You have an idea for a story – now what? [Part 1]

One of my lifelong friends recently whispered the most magical words to me: “I think I want to start writing.” But she quickly followed it up with: “But everything is a jumbled mess. I know what I want to write, but I have no idea where to start.” 

Sound familiar?

The good news is that writing doesn’t have to be overwhelming. As someone who’s been writing fiction since grade school and writing professionally for over a decade, I’m here to be your guide and help you take those first few steps into life as a writer. You got this!

So…where do I start?

In my writing, I go through 3 phases: ideation, writing, and editing. While I’ll tackle each of these 3 stages in turn, my recommendation for beginning writers is to start at the beginning in the ideation phase. Not only will it help you get your thoughts out, but it’ll help you organize them and figure out what story you want to tell. 

What if an idea has already been used? How would I even know?

At this point, don’t worry about ideas that have already been used. Since this is just the ideation phase, have fun with it. Get your ideas on paper while they are still demanding your attention. We’ll talk later about plagiarism vs. inspiration, and where and how that line is drawn in the sand. For now, stick to brainstorming. 

“There is no such thing as a new idea. It is impossible. We simply take a lot of old ideas and put them into a sort of mental kaleidoscope.”

– Mark Twain

Okay, so what’s in this ideation phase?

1. Get everything on paper as quickly as possible. It doesn’t have to make sense, be in any order, or even be grammatically correct. Just get it on paper so you have a place to start. I typically write all my ideas in large bullet points that I can go back to later and organize. 
2. Organize your thoughts. Once everything is on paper, I organize my thoughts into 3 broad categories: character descriptions; worldbuilding (settings); and plot. Once ideas are in the proper category, you can organize them further (ex. by character, by place, by act/chapter). Remember, we’re still in the ideation phase, so don’t worry too much about getting it perfect right now.
3. Flesh out your descriptions and choose names. I typically start with characters, as they are my main inspiration. This isn’t true of everyone—some writers are driven by plot (G.R.R. Martin) or worldbuilding (Tolkien). But I start with characters, their descriptions, and even their names (which is honestly one of my favorite parts of writing). For each of these categories, I have template sheets that I fill in as I brainstorm. You don’t have to fill in every field, but it could be a good place for you to start. I’m even willing to share them with you.😊
   1. Character creation cheat sheet
   2. Worldbuilding cheat sheet
   3. Plot sheet – I use the Save the Cat! Method for plotting my stories. If you haven’t heard of it, I highly recommend you check it out once you get to the plotting element. 
4. Create a moodboard for your story. I’m a visual thinker, so I always like to have a few images on hand for my worlds. I use Pinterest to make a large moodboard for my story, and then sub-boards per character, setting, etc. This step isn’t crucial, but if you are a visual person or need an inspirational kick in the butt, I recommend making a Pinterest account. 
5. Start a Spotify playlist for your story. I don’t know if other writers do this, but I find it helps to have specific playlists for each story I’m working on. Not only does it help me get in the mood to write, but it often inspires me when I’m stuck. 

And that’s it! Simple, right? The most important thing to remember is to just have fun with it. This is the beginning of a beautiful journey, and us fellow writers are excited to have you join us.

Question of the day: Did you find my advice helpful? What questions do you still have?