I get new story ideas all the time—mostly when I'm taking a shower and there's no way I can write it down. (Someone, please come up with waterproof paper, and quick!) Other times, it happens when I'm cooking, watching a movie, doing random housework, or asleep (yes, asleep: a few dreams of mine have turned into stories 😂). Other times, I get them from creating a mock-up book cover, and deciding I have to write the story behind it.
But whenever, however, why ever I get it, the most important step for me is to brainstorm it.
Step #1: Get it Down
Immediately after a story idea strikes, I write it down—all of it. I pull out my pretty purple-and-flowers clasp notebook, flip to an empty page, write the date, and DUMP.
I write down absolutely everything I can that goes through my brain whenever I think of this story. Often times, I end up with longs strings up sentences that don't make much sense—just to me! I throw spelling, grammar, sense, and punctuation out the window and just word vomit.
" "soooo, i had this idea the other night about a girl who mayb lives with a relative, mayb not, but anyway she finds out she is the heir to a HUGE 4tune . . . . . . . . . . . but 1st she has to find it. i think she shuld go on a huge treasure hunt w/ sum of her frends, but mayb not bc she wouldn't want them 2 get it 2, so mayb just by herself and mayb with just 1 frend she can trust. . . " ".
See what I mean? This is honestly so huge for me! If I can't get it down, I won't remember my story idea. And that's just so sad.
So, whatever you have to do, do it, and get down that story idea!
Pro tip:
-If you have a hard time moving your pen/fingers fast enough to write/type your ideas, try using the voice recorder app on your phone, or the dictate feature on your document!
Step #2: The Charries
In all honesty, the characters can make or break a story for me. I don't care if you have the most intriguing plot, or engaging writing-style, or diverse fantasy world. If the characters aren't well written, and just absorb the impact of the plot, I'm not going to enjoy it as much. (And yes, I classify these as more important than the story itself; but I shall get to that soon!)
What do I mean by characters (also known as 'Charries' 😉) just "absorbing" the plot? I mean when things happen in the story that do not directly relate to the main character—they don't matter to the character. The charries just stand in the way of the story and act according to what's happening to them just because. Let me give you an example from a story idea I once had. . .
Molley Pierce is a US Coast Guard. When on patrol one day she sees something floating in the water, she investigates. Turns out the 'thing' was the body of 17-year-old Amanda Storey. Molley is determined to track down her killer and bring him to justice.
I can tell you just from this, that Molley would've ended up being the shock-absorber of the plotline. Yes, she has motive to bring the killer to justice, but couldn't we go deeper than that? How do we make it matter to Molley, and affect her in a way other than turning sponge? Well, let's see. . .
Molley Pierce always wanted to follow in her fathers' footsteps. When at 19 she became a US Coast Guard, she did. When on patrol one day she sees something floating in the water, she investigates. Turns out the 'thing' was the body of 17-year-old Amanda Storey, a local high-schooler. . . and Molley's niece.
Whoa. I can already tell that this story is going to matter to Molley, because it directly relates to her. It's going to force emotions into her heart, and that's going to affect how she reacts to the story—not just absorbing it. We could even take it one step further by having Molley's father added into the mix as well. Maybe he ended up dying while on a case similar to this one?
I know that's a lot to think about just with the characters. Trust me, it will pay off. And don't worry about having it all make sense and matter right off the bat. It could be half-way through the story you realize that maybe the person that died was the main character's mother. Let the story reveal itself to you in the way it should.
But now that we've cleared up all that shock-absorption and sponginess, how about the actual characters? Whenever I'm crafting characters, I try to take into account several things:
-What the genre of the story is -What the vibe is
-When the story is set
-The message I want to convey
I wouldn't want to have a sassy and sarcastic main character if I were trying to write a sweet medieval story. Just like if I were trying to write a story about a girl who rebels against society, I wouldn't make her a sweet, mousy type.
As for the looks of my charries, I really go with the attitude of my character and story. In one of my stories (an Alice in Wonderland retelling) my Mad Hatter had blue and purple dyed hair because I felt that that matched her personality.
