Where do I get my ideas?!

When people find out that I am a writer, it’s often the same questions I hear… You mean you write stories? Can I actually buy your books? Can I be in one of your books? I’d love to write a story; how do you find the time? – As a writer, we’ve heard them all, you may have even been guilty of asking one or two of them before, but my personal favourite is still; Where do you get your ideas?

Now it can't be the same for us all, for the simple reason that everyone is inspired differently. I’m also not sure that how a person is inspired equals where their ideas come from. For example, I often feel inspired when I'm out and about in the fresh air, surrounded by nature; I feel like I want to sit down and write. But I don’t necessarily know what to write about. Therefore, I don’t believe that my ideas come from nature. If I'm totally honest, I'm not actually sure where my ideas come from, only that they tend to come to me at inappropriate times – like when I'm at work, or trying to fall asleep. I have a notebook and pen by my bed for such occasions, and have numerous notes on my phone where I've jotted down ideas when I'm out shopping etc. If I had to pin down where I got my ideas from, I'd say that they're made up from things I've seen and heard around me, whether that be real life experiences or things I've read and watched. I pull little things from different places to make up a new idea that is my own.

The part I do know, is that all my stories have started out as a character. It’s the characters that speak to me. The characters that I create and start to write about, before they find their story. The four Hidden World Novels all started out that way. In some cases, I didn’t even know who they were going to be. Anna-Marie from The Love That Binds Us, started out as a first-person piece about standing in the corner of the room and having no one notice you. About feeling like you were invisible to the people around you. At the time of writing the piece, it felt very lonely and kinda depressing, yet when her story developed, it became clear that the reason that no one was noticing her was because she was a ghost. If you’ve read The Love That Binds Us then this will be making more sense to you than those of you who haven’t. But stripped back, the story is about twin girls who are ripped apart when one of them dies, and follows their journey to reconnecting with each other across the dimensions of the world, hence the ghost!

I’m not a huge planner when it comes to writing, I'm what is known to the writing community as a ‘pantser’ – someone who ‘flies by the seat of their pants’ – I tend to have a very basic idea in my head of where the story is going, and then I start writing and let my characters guide me. By the time I am ready to start writing their story, they have been talking to me for some time, and I know who they are, so writing them is easy for me. There are often several pieces of the story already written from musings about the character, and then I piece them together and make a story. I don’t write chronologically, which can be a pain when it gets around to the first edits, as there are often gaping plot holes, but it means that I don’t very often end up with writer’s block.

I have a relaxed way of writing where I try not to put too much pressure on myself, which means that I rarely suffer with periods of times when I can't write anything. On the days where I don’t feel inspired, or can't seem to find the words, I simply do something else. I take a break, maybe do something related, like edit another piece, or connect on social media, or even get out of the house completely and go on an adventure. Then when I get back, I feel fresh and ready to write. I think the longest I have gone without writing since deciding to make something of my stories is a couple of days!

But anyway, back to my ideas… When I talk to family about my ideas, they all remember one in particular! Back in my university days when I was studying English Literature, I took a course in Creative Writing, which of course was my favourite, but even that had its moments when I found the class a little dull. This one particular day, it was because we were learning about how to write a script, and script writing just wasn’t my thing; still isn’t. I digress, while listening, I was doodling on the back of a worksheet, and ended up writing this short passage.

Most little girls, when tucked up in bed at night, dream of princesses, ponies and everything pink. Serena however, was no ordinary little girl, her dreams were much darker, more dangerous and full of an excitement that little girls shouldn’t understand.

This passage went on to inspire my first full length written novel, one that will be a five-book series when I am through with it. Though currently unpublished, the first of The Cursed Novels, will make its appearance in summer 2019, and I plan to bring it in with a bang.

The same goes every time though – it always starts with the character. Anna-Marie and then her sister, Lily. Luna as a mermaid wanting to spend her time on land rather than in the water. Izzy being bitten and having to survive in a world she’d thought was all fictional as she becomes a werewolf. Eloise discovering that she is as a witch, and that her mother had been one too. The others that I have in the bank awaiting their time; Nel, a vampire, Lara the human detective that ends up wrapped up in their world, Slayer, Jason, Tucker, Kelly the Valkyrie. The list goes on. Some of them have stories attached to them that are just waiting to be written. Some of them are still floating around as ideas. And then amongst them is one that is different from all the rest. I have one that is a story without a character yet. I know who she needs to be – but she hasn’t spoken to me yet!

So, when I am asked where I get my ideas from, my most common answer is ‘Where don’t I get it from.’ But my favourite answer, for those people that I know well enough to understand my sense of humour, is that the voices tell them to me! Let’s hope that none of them ever call the men in white coats to come and get me…

Check out my original post which was featured as a guest blog post here!