But it's a legit question. Where do we get our ideas? And since Love Inspired Suspense has murder, blackmail and other evil deeds, yes, I'd like to ask us all, "Where do we get our ideas?" I'd hate to think that some of the authors are living these lives!
Yet, often, something sparks our interest. With Deadly Homecoming, a news article talked of one island's residents taking the law into their own hands, forced to it because the police's hands were tied.
My most recent submission, not yet accepted, started as I watch a friend suffer with dementia and his wife's difficult decisions. Mix that with a pancake supper at a local maple syrup operation and you have bitter and sweet rolled into one angst filled story.But now I have several others brewing. A new friend is hoping to buy a house, and we looked at it, and my mind whirled. An old place, full of questions, secrets, even a telescope from the Cold War in the attic. I can imagine a story with a cover like my second LIS book:
And another writer, a friend of mine, Lina Gardiner, told me of a painting she just bought. It turned out to have a secret face in it. Whoa! What if there were more secrets in it?
Life is full of questions. Don't look for the answers. Look for the what-ifs.
Then you'll have a the starts of a story.
11 comments:
Great article Barbara.
I usually get ideas everywhere.
The story I wrote last year (hope to publish soon!) started with a child kidnapping.
From there, I got ideas from news articles, other stories, and my husband. He's great at this sort of thing.
Now, all I need is an idea for my own blog, and I'll be all set! :)
Blessings
Renee-Ann
I envy you guys for whom the ideas just crowd in from every direction! Mine are slow to come and take lots of nurturing. I know that's never been a problem for you, Barbara! You have a fabulous writer's brain!
Renee-Ann, blogs can be hard, especially when you live my life. It's either swamped with too much stuff or stretches of boredom!
Norah, I may have the imagination, but I know you have the skill of producing such a clean copy the first time around. That I envy. Don't we all wish we had everything a writer needed!
Lovely blog post, Barbara. And I do love my wonderful painting. It was like finding treasure!
My first LIS idea came from a homeless lady who roamed my neighborhood. I killed her off in my second LIS.
Ideas are everywhere! I love it when those "moments" happen. I'm watching a movie, reading a book, glancing through the newspaper. And the obituaries! They're a great source of inspiration, not to mention character ideas. Great topic, Barbara.
Lynette
Pamela, you're awful! poor woman
Even now, my mind is churning but I need to focus on getting some editing on written stories done today.
Someone in our writing group mentioned the following website once (think it was Dawn):
Big Huge Thesaurus
http://words.bighugelabs.com/plot.php
It's full of prompts. I came across it this morning and found an great idea! I blogged it. :)
Renee-Ann, that link is fabulous! Thank you!
Evidently non-writers don't think up story plots when they hear a snippet of conversation, or read a news article, or see a strange looking character on the street corner, or...
If you're a writer, you understand.
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