, I search the internet to see how many other people are writing about within that topic. This usually inspires more article topics and headings than I need.

Ultimately, however, story ideas are inert matter and soon you act upon them and bring them alive. Just start writing about something - anything - & most often you will discover your own creative juices start spilling outrageous with ideas that spin off of what you are writing. Sometimes, the story you write may go in the garbage, however the ideas that come from it will be the source of something truly great.

Darcie Carsner Torres is really a professional writer and editor with over 20 years of experience. She provides editing and critiquing services through CanAm Author Services, [http://www.canamauthorservices.com], and editing and ghostwriting services through Pen & Pestle, [http://www.penandpestle.com]. Her mission is to help budding authors improve their writing and get published.
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