Ideas Anyone?
As a writer, I am often asked by friends and family where I get my ideas from. This is an incredibly hard question, at least for me. I could wax poetic about how I saw a special on one of those learning channels about cyanide, and that gave me the idea for my short story Almond Cookies - but that would be nothing more than another drop of fiction for the old imagination bucket. I could say "divine inspiration", but considering the racier portions of my books, probably not from there either. (wink, wink) I've been trying to figure out a reasonable explanation to this question for a while now, and the closest I've come to an answer is summed up by this quote –
Trust that little voice in your head that says "Wouldn't it be interesting if…" And then do it. ~ Duane Michals ~
Only for me it's, "and then WRITE it."
Pick a topic, any topic, and GO! The variety of books for sale out in the world is phenomenal. If you've thought about it, dreamt about it, or talked about it, don't you think it's about time you did something about it?
Logic will get you from A to B.
Imagination will take you everywhere.
~ Albert Einstein ~
Whatever you do though, don't let the words of others discourage you. When someone says something about your writing or does a critique for you, take a step back. The first impulse most people have when encountering what they believe to be negative criticism is to say "Screw you, my baby is perfect!" But this is not always (almost never in fact) the case.
Freedom is not worth having if it does not connote freedom to err. ~ Mohandas K. Gandhi~
Think about all of your favorite authors, maybe you like Stephen King, or Nora Roberts. Whoever comes to mind though, remember - they have an editor. This means is that, despite their experience and expertise with the craft of writing, they still make mistakes. They still require an extra set of eyes to review their work. Keep this in mind if you are just starting out as a writer, heck, I still keep this in mind when I receive feedback. I don't always like what I hear, but I always take it seriously and try to learn from what I've been told.
There is a freedom in writing that I have never found anywhere else. I've traveled to foreign lands, killed a cheating spouse, made love in a river, been a sidhe princess trapped in a castle, kissed an Earl, used my psychic powers for good, and so much more.
No one should negotiate their dreams. Dreams must be free to flee and fly high. No government, no legislature, has a right to limit your dreams. You should never agree to surrender your dreams. ~ Jesse Jackson ~
The best advice I can give to someone getting started, but is still afraid to send their work out into the world, is to enter a contest. Seriously. That's how I got my start. Once you've committed yourself to writing the story for a deadline, it is much harder to back out. Tell your family and friends what you are doing, use them to kick your butt into motion when you start to fall behind or to lift you up when you get discouraged. Join a writers group and surround yourself with like-minded people. Just go for it!
Nothing encourages creativity like the chance to fall flat on one's face. ~ James D. Finley ~
I started writing some time ago and discovered a whole new world. One where - literally - anything can and usually does happen. One where the Rabbit Hole is just the begining and Worlds End doesn't necesarily mean the story is over. Someday I might reach the last chapter of my writing journey - but not today. Why don't you take a chance? The journey is amazing...
Rain
Fab-U-Lous post!
ReplyDeleteIt's great to tell others what you are doing so they can hold you accountable. :)
By the way C.E., THANK YOU for keeping me going! ((hug))
ReplyDelete