Showing posts with label where authors get their ideas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label where authors get their ideas. Show all posts

Friday, April 26, 2019

The View from my window


From my office window, I watched, mesmerized, as a large hawk glided effortlessly in the sky. I’d seen the hawk on several occasions and I was always impressed with him. I didn’t know much about hawks but, on this particular day, I decided to learn more. So I Googled the subject. And what I learned became an important part of the book I was writing: Secrets in Storyville, a small town mystery.

That got me thinking about some of the other characters, plots and settings I had used in my previous novels and I realized that many of my ideas came from places and/or people I’d seen in my neighborhood or in the surrounding area. 

One day, while sitting on my porch, I saw a tall, skinny man with a long gray ponytail walking his cat on a leash. For some reason, that got my attention and the man became John Berkley in Mixed Messages, my first Malone mystery. John also had a role in the second book, Unfinished Business.

Another day, I was driving not far from where I live and I spotted a dark car with tinted windows pulling out of a driveway. An everyday occurrence, right? But this time, it made an impression on me. I wondered why the windows were tinted and the scenario I created in my mind was the basis for a major character: Lawrence Berger, an albino.

The creative process amazes me! A writer never knows when a sight, a sound, a smell or a few words overheard will trigger an idea. And it usually happens when we least expect it.

I’m currently working on the second small town mystery: Murder at Maple Ridge. The setting? It’s based on a house I’d admired for years, about forty-five minutes from where I live. I love old houses and, like the Victorian in my Malone mysteries, this house fascinated me.

The point I’m trying to make is that, if you want to be a writer, you don’t have to travel to exotic places to find inspiration. Just look out your window and if something catches your eye, like the hawk, let your imagination soar.

Sunday, December 17, 2017

"Where I get my ideas" by Amy Reade



Author Amy Reade

I was giving a presentation several weeks ago when a woman in the audience asked me where I get my ideas for novels. 

The question stopped me cold. I know, I know, I should have expected it. It’s one of the more common questions authors receive when they give talks or participate in book signings and I’ve answered it myself dozens of times. But for some reason there were so many answers swirling around in my head that all I could manage was to stammer, “Um, my imagination, I guess."

Face palm.

I eventually recovered and started talking about all the places authors’ ideas come from. And there are as many places as there are authors—probably many more. We get ideas from news headlines, obituaries, overheard pieces of conversation, dreams, even other books. Sometimes we have no hint as to where an idea came from. Sometimes an idea comes when brainstorming answers to a “What if?” question.

Once there is that little seed of an idea, that’s where the imagination kicks in. I thought it would be fun to share with you some of the places I’ve found ideas lately.

The first is an article I read on Flipboard, a personalized magazine app I have on my phone. Just the other day I read a story from “Rolling Stone” about a man who, after coming under suspicion for killing his second wife, also came under suspicion for the death of his first wife. (https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/features/black-widower-how-one-man-allegedly-murdered-two-wives-w513791). 
   
The second was nothing more than a headline (I can’t seem to find it now) about a woman whose bag was misplaced by airport handlers and finally returned to her years later. I got thinking: what if the woman had put something in the bag that connected her to a crime? What if that item was missing when she got the bag back? That could make for a very interesting situation.

The third is another headline: “Stabbing disrupts class for anger management.” I could see this happening in a book by M.C. Beaton.
 
Fourth is an obituary you have to read to believe: http://www.portlavacawave.com/obituaries/howard-wayne-neal/article_966733bc-7c30-11e6-ac8c-6b78ed8e909e.html. I love it. How fun would it be to write a book with such a main character?

And finally, an overheard conversation: at a local shop just last week, I listened as a woman and her husband argued over what to buy the woman’s mother for Christmas. I got thinking about what type of arguments they have in private if they’re willing to argue like that in public. And more “What ifs?” popped into my head. What if the woman suddenly turned up dead after the argument, which other people also overheard? What if the mother was found dead? These could make really interesting stories.

The next time you come across an intriguing headline or an over-the-top obituary, I encourage you to ask the follow-up “What if?” questions. You might find—or invent—a great story. And for those of you who, like me, enjoy true crime stories, it’s often the case that the truth really is stranger than fiction.

Thanks for having me here today, Pat. It’s been an honor and a privilege.

My pleasure, Amy. Thank you for being my guest. 


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