

Quotes are great sources for generating ideas for stories. Say, for example, the saying ‘the road to hell is paved with good intentions’ (meaning that noble actions, rather than noble intentions, achieve good). Start by writing a theme or subject in the center of a page. A treasure hunt in the woods on 6-year-old Jimmy Smith’s birthday goes horribly wrong…Ĭreating a mind-map is yet another practical way to find ideas and associations and generate fiction ideas.In a small town, there are mysterious disappearances in the nearby woods, accompanied by strange graffiti appearing on tree trunks.Look at the image and try to imagine a related story: For example take, this image by Evan Dennis from Unsplash, in the category ‘spooky’: Try to brainstorm a few two-line story ideas inspired by the image. Take an image-based platform ( Pinterest, Unsplash) and browse images. Visual sources are also useful for generating ideas for stories. 58Īrguing with yourself (or other writers, or history, or facts) is one of the fun perks of writing stories. You know, an argument, a refutation, then a rebuttal of teh refutation, then a counter-rebuttal…’ Tom Stoppard in Tom Stoppard in Conversation (1994), p.
Ideas for writing a story series#
What there is, is a series of conflicting statements made by conflicting characters, and they tend to play a sort of infinite leap-frog. There is often no single, clear statement in my plays. As playwright Tom Stoppard said of his writing process: ‘Thinking otherwise’ is useful to writers, in general.

My mum paid £15000 for my dream wedding… then had a … For example, if we Google ‘heartbreak’ and go to the ‘news’ tab: News headlines are equally useful for generating ideas for stories.Ī single headline may give you ideas. The benefit of using a structured process is you’re guided every step of the way (you can also email us your idea at the end for personal, considered feedback and suggestions). In the Central Idea section of Now Novel, for example, you start by thinking about genres and subjects that interest you and gradually finesse and summarize a story idea. Structured prompts that guide you through a series of connected questions help you to continue the thought process you begin. It’s tricky to find ideas out of a single writing prompt. What can you come up with using this method? 2. The first could be a thriller, the second, a historical novel, the third, a bildungsroman (a novel about an artist’s growth). A present makes a performer close to giving up on their aspirations reconsider, the morning of a big concert, and they give an unforgettable performance that night that lights up the roomĮach of these ideas came together out of only the 5 words above and a little imagination.A girl stumbles across a room in her aunt’s home one morning where she finds the diary of a formerly famous performer who used to give piano lessons in the building a century before.Former performer finds a mysterious present in their room at an upmarket London hotel one morning… and it may be from a creepy stalker.Next, unleash your imagination and try to generate as many two-line story idea summaries as you can, incorporating the words you found. ‘and’) repeat the step until you have one that feels worth writing down. If the word is bland or nondescript (e.g. Circle around and land on a word and write it down, until you have 5 to 7 words. (We took Alice Munro’s Selected Stories.) Open the book to any page with your eyes closed. This is a simple way to find unexpected ideas. When you’re stumped, generating ideas for stories may turn out to be surprisingly easy.
