If you want to write original fiction, it's all about staring down the blank page and bringing something new into birth. I love this quote from Ursula K. Le Guin: As for “Write what you know,” I was regularly told this as a beginner. I think it’s a very good rule and have always obeyed it. I write about imaginary countries, alien societies on other planets, dragons, wizards, the Napa Valley in 22002. I know these things. I know them better than anybody else possibly could, so it’s my duty to testify about them. I got my knowledge of them, as I got whatever knowledge I have of the hearts and minds of human beings, through imagination working on observation. Like any other novelist. All this rule needs is a good definition of “know.For me, my methods vary. I get an inspiration, just a seed of something, then I try to figure out a few more key things about it - where is it happening, and when? What are the key emotions driving things? I often rough out a plot structure with some main points to write to, so that I have a leaping-off point
( ... )
As for Random Generators, there is Seventh Sanctum which is full of random generators for original stuff. Some of them are bizarre (and occasionally distractingly mis-spelled) but you'd be sure to find something to spark off an idea. (I especially like the Envisioner, the very bizarre romance one, and the What-if-inator. You can also do character generators, OTT Cartoon villain generators, villain's pet... And the history scrambler is good for a laugh. I haven't yet tried everything - seems to be masses of the things.
There's also They Fight CrimeAs for the DW RPG - I love it, but even up as I am on various spin-off and the TV show old and new, it has all these characters I don't know at the moment. I am thinking of emailing one-off classic who characters like the Cranleighs, Col. Crichton, Prf. Adam Colby and the entire surviving cast of Robots of Death as they are totally as justifiable as one-offs from audio spin-offs and New Who. :-) (In fact some of them have been in spin-
( ... )
Oh. I have read this properly, and you want to know about how I get started. I do use prompts, but mainly for fun, fanfic and stuff.
For original things, I just get ideas and then work them out, sometimes very slowly until the story arrives, or two ideas collide and make a story. And generally I draw maps and pictures of things, or collect real ones, and draw family trees until I feel I know enough about the world for the story to be a full-length one. But it's not as if I've ever done anything good enough to publish, or am in any qay qualified to say. But pretty much all rl authors I have ever met (and that is quite a few, although they were almost all children's authors) say they don't know where ideas come from, you just have to write them down when they do, and be on the watch for them. And after that, you need to write, and write till it is finished. And then rewrite and edit and just be as good as you can and v v persistent. Persistence is the key, it seems. :-)
For me -- all that plot-rich writing? It starts with research, and when it sags or stumbles, I have to go back to research. The plots are driven by the characters, and the characters come from things that happened and the way people are.
So I get an idea, or just a notion -- say, I want Mac in South America, not in Colombia because that's too obvious -- okay, let's go read about other countries. Peru. Cool. Let's read about Peru . . . when's my era? Got it. Read more . . . yikes. Ugh. Read more . . . start writing, keep reading . . .
Comments 4
As for “Write what you know,” I was regularly told this as a beginner. I think it’s a very good rule and have always obeyed it. I write about imaginary countries, alien societies on other planets, dragons, wizards, the Napa Valley in 22002. I know these things. I know them better than anybody else possibly could, so it’s my duty to testify about them. I got my knowledge of them, as I got whatever knowledge I have of the hearts and minds of human beings, through imagination working on observation. Like any other novelist. All this rule needs is a good definition of “know.For me, my methods vary. I get an inspiration, just a seed of something, then I try to figure out a few more key things about it - where is it happening, and when? What are the key emotions driving things? I often rough out a plot structure with some main points to write to, so that I have a leaping-off point ( ... )
Reply
As for Random Generators, there is Seventh Sanctum which is full of random generators for original stuff. Some of them are bizarre (and occasionally distractingly mis-spelled) but you'd be sure to find something to spark off an idea. (I especially like the Envisioner, the very bizarre romance one, and the What-if-inator. You can also do character generators, OTT Cartoon villain generators, villain's pet... And the history scrambler is good for a laugh. I haven't yet tried everything - seems to be masses of the things.
There's also They Fight CrimeAs for the DW RPG - I love it, but even up as I am on various spin-off and the TV show old and new, it has all these characters I don't know at the moment. I am thinking of emailing one-off classic who characters like the Cranleighs, Col. Crichton, Prf. Adam Colby and the entire surviving cast of Robots of Death as they are totally as justifiable as one-offs from audio spin-offs and New Who. :-) (In fact some of them have been in spin- ( ... )
Reply
For original things, I just get ideas and then work them out, sometimes very slowly until the story arrives, or two ideas collide and make a story. And generally I draw maps and pictures of things, or collect real ones, and draw family trees until I feel I know enough about the world for the story to be a full-length one. But it's not as if I've ever done anything good enough to publish, or am in any qay qualified to say. But pretty much all rl authors I have ever met (and that is quite a few, although they were almost all children's authors) say they don't know where ideas come from, you just have to write them down when they do, and be on the watch for them. And after that, you need to write, and write till it is finished. And then rewrite and edit and just be as good as you can and v v persistent. Persistence is the key, it seems. :-)
Reply
So I get an idea, or just a notion -- say, I want Mac in South America, not in Colombia because that's too obvious -- okay, let's go read about other countries. Peru. Cool. Let's read about Peru . . . when's my era? Got it. Read more . . . yikes. Ugh. Read more . . . start writing, keep reading . . .
You get the picture.
Reply
Leave a comment