Where do you get your ideas?
Every writer (and artist) gets that question once in a while, usually from someone who wants to learn to be a writer (or artist) themselves.
I don’t know about other writers (or artists), but my answer is:
Everywhere!
I get ideas for characters, plots, and settings when I am reading books, watching movies, looking at art, baking, cooking, sewing, folding laundry, or washing dishes. I get ideas when I’m learning about history, learning about places far away, or learning more about the place I live in.
Many
writers (and artists, I expect) keep an “idea journal” of some kind. It’s a notebook or journal where they write
down anything they think they might want to use for a future project. Names, cool words, ideas for titles, facts,
pictures, anything!
You don't neeeeeeeeeeeeeeed to keep an idea journal, but you might want to try it.
Story
Ideas on Demand
If you’re suddenly confronted with a school assignment where you’re supposed to
write a story with little or no prep time, that does take some practice. But if you remember that a story needs a
protagonist with a want/need, an antagonist with a want/need, a setting, and a
plot arc, that gets a little easier. Grab
a couple of character types, give them each a want/need that somehow are
opposed to each other, plop them in a setting, and figure out how they go from
the beginning through the middle to the end.
You might think I'm joking when I say that's all you really need. I'm literally not. When I got asked to write a book for a multi-author series two and a half years ago, I sat down and figured out which of the suggested fairy tales I could pop into a western setting, what kind of protagonist I could have and what she would want, what sort of antagonist would oppose her and her needs, and how the basic plot could go. And that was all I needed to know in order to commit to retelling "The Ugly Duckling," which eventually became the novella A Noble Companion.
If
you have an ideas notebook already, then you can draw from that for names of
characters, plot ideas, settings, and so on.
It really helps you write better stories more quickly because you’re not
starting with no ideas and nothing to work with.
Your Turn!
Assignment One: Imagine you're in my shoes from a couple years ago! Figure out a protagonist with a want/need, an antagonist with a want/need, a setting, and a basic plot arc (beginning, climax, ending) for a retelling of your choice of TWO of the following fairy tales. Put each one in a separate comment.
Cinderella
Beauty and the Beast
Rumplestiltskin
The Elves and the Shoemaker
Little Red Riding Hood
Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves
1. Little Red Riding Hood:
ReplyDeleteThe main character, whom we shall name Scarlett for no particular reason, is driving to stay with her grandmother for a while. She drives a bright red car, and because I like her, it's a 1957 Corvette convertible with a built-in radio. Anyways, when she's at a gas station refueling her Corvette, this hitchhiker shows up and asks her if she wants to go get a Coke with him (his name is Wolfe, by the way, because I'm really creative.) Scarlett refuses, and gets out of there as fast as the speed limit allows.
When she's at her grandmother's house, she meets one of the neighbors, whose name is Jon (and is definitely not named after Jon Bon Jovi.) I like him too, so he gets to ride a motorcycle that's been custom-modified to be part Chevy Bel Air. (No, I'm not making this up. I saw a picture of one at a restaurant once.) He's kind of a hoodlum, but the nice kind.
Then the creepy hitchhiker guy shows up and starts being all charming to the grandmother when she's out gardening. Eventually she likes him enough to invite him in for coffee, and this becomes a thing, even though Scarlett keeps warning her grandmother that this guy is a creep. Jon doesn't like Wolfe either, and when they're both over for coffee they spend most of their time giving each other hoodlum stares.
Then one night Wolfe proves what a creep he is by breaking in and threatening Scarlett and her grandmother with a switchblade. He makes Scarlett give him her parents' phone number, so he can demand money in exchange for their safe return. Scarlett tells him Jon's instead, but Wolfe doesn't know so he calls Jon and demands money. Jon's smart, so he pretends to be Scarlett's dad and then comes over to rescue them, but not on his tuff motorcycle because it's loud.
Jon sneaks in, and he and Wolfe have a knife fight which ends with Jon bleeding a lot and Wolfe getting clubbed over the head. Scarlett calls the police, and they come and arrest Wolfe. They drive Jon to the hospital in her grandmother's car (which is a bright pink 1957 Cadillac Eldorado, because I like her grandmother too.)
