How long does it usually take you to think of a new story?
There's no simple answer to that question.
Really, what's been going on is I've been stockpiling story ideas for, well, ever. The strong ones last until I get around to writing them; the weak ones fall apart and go away and become compost for other ideas. So I'm rarely sitting around trying to come up with an idea; when that happens, it's because I'm trying to create an idea to fit particular requirements. (Like my failed attempt recently to come up with something for Jeff VanderMeer's pirate anthology.)
The more you feed your brain with interesting source material, the easier it will probably be to come up with ideas. And by that I mean nonfiction as well as fiction, or maybe even in preference to fiction. Also, the more ideas you come up with, the easier it will be to come up with ideas; the little buggers breed. And then some day you, too, can look in despair at the list of unfinished or unstarted story ideas you have and wonder when you'll get around to them all . . . .
no subject
Date: 2007-05-03 11:34 pm (UTC)There's no simple answer to that question.
Really, what's been going on is I've been stockpiling story ideas for, well, ever. The strong ones last until I get around to writing them; the weak ones fall apart and go away and become compost for other ideas. So I'm rarely sitting around trying to come up with an idea; when that happens, it's because I'm trying to create an idea to fit particular requirements. (Like my failed attempt recently to come up with something for Jeff VanderMeer's pirate anthology.)
The more you feed your brain with interesting source material, the easier it will probably be to come up with ideas. And by that I mean nonfiction as well as fiction, or maybe even in preference to fiction. Also, the more ideas you come up with, the easier it will be to come up with ideas; the little buggers breed. And then some day you, too, can look in despair at the list of unfinished or unstarted story ideas you have and wonder when you'll get around to them all . . . .