Idea Island: Where do you get Ideas?

Where do ideas come from?

When I asked my youngest sister where ideas came from, she rolled her eyes and said, "they come from your brain, Stephie." My other sister specified: "They come in through your eyes, ears and nose."

Well, that lovely piece of wisdom concludes this blog. See you next week!

Just kidding. Ideas are much more complicated than they might seem--at least, to me they are. They can be intimidating sometimes. They can be scary. Sometimes, as in the case with one of my current works in progress, it can be necessary to set them aside when I'm not ready for them yet. 

But the biggest question regarding ideas seems to be: "Where do you get them?"

Unfortunately, there is no magic idea shop where you can walk in, pick a few creative and genius concepts off the shelf, pay for them, and walk out. But you do live in a very interesting world, from which you can pluck little observations to write about, or to paint, or whatever you'd like to do.

Our lovely middle sister had a point when she said that ideas "come in through your eyes, ears, and nose." She likely meant that we can find ideas through our experiences in everyday life.

If I look around me right now, I can see a few interesting things:

1. My dad playing the guitar

2. My sisters watching a movie

3. A painting that my great-grandfather made

Any of these could be a "baby idea."

If I build upon number one, I can find a decent story to write about. The first thing I have to figure out is the main character. Perhaps I'll write about a guitarist who's trying to pursue his dream of becoming a rock singer. (None of this stuff actually applies to my dad, by the way. He's just playing the guitar.)

Next, I would need to invent obstacles to the character's dream or desire. Maybe he has to take care of his mother, whose health is failing, as well as work full time, so he doesn't have much time on his hands. In addition--because we have to make things difficult for the main character--his girlfriend hates the sound of guitars. Or maybe he lives in an apartment building, so he can't do anything loud because the people living next to him will complain.

Of course, that idea is still only a "baby idea." But it's something, and if I continued to build on it, it could become something truly great. (Remember...some of the most amazing books aren't about amazing things. Little Women is literally about four girls growing up.)

If you're ever searching for ideas, and can't find any, remember that all you need is a character, a desire, and an obstacle.

That's it!