How to Write Great Story Ideas

Jurassic Park Is founded on great story ideas

Jurassic Park – a well of great story ideas

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AS a teacher of creative writing, I am often privy to complaints by new writers that their books or screenplays don’t get off the ground, sinking into obscurity instead.

Is it fate or just plain bad luck, they ask?

While it is true that luck plays a role in a writer’s success, it also true that you can’t keep good story ideas down.

Not just any good idea, mind you — a vibrant, original idea we haven’t encountered before, or, at least, an idea presented in a way that feels new; an idea that takes us places we’ve never been, fills us with wonder, introduces us to characters that captivate us.

Story ideas roll call

Consider some of my favorites stories: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Being John Malkovich, Jurassic Park, The Matrix, Stranger than Fiction, City Of God, 2001: A Space Odyssey, George Orwell’s 1984.

All of these, apart from being well-written, are fascinating and original. They grab our imagination and compel us to know more.

A mysterious black monolith that appears at crucial moments of man’s evolution to spur him on? Wow!

A procedure to erase painful memories from one’s mind. I want to know more!
Jurassic creatures brought to life through DNA preserved in a dollop of Amber? Yes, please!

A secret passage that takes us right into John Malkovich’s head! Who would have thought it!

These ideas are so good, so original, they sell themselves. They make for hugely successful stories – providing all other elements of fine writing are in place, of course.

I try I not to start writing a story until I am absolutely convinced that the idea behind it is as good, as original and unique, as it can be, because once I start, I find it difficult to change it mid-stream. I used this approach in my first novel, Scarab, about a quantum computer which can change the laws of physics. The novel quickly entered the best seller list in its category on Amazon, and stayed there for over two years!

My advice to myself is simply this: Start with an idea that fascinates. Isolate its captivating core then think about ways to make it more unique, more original.

Come at it from different angles, from the point of view of different characters, different genres, even different epochs. Write at least ten versions of the basic idea, trying, each time, to up the ante, then walk away from it for a week or two, to give it time to breathe, before repeating the process.

Once I’m convinced I have a good story idea, I test it on others. I watch their eyes as I speak. If they flick away, seem distracted, I’ve lost my audience somewhere. That happens a lot. The path back to the drawing board is well-worn.

Your process may differ from mine, but one thing seems likely: the more original and unique your idea, the more fascinating your story will be.

Summary

Fascinating, original, and well-written story Ideas are the antidote to writing obscurity.

2 thoughts on “How to Write Great Story Ideas

  1. Gerhard Pistorius

    Good Post. In the film business it could be one strike and your out. To remain relevant in an ever changing society where you risk offending an audiences be it through gender/ race/ religion / sexual origination / nationality and beyond is a tremendously difficult thing to accomplish especially if it comes to original ideas. Behind every successes story there is a layer of controversy. When Brave heart was released in 1995 the British press accused the film of Xenophobia . Long before James Bond was adapted into a film the charterer was labeled as a immoral thug – Even Fleming’s wife refused to have Casino Royal dedicated to her because she thought it was filth. Spongebob Squarepants was considered a poster boy for homosexuality and even Harry Potter has been banned in selected Southern state schools in the U.SA for idealizing witchcraft . Today audiences flock to the cinemas to see the latest installment of the Marvel cinematic universe however it is less then a century ago when the only way you could read a comic book under your parents roof was underneath you bed sheets in a time where characters like Superman was labeled a fascist.

    Long story short : It can take years , even decades before a new idea is considered and appreciated as original and unique. Black Panther made over a billion dollars world wide , but it took over twenty years to sell the script.

    Reply
    1. Stavros Halvatzis Post author

      It’s true, Gerhard, that some ideas are ahead of their time, but truly great ideas, aptly rendered through dramatic context, just can’t be kept down.

      Reply

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