Candice Azalea Greene
asked
Cate Lawley:
One of the roadblocks I face as a writer is I get ideas that demand to be written when I'm already neck-deep in a project. How do you deal with multiple ideas vying for your attention?
Cate Lawley
Hi Candice! I wrote the following short article based on your question. I hope it's helpful!
Ideas Falling from the Sky
Have you ever had someone approach you with a story concept? "Hey author lady, I have this great idea. You should write my story, because...(it's a fabulous idea, it will make you lots of money, I'm brilliant and the world should know it, etc.)" The reason varies, but the gist is always they same. They have the idea; you should do the work of making it a reality.
If you haven't, then you've done a great job of keeping your secret identity as a super hero/writer under wraps...or your day is coming.
As an author, you probably already know that a dearth of ideas isn't a typical problem for (most) writers. An excess of ideas? How to prioritize which ideas to write? Which ideas will "hit" in this crowded market? Those are questions that a lot of writers I know struggle with. Here are a few tips that might be helpful when tackling the "ideas falling from the sky" problem.
1. Shiny, pretty ideas that pop into your head while you're on a deadline.
This is the easiest. If I have a deadline to tell me "no," then I can more easily walk away from an idea. To keep that idea from interfering with my work, I purge it.
That purge may look like a short scene that was rolling around in my head, a quickly dashed off blurb, a story synopsis, some piece of world building, or a character sketch.
I've chatted with several authors who use some form of purging to clear their heads, but this only works if the scribbling done is actually purging and moving you back to your original project. If you're the type of writer to chase one shiny distraction to another, this might not be the best avenue for you.
2. But what to do when that deadline is over?
If the idea still interests me, I consider whether: it fits with my brand (an important business consideration), will be fun (an important creative consideration for me), and has potential to be profitable (those bills, they need paid). I weigh my long- and short-term needs, creative and business (frequently in conflict) before deciding. But my goals aren't yours, so I'll save that discussion for another post. :)
Finally, I look at my writing schedule (cry a little) and then decide where, if at all, I can slot it in.
3. Persistent ideas that won't die.
Chuck Wendig writes about this topic on his Terribleminds* site. (He's profane; you've been warned.) He doesn't consider brand, looks for ideas that stick like glue in his brain, and isn't concerned with documenting ideas as they pop up. For him, persistence wins. Ideas that will not die (plus a few other parameters) get written. Check out the blog (link below) to read his thoughts in his own words.
And that is how I, some unnamed author friends, and Chuck W. deal with a plethora of story ideas.
By the way, my answer to people who ask me to write their story? My writing schedule is packed, but you should definitely write that story! ;-)
* http://terribleminds.com/ramble/2018/...
Ideas Falling from the Sky
Have you ever had someone approach you with a story concept? "Hey author lady, I have this great idea. You should write my story, because...(it's a fabulous idea, it will make you lots of money, I'm brilliant and the world should know it, etc.)" The reason varies, but the gist is always they same. They have the idea; you should do the work of making it a reality.
If you haven't, then you've done a great job of keeping your secret identity as a super hero/writer under wraps...or your day is coming.
As an author, you probably already know that a dearth of ideas isn't a typical problem for (most) writers. An excess of ideas? How to prioritize which ideas to write? Which ideas will "hit" in this crowded market? Those are questions that a lot of writers I know struggle with. Here are a few tips that might be helpful when tackling the "ideas falling from the sky" problem.
1. Shiny, pretty ideas that pop into your head while you're on a deadline.
This is the easiest. If I have a deadline to tell me "no," then I can more easily walk away from an idea. To keep that idea from interfering with my work, I purge it.
That purge may look like a short scene that was rolling around in my head, a quickly dashed off blurb, a story synopsis, some piece of world building, or a character sketch.
I've chatted with several authors who use some form of purging to clear their heads, but this only works if the scribbling done is actually purging and moving you back to your original project. If you're the type of writer to chase one shiny distraction to another, this might not be the best avenue for you.
2. But what to do when that deadline is over?
If the idea still interests me, I consider whether: it fits with my brand (an important business consideration), will be fun (an important creative consideration for me), and has potential to be profitable (those bills, they need paid). I weigh my long- and short-term needs, creative and business (frequently in conflict) before deciding. But my goals aren't yours, so I'll save that discussion for another post. :)
Finally, I look at my writing schedule (cry a little) and then decide where, if at all, I can slot it in.
3. Persistent ideas that won't die.
Chuck Wendig writes about this topic on his Terribleminds* site. (He's profane; you've been warned.) He doesn't consider brand, looks for ideas that stick like glue in his brain, and isn't concerned with documenting ideas as they pop up. For him, persistence wins. Ideas that will not die (plus a few other parameters) get written. Check out the blog (link below) to read his thoughts in his own words.
And that is how I, some unnamed author friends, and Chuck W. deal with a plethora of story ideas.
By the way, my answer to people who ask me to write their story? My writing schedule is packed, but you should definitely write that story! ;-)
* http://terribleminds.com/ramble/2018/...
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