In a guest post on Writers in the Storm, Becca Puglisi suggests interesting ways to brainstorm new story ideas. “Inspiration is a fickle beast,” she says. “Finding and prioritizing story options can be a frustrating process, but it’s easier if you approach it from the right angle.”
Her tips include:
- Start with Genre. Brainstorm a list of your favorite genres and your favorite elements from those genre. Mix and match, and consider how you can reimagine those elements or give them an interesting twist.
- Start with Character. If you have a character in mind, but no story, start digging into their backstory. What events influenced their present? What are their positive characteristics and flaws?
- Start with a Story Seed. Lots of writers start with the “what if” question. You might get an idea from hearing about an unusual event or from information you find during your research.
- Start with a Logline. A lot of us struggle to create simple story sentences for our novels, but if you can master this, it’s a great skill to have. Create a one or two sentence pitch describing the story you want to tell. Play around with the various elements until you have something that sparks your imagination.
- Start with Goals, Motivation, and Conflict. “If you’re thinking about a certain goal (it’s a story about someone who has to stop a killer/find their purpose/plan a wedding), play with various conflicts and motivations,” Puglisi suggests. “Throw ideas into the hopper and see what pops out. Keep turning the handle to produce concept after concept until one of them strikes your fancy.”