Just fell the story. Close your eyes, picture your story as a movie and examine the cast. What do they look like? Now open your eyes and write.
Ask yourself: -Who would best fill the role of the main character of this story? -When I close my eyes, how do I picture this character looking?
Step #3: Names
Technically, this should go under charries, but I thought that was long enough as it was, so here we are. And in truth, my names do sometimes come after I come up with appearances.
When I pick names for my characters, I try to keep in mind the genre, the time-period, the personality of my character, his/her role in the story, and appearance.
I will sometimes look up "Popular Fantasy Girl Names", or "Names for Medieval Villains." Any genre you write in, there will likely be a list of names!
When choosing a name for you character, try to pick something that goes with the character's personality. If it's a spunky, peppy teen from California, Piper might be a nice fit, or possibly Shannon or Taylor. Keep in mind your own tastes, and favorite names too!
Step #4: The Feel
This is almost as important as the characters! What do I want this story to feel like?
Think about it for a minute. People are mood-readers, -writers, -watchers, -listeners. We read books depending on whether we want to be happy or sad; we listen to music that matches the mood we are in; we watch movies because we are in the mood for that genre, style, time-period, etc. If I pick a book off the shelf to read, it's because I'm in the mood for a cute contemporary story, not for a historical murder mystery (yes, I have books that match both of those moods).
This is why the feel is the very first thing I decide on in a story.
Ask yourself: -What is the feel (vibe) of the story I want to write? Hopeful? Dramatic? Beautiful, real-life, cozy? (Even seasons can be feels! A cute summer story, a cozy fall novel, etc.)
Step #5: The Story
Finally we get to the pièce de résistance: the story itself!
When I'm first exploring a story idea, I don't sit down and write out a 5,000-word outline (well, I have, but it's not recommended 😉). I only come up with three main parts:
The Beginning The Mid-point
The End
Here's an example of this with a well-known story, Pride and Prejudice (taken from the 2005 movie version of the book).
🚨SPOILER ALERT🚨
The Beginning: Elizabeth is out walking and reading. She comes home to her two younger sisters, Kitty and Lydia, spying on their parents while Mrs. Bennet tries to persuade Mr. Bennet to go and visit the new resident of Netherfield Park.
The Mid-Point: Mr. Darcy explains in his letter to Elizabeth his behavior towards Mr. Wickham.
The End: Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth have a romantic moment at their new home together: Pemberly Estates.
See how simple it can be? And honestly, you just need to have a general idea of what you want this story to be about to fill it in. You don't even have to have names of characters—fill those in with "Main Girl", and "Ridiculous Clergyman" and "Side-Character's Handsome Love Interest" and "Detestable Leftenant" (any guesses as to who's who? 😏🤭).
Ask yourself: -Where do I want this story to take place? What do I want to happen in the first chapter of this story?
-What do I want to happen right smack in the middle of the story? What is the single event that steers the story off track and changes the direction of the story?
-How do I want to end this masterpiece? Do I want it to be more open-ended? Closed-off? (Note, if this is a series, then you could make the end a cliff-hanger that leads into the second book.)
The Final (and optional) Step: Aesthetic Boards
I am seriously a sucker for Pinterest Aesthetic Boards. I love creating new boards with my book title and adding all sorts of pins that remind me of the story.
There's just something about being able to see your characters faces and certain elements in real life that just fires up all my cylinders and sets the creative juices to pumping.
Technically, this isn't 100% necessary, but it is super fun!
Pro tip:
-If you don't have Pinterest, you can use websites like Unsplash.com and look up things like "medieval castle" or "summer", download the photos you love, and create a document with them, or use a website like Canva.com to create photo collages. It totally works!
I hope this post has helped some of y'all. I know it was a bit all over the place and a tad lengthy, but I really love brainstorming stories, and these things help me so much.
Do you use any of these tips when brainstorming your stories? Are there any you've never heard of? I'd love to know!
Till next time!
