Generating Creative Writing Ideas
It's strange to talk about the idea of generating creative writing ideas. After all, most people have all of the ideas, but none of the knowledge on how to write. But still, there comes a time when you feel like you're out of ideas for stories. You've tried everything that jumps out at you, and now you find yourself stuck trying to blindly come up with a new story. Here are a few of my favorite tips to help you generate your own creative writing ideas and to build better stories.
Stick With the Familiar
It's often easiest to just be you. Drawing on your experiences and relying on the things you are most familiar with make it a lot easier to write a story. You can take liberties with it but it's easiest to make something up when you have a strong familiarity with it or have similar memories to build off.
Don't Quit Your Day Job
David Sedaris talked about it in one of his lectures he gave. One of the biggest challenges about becoming a writer is making it your full-time job. Work is one of the biggest inspirations for your writing, and so, making your job writing cuts you off from a lot of that inspiration. You might one day have to quit your job to make time for writing, but don't forget to find your muse.
Reading is Research, Do It
A lot of people learn by example and why should writing be any different? Read other peoples stories and you can get a feel for what they do that works and doesn't work. It also might help you think of your own ideas that spin off from what they do.
Write Whenever, Wherever
The best way to think of things to write about is to constantly write. If you push off an idea you have, it may be hard to get it back later, and it will stall your generation of newer ideas. As such, whenever you thnk of something, at least make a note about it. Then, when you get more time, write it out further to help expand your ideas.
It's Okay to Be Weird
Don't be afraid if you have skeletons, or perceived skeletons, in your closet. Your readers will appreciate your strange nuances and may share them with you. These quirks will help your readers identify with you and in some cases, relate to your work better.
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