Jon gets stitched up, and Wolfe goes to jail, and eventually Scarlett bids farewell to her grandmother and heads back home. The end.
I like the idea that hoodlum stares differ wildly from ordinary stares.
DeleteI'm very curious as to who clubs the wolf over the head, and with what. Is it the grandmother or Scarlett, or them working in tandem?
I haven't quite figured that out yet - it's either Jon with the end of his switchblade handle or Scarlett with whatever she can get her hands on.
DeleteThe grandmother doesn't seem like the sort to club people over the head. It's probably Scarlett.
Delete2. Cinderella:
ReplyDeleteThis time the main character is named Elmont, because I can. Elmont's mother died in a car accident when Elmont was small, and his dad remarried before getting shot by a drunk guy. His stepmother had two daughters, and he and his stepsisters loathe each other. The stepmother isn't actually evil, but she wants to keep Elmont safe and out of trouble. Elmont, on the other hand, is a juvenile delinquent and he wants to get in trouble. So the stepmother gives him a bunch of chores to do to keep him busy, but of course he skips out on them to go fight and smoke and drag race and all that.
Then he gets an invitation to go to a party at a friend's house the same night his stepfamily is going to a fancier party at a different person's house. He asks to go, but his stepmother knows what kind of party this is bound to be and says no, to the point of locking him in his room before she leaves for her own party.
Elmont is trying to pick the lock on his door when his next-door neighbor climbs onto the back porch roof so he can reach the window. Elmont opens the window and his neighbor says he's got his car (a 1957 Cadillac Series 62, probably light blue) parked next door and he can drive him to the party.
Elmont climbs out his window onto the porch roof, and from there to the ground, and his neighbor drives him to the party. There Elmont has a keen time and meets a girl named Natalie, and they spend a while talking together before the party devolves into a huge brawl. Then Elmont realizes his family is supposed to get home at twelve-thirty, and it's already twelve, so he has to leave. Unfortunately, his neighbor drove his 1957 Cadillac Series 62 home, so Elmont has to run all the way back to his house. He climbs back through his window just before his stepfamily gets home.
The next day Natalie comes by, having asked around until she figured out where Elmont lived. He'd forgotten his cigarette case at the party the night before and she's using it as an excuse to come find him. Elmont's stepmother is quite surprised that someone this respectable would be looking for her hoodlum stepson. The stepmother forgot to ever unlock Elmont's door, so Elmont climbs out his window again and comes in through the back door, and while his stepmother is wondering where in the world he came from, Natalie gives him back his cigarette case.
Elmont asks Natalie to go see a movie with him, and she agrees, and they drive over to the theater in her car. (Natalie turns out to be the mayor's daughter, and as such she has a snazzy red 1957 Ford Thunderbird.) The end.
I thought that was so hilarious that Cinderella was a guy! Ingenious. I would never have thought of that!
DeleteHaha, thanks! I was stretching my mental faculties and trying to think of how to retell two fairy tales with juvenile delinquents, so my Cinderella was a guy :)
DeleteI mean, it could work! Does Elmont have a bright red jacket that he only zips up halfway? Asking for a friend, since the details of a girl named Natalie and a lost cigarette case would point that direction...
DeleteEhrm... yes
DeleteBeauty and the Beast:
ReplyDeleteThere is a girl. Her name is Beatrice. She lives in a little boring Wyoming town, with only 200 inhabitants. She hates it. She is constantly bored. When she was little, she tried to make friends with the kids in her town, but they were all boring ranchers. Beatrice was more of a forest girl. But she did love the mountains.
Well the whole town kind of looked down on Beatrice and her dad (her only living family member), because her dad didn't seem to have a... job. But Bea loved her dad. She knew that what he did, while perhaps odd, was brilliant, and would one day revolutionize the world. So she bore it bravely. But she couldn't help wishing he would hurry up and finish his project.
