WHEN DOES AN IDEA BECOME A PROJECT?
I say, when the idea takes on a life of its own—when it becomes increasingly fully formed in your head. For me, some signs of “idea to story” include:
- When characters speak to me.
- When the opening scene becomes apparent.
- When middle scenes needle at me.
- When I realize how it ends.
- When the voices in my head grow louder.
- When I feel it in my gut.
- When the urge to tell the story becomes too strong to ignore.
Recently, I had a character named Julia who was nagging me every night before I fell asleep. Julia’s book was on my schedule to start writing in two months—there was another project to finish before hers.
But she kept poking at me. So, I got up and instead of writing, created a list of things that might happen in the book. That list then turned into a loosely plotted, three-act structure of a very complicated novel. That done, I went back to bed and slept.
The next morning, I woke up with Julia in my ear. “You forgot something.” Immediately, I knew what it was. I went back to the loosely plotted, three-act structure, and added the forgotten thing to the list. That felt good, and right, so I went on with my day.
But Julia, my dear character, wasn’t finished. A phrase kept rolling around in my head. Was it the title? A recurring theme or idea in the book? I wasn’t sure. I added it to my notes.
Finally, the next night I fell asleep without Julia. And the next. I’m able to move forward with the planned project now, before I get to Julia’s story. I believe Julia did not want me to forget some plot ideas that had been swirling in my brain. She was extremely persistent, and rightly so. I can now proceed as planned.
Had I taken another tack—if I had actually started writing the book with this nagging muse of a character named Julia cheerleading me on, I would have waylaid my entire schedule. The other project would have taken a back burner. Which then would weigh heavy on my mind because of something left undone.
And to be totally honest, my world would have been knocked off-kilter.
Don’t do that. Making the lists. Jotting down notes. That was enough.
What are your ideas, or your characters, telling you?
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(From Chapter 5, Discover Your Write Path to Publishing Success.)