Coming up with short story ideas

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LaneHeymont

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Honestly? Read. Seriously. Nonfiction and fiction, and just let your mind play the "what if" game. This almost always generates ideas for me.

Agreed. I'll read something about scuba diving and it pops into my head five different stories. Completely unrelated. JUst yesterday, I started a short I got the idea from looking at pictures on twitter. Weird, but useful. :)
 

PPartisan

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Look at the world around you, and think really really hard about it actually ticks. Then, try and think of way to represent or challenge that on paper, and often that best way to get advice on that is to read good quality fiction (and non-fiction).
 

anguswalker

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I find the whole process utterly fascinating and reading this thread reminded me how much. As a species we obviously have a tremendous ability and need to create stories and have done since time immemorial. For me, I can go for ages with seemingly no inkling for a story, but it is as if I can feel the pressure building. The problem at that stage is the more I try to 'think of an idea for a story' the less likely it is that one will come.

Then suddenly, randomly one day, usually when I am doing something utterly mindless and nothing to do with writing, a little germ of an idea will appear. Or to use another metaphor a crack will appear in the dam holding back the story ideas that have been building, out of sight, in my mind. And that's it. Suddenly everything comes flooding out and ideas start automatically connecting themselves- characters spring to life and everything starts falling into place. The story grows, blossoms and builds and before I know it a new world of the imagination has opened up, beckoning me in. It's a magical feeling, even if when I actually get to writing it down it can sometimes be frustrating trying to recapture the purity and creativity of the original eureka moment.

And you see: just writing this and I start thinking, wait a minute... I could see that making a great story...

Anyone rips it off- just remember. I'm watching!
 
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archerjoe

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It's been mentioned already but is worth repeating: keep a notebook with you at all times. I always have a Moleskine or Ecosystem brand notebook and a pen. Or if you can type on a phone better than I can, a smart phone could handle this, too. Get an idea or hear an interesting topic? Write it down!

I get some ideas reading the news on the internet. Here's an example story that got my mental wheels spinning: http://worldnews.msnbc.msn.com/_new...n-caught-after-seven-years-hiding-in-bushland
 

gettingby

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Every time I finish a story I think I am never going to have an idea as good as the one I just came up with. Does this happen to you guys?
 

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Another way of generating ideas which I've found works quite well for me is to set a timer for 5 or 6 minutes and write as many first lines as you can in that time. Don't think too much about them, but just try to get as many down as possible.

It's been my experience that the more you look for and find ideas, the more ideas you will find and the easier it gets because you get into the habit of finding stories everywhere. Look at everything as a starting point (films, adverts, magazines) and write everything down.

A nugget of an idea might not develop into a full grown story plot straight away, but give it a little while to rattle around in your subconcious and see what happens.

Ali
 

LaneHeymont

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Another way of generating ideas which I've found works quite well for me is to set a timer for 5 or 6 minutes and write as many first lines as you can in that time.

Hmm, interesting idea!
 

toecollector

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Just play out different scenarios in your head and see where it takes you.
 

Silver-Midnight

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I know this is one, slightly redundant, and two, kind of in the wrong place because what I'm about to ask is more for stuff longer than short stories more than likely. Anyway, in one of the genres I write, maybe even two, I tend to have the same trope or "bare bones" plot idea. (In my particular case, it's the stalker/crazy woman trying to get close to whatever character they like or are after). While I don't necessarily use this all of the time in one of my genres, I do use it a lot in another. Anyway, my question is would these idea finding type tactics help me break away from using this trope(or at least using it so much)? How do you break away from writing the same general plot idea every single time, if that makes sense?
 

Opheliabrown12

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cell phone notepad

Well, I used to keep dreams and story ideas in my cell phone and this was great. Right at my fingertips all the time! But then, the unthinkable happened...I spilled water on my cell in an unfortunate incident and it wouldn't stay on for more than 30 seconds at a time. So, needless to say, my story ideas were lost! I'd say if you have a way to email your notepad entries to yourself or retype them into edailydiary.com, you'll be able to have a nice backup should you need it. I am thankful my new phone allows emailing of the notepad entries! Try it.
 

Book Graphics

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Overwined

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Well, I used to keep dreams and story ideas in my cell phone and this was great. Right at my fingertips all the time! But then, the unthinkable happened...I spilled water on my cell in an unfortunate incident and it wouldn't stay on for more than 30 seconds at a time. So, needless to say, my story ideas were lost! I'd say if you have a way to email your notepad entries to yourself or retype them into edailydiary.com, you'll be able to have a nice backup should you need it. I am thankful my new phone allows emailing of the notepad entries! Try it.