Finally one day, Bea's patience was rewarded. Her father had completed his project and was that very day travelling to show it to the world. Bea was so excited.
That day, after her father had left, Bea went around the house, doing things and generally being happy. But then a knock came at the door. Bea went to open it. And in walked, oh sorry. And in moseyed Rancher Bill. Rancher Bill was the towns buffest, youngest, hotshot of a rancher. And he'd always had an eye for Bea. He, arrogantly while also speaking in a monotone, proposed to poor Bea. And Bea was like uh uh. And she kicked him out.
Soon after Rancher Bill left, Bea tried to call her dad. But he didn't pick up. And he hadn't answered when she'd called an hour before, either. So Bea looked on FindMy (my mom's somewhat creepy app she got so she can know where we are at all times, if our phones are with us), and saw that her dad was at some weird address she didn't recognize, and when she looked google maps, she saw it seemed to be some old abandoned mansion in the mountains.
Quickly, she got in her cool car. It was really cool. She, however, like me, had no idea about anything about cars, and so to the both of us, it was just a cool car (you can choose what it actually was, Sadie, since I know you know WAY more about cool cars than me lol). Anyway, she drove really really quick to the mansion, goes in, and there are a bunch of weird Siris and Alexas everywhere. She was very disconcerted, and then the Siris and Alexas told her that they were people, actually, but had been put under a magic spell. Beatrice was like, wait, I've /read this story/ watched this movie! Aren't you supposed to be like candle sticks and teacups, and stuff? The Siris and Alexas (figuratively) rolled their eyes. Then Bea got straight to the point. Where was her father? The Siris and Alexas (again, figuratively) looked uncomfortable. But finally one of the Siris gave in. She directed Bea to what was, in essence, the mansion's dungeon. There Bea found her father, bound in chains.
...Then, THE BEAST!!!! A bunch of things happened, in which Bea's father looked pathetic, Bea looked half terrified, half super dramatic heroine, and THE BEAST roared and also.... talked. Finally, Bea, Bea's father, and THE BEAST came to an agreement. THE BEAST would keep Bea instead of Bea's father. Even though, he could have just, ya know, kept both.... but anyway! THE BEAST wanted to keep Bea because maybe she could break the spell and he could stop being a THE BEAST. THE BEAST led Bea to a beautiful room. And after a while Bea started to warm up to THE BEAST, and THE BEAST to her. But Bea REALLY started not hating THE BEAST so much, when he showed her his inhome Blockbusters. Well, one day Bea went into THE BEAST's room. He had told her not to, but she got lost and had accidentally wandered in. She was looking around, wondering where she was, when she saw.... a book. She had never really been a fan of books. Reading was boring, she thought. But she had always been a little sad she felt this way. And she found herself rather intrigued by this big book. So she went over to it, and she saw that slowly, the words on the open pages were fading and disappearing. And the book was opened almost to the end. She turned a few pages back, and realized that all the other pages were blank. And then she looked at the words on the book, and began to try to read them. But before she could, in stormed THE BEAST. Well, he wasn't very happy to find her there. But when she explained that she simply hadn't known where she was, and had she, she would have left with all haste (haste being a word she picked up from a movie version of a book),he quickly softened. But then he noticed she was sad and when she told him it was because she missed her dad, he told her to go back and see him. And so she did. And then Rancher Bill asked her where she'd been, and she said at a mansion. Then her father, who was delirious with a fever he had, and so seemingly crazy, told Rancher Bill all about THE BEAST, before Bea could stop him. Then Rancher Bill riled up all the ranchers and cowboys and antelope hunters he could, and they ran to storm the Mansion of THE BEAST. Rancher Bill stabbed THE BEAST, but didn't quite kill him, and before he could get away, THE BEAST tossed him off the top of the mansion. But then THE BEAST started dying. And Bea was all like, "oh no! All of a sudden, I remember what those words said! 'you're a beast. But if you become a better person, maybe a girl will like you and break the spell and you will be handsome again. But she has to say, "I love you"'" THE BEAST told Bea that he was impressed she remembered them so well. And Bea was like, well, when you rewatch movies over and over, you get pretty good at memorizing! Then she said 'I love you', THE BEAST became handsome. No no, not ugly. HANDSOME. And they moved to somewhere not boring and lived happily ever after.
