How do you choose your story idea?

This is a loaded question.

I start with a character and something unique about that character.

For instance:

She owns a fly-fishing store.

She’s got fired from her job and is now trying to get it back.

She owns a horse stable.

She makes custom cowboy boots. 

She suffers from alopecia and sells wigs.

She . . . well, you get the idea. 

Once I think about who the main character is then I work out in my head what her issue is – she has to be fighting for or against or with someone about something that is important to her. Conflict is story! And since I write romance there the main character must fall in love. They may not end up at the alter in a happily ever after way, but they do end up happy, at least for now.

I suppose I’m more of a ‘pantser’ when it comes to choosing my story idea because as I work on it; it changes by growing, stretching, and sometimes just morphing beyond what I had originally envisioned.

I don’t write what I know, which of course is the writing advice that’s constantly thrown around. Why would I want to write what I know – boring! What I do is I write the truth that I know.

So, a woman who owns her fly-fishing store is going to try to prevent it from going into bankruptcy.

A woman who is trying to get her job back isn’t going to be making any commitments until she knows for sure she’s got what she wants.

A woman who owns a horse stable is going to protect her horses, no matter what.

A woman who makes custom cowboy boots isn’t going to take it too lightly having someone tell her how to do her custom work.

A woman who suffers from alopecia isn’t going to expose her baldness unless she feels secure.

Of course, there is a long way from the initial idea to the final story . . . which is what I’m working on now. The first draft of the story is always easy and fun to write . . .it’s the rewrite where the story truly comes into its own and me, as the writer, truly discover what the story is about after being intrigued by that story idea.

Until next time,

Janna