Harvesting Ideas Part 1
Banishing the Myths

Thomas H. Uzzel in the book Handbook of Short Story Writing (Writer's Digest, 1970) contends that writers, especially less experienced ones, have difficulty generating ideas becasue of three fundamental roadblocks: 1) waiting for inspiration, 2) failing to believe in themselves, and 3) lack of interest in life. 

"Getting story ideas is a department of your work that needs organization and system and energetic enthusiastic attention," writes Uzzel.  The solution?  The long-encouraged writer's notebook.  Your notebook is not exclusively a place for you to write.  Think of it more as a gathering place.  It can and should contain records of all kinds--newspaper clippings, observations, thoughts, pictures, ticket stubs--all with a view to getting story ideas down to work with.  Don't censor as you collect.  Consider sorting and discarding once you've filled a notebook, or perhaps even wait until after you've filled a second book to go back to your first and dig for the richness that has develop as the information has "composted."

Writers are generally voracious readers and they tend to be motivated by words of authors that stir them.  However, their efforts in comparison with the masters they want to follow come up short.  Then the discouragement sets in.  What is being overlooked is that the words we read in print are never what were first put down on a page.  What we read is revised, edited and carefully chosen for publication.  We don't see the manuscripts that get burned with winter logs, or the efforts that have been permanently shelved.  Published authors have paid their dues, putting in the time and effort to learn the craft.  The fact is, a beginner's efforts may look and read similar to the beginning efforts of their favorite author.  It's important to give yourself time and believe in yourself.  Uzzel writes, "The first output is nothing; the habit is everthing."

Uzzel's last contention--lack of interest in life--is a little harder to grasp.  He explains it best:

"The distinction lies here:  You like to be with people; you have many friends; you are a discriminating gossiper; you like to read about "characters;" but this isn't enough.You can be and do all these things and yet not be genuinely interested in an analytical, probing, literary sense at all. You may be so dynamic yourself that you have no patience for people who are not dynamic and aggressive. You may be a stern idealist..., and the vices of people distress and appall you.  If you think only of their goodness or badness, you will not be really interested in a genuine literary sense. A writer's task is more to portray than to judge.  Literature is a record of human frailties and your curiousity must endure until you have gone to the bottom of them."

In other words, cultivate an appetite for what makes people tick.  Generally a "bad" person--perhaps the antagonist in a piece--is the product of experiences and views that were shaped by interactions over the course of a lifetime. Their actions and attitudes seem just and right in their own mind.  Digging into why a person believes and behaves as s/he does is a way to uncover parts of the human spirit that lend themselves to good drama and rich stories.

In conclusion, cultivating good story ideas often begins with eliminating wrong ideas and feelings we have.  Stay busy with your writing, believe in what you do, and look deeply into life.  The stories are there waiting to be noticed.   

---

My Writing Practice Today's words, as they spill...	Book Reviews Covers fiction and books about writing
Links To "Good Stuff" on the Web	About Me There's not much to know but here it is.

 

©2004 Carolyn Dekat
Last Modified: May 17, 2006