DeleteTHE END.
"FindMy" sounds like Mrs. Weasley's clock.
Delete*I* have an in-home Blockbuster video! It's a set of shelves in my basement. It even has a little Blockbuster sign taped to it. The Beast and I could be the same person.
I... had to put them in two separate comments 🤦🏼♀️
ReplyDeleteThis little town in Wyoming seems like the place to drive a gorgeous, dark blue 1967 Ford Mustang (and I only said it seemed like the place to do so because I wanted an excuse to give someone a 1967 Ford Mustang, and mine were all set in the fifties.) If you want something more modern, she can have a C8 Corvette convertible from about 2020.
DeleteAlso, I know he's the villain, but Rancher Bill kinda cracked me up at first... (and FindMy totally sounds creepy)
DeleteI think the dark blue 1967 Ford Mustang is perfect! Haha, yeah Rancher Bill is supposed to be sort of comedic relief, like Gaston is!
DeleteI saw a really nice red 60s Mustang yesterday... haha, I'm obsessed with old cars, I got super excited. Moseying and speaking in a monotone 🤣
DeleteI'm convinced this is Rancher Bill.
DeleteLooks like the moseying sort to me :P
DeleteRumplestiltskin:
ReplyDeleteThere was a beautiful girl. Her name was La-ia. (that name is courtesy of the teasings of my 6th grade teacher. It is pronounced "Ladashia")
She lived in Richton,CA, but as WORKING CLASS. A thing to be ashamed of there. Her father was rather... insecure. He often gambled and things, desperately trying to secure wealth and status like so many of the people around him. One day, he thought of an idea. If executed well, he thought, it was flawless. He would hire off his daughter as an assistant to the richest, and most notable man in the entire town. Called "THE KING" by the inhabitants of Richton, this man was immensely wealthy, and extremely powerful. But too busy with his wealth and power to think of marriage. However, La-ia's father thought, if a young and pretty girl just happened to be thrown into his life, perhaps finally he could be rich and important! So he threw his plan into action. He talked with THE KING's trusted housekeeper, who was like a mother to THE KING, and who everyone knew, if they could convince her of something, they had THE KING convinced as well. He told her offhandedly at the grocery store, that he thought, with all the hard work THE KING did all day, perhaps it would ease his work load if he had an assistant to, well, assist him. The housekeeper thought this an excellent idea. She asked La-ia's dad if he had anyone in mind. La-ia's dad nonchalantly mentioned La-ia (the housekeeper didn't know him, and so didn't know La-ia was his daughter. Them being working class, and all, they never really entered the thoughts of the upperclass in Richton, or even the thoughts of the upperclass's servants. He very subtly praised her La-ia. And while thinking of things to say she could do, he accidentally let slip a lie that was not so easily forgivable. Everything else he had said La-ia could do, which she actually couldn't, were forgettable things the housekeeper most likely wouldn't remember well enough to hold her to, or things that La-ia either would never be expected to do, or could easily figure out. But this lie was not like the others. This lie, was that she could cook.
When La-ia's dad got home, he looked depressed. La-ia asked him what was the matter. When he told her and La-ia's mother what she had done, they both stood, their mouths agape, aghast. La-ia's dad told her she had an interview tomorrow. La-ia's mother was sobbing. They would be thrown out of Richton, if they did not leave themselves, from shame. But La-ia hardened herself. She would get through it! The next day she went bravely to the interview. She sat down in the chair across from THE KING. Nervous, and getting more nervous by the minute, somehow La-ia managed to keep her cool. She answered every questioned calmly and smartly. Then THE KING mentioned her supposed ability to cook. La-ia said she could cook. Oh dear! She had meant to go there and clear it all up with THE KING, and use her actual attributes to persuade him not to completely shame them and buy their property, and buy the business her father worked at, so he could fire him and all that stuff, but her nervousness had finally gotten the best of her, and she had just made everything worse! La-ia was close to tears when THE KING hired her. He said she could start work that very minute. He told her he wanted Shepherd's pie for dinner. La-ia went to the kitchen. How doesn't this guy have a cook?! She wondered miserably. Pathetically, she dropped down on the nearest stool and sobbed.