There's a nice piece of software called Evernote that I use. Evernote is a cloud implemented journaling/noting system with apps for both Android and iOS. You can also access it on the web. Because all the data is stored remotely, no need to worry about losing it and you can access it from multiple devices. I always have it open when I'm working at home on my laptop and I pull it out on my phone when a good idea strikes me when I'm out and about. Free and highly recommended.
 

the-isz

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Short story ideas

Here's something I've done before: search the web for images and when you find something you like, tell a story around it.

I've gone to http://www.deviantart.com/ before, searched "sci-fi" and then browsed through their images. I see something that looks haunting or exciting, and I immediately get an idea of the backstory for the image. From there, I'm off and running.
 

Lnrd66

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cell phone notepad

Some smart phones you buy, have handy programs you can connect by, skipping the internet, you just transfer pictures or wav files directly. My nokia n8 is a great tool with 45 gig of space ( buy a big memory card ). I don't use data because it's a limited prepaid plan (30meg/mo). I have enjoyed taking notes with the recorder. So your smart phone could still be a very useful writers tool if you back it up.
 

Lnrd66

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cell phone notepad get unlocked and prepaid

For a writers tool for note taking etc, look at smart phones on Amazon that are generically unlocked, pick the one that has the most useful features and use it on an economical prepaid plan.
 

Lit Chick5

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Story ideas can come from so many different sources. At my desk, I keep an inspiration drawer full of images (fine artwork, photos), articles (on historical or scientific happenings or even advice columns), mementos, favorite poetry quotes, collages I'd made, and the first stories I ever wrote- scrawled things in pencil on folded tissue paper from when I was four. From teaching a course on creative writing, these are a few resources I'd recommend:
The Observation Deck by Naomi Epel
Wild Mind: Living the Writer’s Life by Natalie Goldberg
The Writers’ Block- 786 Ideas to Jump-Start Your Imagination by Jason Rekulak
Magnetic Poetry Kit (original version)
 

GinnieHazel

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I can't remember where I heard this first and I don't know if it would work for anyone else but I'll put it up anyway and see what you think.

Grab a book off your bookshelf, preferably one you haven't read. Turn to a random page, close your eyes and drop your finger. Copy out the word your finger landed on plus the three each side of it. Use that as part of your first sentence and just write.

You'll probably end up with a scene that maybe has potential, maybe doesn't. Put it in a draw for a while and think about it every now and again. The things your story needs will probably come to you while you're doing the washing up.
 

archerjoe

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Another favorite of mine is reading online advice columns. Lots of conflict, lots of unusual situations. Dear Prudie on Slate.com is one place to start.
 

FOTSGreg

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I find I'm never at a loss for story ideas. I have notebooks full of them. I have more story ideas than I could complete in another hundred years (and I doubt I'll live to be 150).

Ideas are EVERYWHERE. Just look around. Read the newspaper. Watch the news. Watch a movie. Go for a walk. Read a book. Read a short story. Listen to either one. Go fishing, camping, sailing, road tripping, drinking, whatever floats your boat.

Get out and socialize. Listen - and I mean REALLY LISTEN to people talking around you. Listen to your partner(s), friends, associates tell their stories. Ninety- five percent of all conversation is one person telling the other either their story or a story.

Think about "what if's?". Read history. Read outside your genre. Read Chandler and Poe and Lovecraft and Brasbury and Silverberg and MacDonald and Sturgeon and Laumer and Heinlein and Ringo and Flint and Flynn and hundreds of others.

READ, READ, READ,

I begin to suspect you are not well-read enough.
 

kuwisdelu

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How do you come up with short story ideas rather than novel ideas?

All of my ideas are novel ideas lately. It makes trying to write a short story difficult.
 

SJNew

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Sometimes using a story prompter can help, but mainly I find just reading a lot, visiting different places and people-watching can be a good source of inspiration. Also, playing the 'what-if' game brings a lot of ideas. Music helps, too. Just listening to a certain song or piece of music can bring a surprising amount of inspiration. Like, what kind of character would listen to this? If this was a musical, why would they be singing this song? (sounds silly, I know, but it really works), if this was a movie/TV show, what would this be the music to?

Though I must confess, quite often, my ideas always end up turning into novels or end up being too small to fill more than a thousand words. :(
 
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