Then she heard a noise. She looked up, and there stood a little old man. He told her he'd make the most delicious meal if she'd give him something of value. So, super relieved, La-ia quickly handed over her golden earrings. The little man made the meal and left. Then THE KING invited La-ia to dinner with him (he thought she was PRETTY!!! Oooo, THE KING and La-ia sitting in a tree...), and they ate and talked. La-ia hoped maybe if she could somehow manage to make due for the next couple of days, and learn how to cook, then she could actually pull this off. So the next day she went back. And she went down to the kitchen, after completing all her other duties, to make supper. For an hour she waited. But no little man came. She had taken a cooking class all last night, and tried desperately to whip something up, but nothing worked. Hopeless once again, she sat and sobbed. And the little man appeared! Relief swept over poor La-ia, and before the little old man had time to say anything, she handed him her beautiful necklace. The next day it was her ring. The next her lovely silk shawl. And so for two weeks she brought things to give the little man. But she was running out of things to give. One morning before work, she and her parents were looking desperately for something to give. But all they could find was an old broach. They hoped it would be good enough. But alas, it wasn't. And the little old man refused to help La-ia unless she could offer something better. La-ia began sobbing. She simply had nothing more to give! But finally the old man offered a solution. He would cook for her one last time, if she would give him her first born child. La-ia, in her desperation, agreed, though reluctantly. But all the trial of an hour before vanished when, at dinner, THE KING proposed to her. At first, La-ia wondered if she should refuse, as most likely, he'd expect her to cook for him, and although she had been practicing hard and taking many classes, she doubted if she could ever cook so well as the little old man. But her fears were allayed, when THE kind KING told her, that, as he saw it stressed her out, he would not expect her to cook for him. So, happily she accepted his offer.
Delete3 years passed. And finally, to her joy, La-ia bore a son, a prince. And after the child was weaned, who should show up, but the little old man. Horrified, for she had (somehow) forgotten all about that, she begged him to have mercy. He told her he would give her three days to guess his name, and if she could guess it, she could keep her son. Now La-ia had long ago told her husband all, and so together they made a list of all the names they could find on google. La-ia spent 2 days reading them off to the little old man. At the end of the second day, La-ia had given up hope. But THE KING had an idea. He asked their housekeeper to follow the little old man. And she did. And she followed him all the way to his home in the hill forest. Then she watched as he built a fire and put a pot over it. Then he began to sing. And she listened very carefully. Veeeeerrryyyyy caaaaarrrefffuuuuullllyyyyyyyy. At first, it was apparent he was just singing some pop song that sounded vaguely familiar. But then she heard words that interested her far more. For the little old man was chanting "FE FI FOOooooo," oooh woops! Wrong bad guy... actually, he was chanting, "Tonight, tonight, my plans I make. Tomorrow, tomorrow, the baby I take. The queen will never win the game, for Rumpelstiltskin is my name."
DeleteThe housekeeper ran back to THE KING and La-ia and told them the name. So then the next day La-ia pretended to be distraught. At first she begged to let him keep her baby. Then she asked if perhaps she could give him her second born, just not this sweet baby. Then she asked if he would take her husband! Then, right in the middle of a fake sob, and the little old man's laughter, she stood up, held her baby to her, looked at him straight in the eye, and, without any emotion on he face at all, asked if his name was Rumplestiltskin. At this Rumplestiltskin's face went white, and he started screaming and yelling and throwing a temper tantrum, until THE KING, who had had quite enough, threw him out the window.
The End.
Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry my comments are so long!
DeleteHahaha! Throwing him out the window at the end was a complete surprise.
DeleteWHY does Rumplestiltskin want all these babies, anyway? Is he secretly Uncle Karl?