Choosing the right idea for a Novel

WriteWay · Apr 4, 2005

Hello,
I'm finally embarking on the journey to write my novel. :hooray:

I have a couple of stories in mind, and all feel equally good to me; however, I'm hesitant to run off with any one of them due to the monumental amounts of time and effort needed to get it finished.
I'm curious to know how the rest of you here have decided which story to pursue for your novels.

Thanks,
Brian

HConn · Apr 4, 2005

Pick out six of your best ideas, write them all down on index cards (one each, 'natch) and lay them out on a table.

Now, look at them. Are there any of them that may not have enough conflict to fill a whole book? Pick up the card that you suspect is least likely to fill a whole book and tear it up.

Once it's torn up, you can't put it back in. Throw it out and no melodrama about it either.

Now you have five. Is there one that will take two or three books to tell? Tear that one up.

Now you have four. Does one seem hackneyed? Trite? Overdone? Tear it up.

Now you have three (or maybe you have six, since you don't think any fit those other categories). Choose the one you like least and tear it apart. For any reason--too hard to research, too many POV characters, protagonist too different from you.

Repeat until you have two.

At that point, flip a coin. When the coin toss chooses, you have three seconds to overrule it and pick the winner. Say "One! Two! Three!" and stick with what you have.

Then take the winner and write it all the way through to the end.

It's like American Idol*: In the early stages of choosing it's easy because some choices are not that good. Once you get to the final choices, you use your brains and your guts to decide and you stick with your choice.

Good luck.

*caveat: I've never actually seen American Idol. I'm assuming.

Phantom8706 · Apr 4, 2005

Truthfully, I have no specific process for choosing a novel. When an idea strikes me, I write it on an index card, Post-It, napkin, receipt- whatever. I put it into my shoebox of ideas. Whenever I'm finished with a project and ready to begin again, I pick through my list of ideas and go with whatever strikes me at the moment.
I'm too much of an arbitrary writer, so this is probably not the best advice. However, I usually write about what sticks in my head, what I can't get out of my mind.

zornhau · Apr 5, 2005

I find the story question for each, and see if it breaks down into 3-5 subsidiary story questions (1 for each act)

e.g.

Tom and the Princess
Can Tom win the love of the Princess? Yes, but only when they meet in the ashes of Empire. Now they must live as ordinary peasants.

Act1:
Can Tom (the lift operator), get the Princess to notice him? Yes, but only by making a fool of himself. Now he must leave the Palace.

Act2:
Can Tom redeem himself by joining the Army? Yes, but....

NB If you're an organic writer, you don't have to use the resulting outline - this is just a foray into the idea's future to confirm that there's at least one viable path for it to go down.

The usual caveats
Z

Note On · Apr 5, 2005

I just start writing. If I waited for an idea, I'd never be published.

As for how to pick between things, mostly I just sit down and start writing, and see which thing I pick.

KTC · Apr 5, 2005

I know of only one way and it's probably wrong. (Although in writing everything that is wrong is right and the other way around.) I have a flash of a character or a sentence. I usually just start with the first word and go. I've tried doing it with outlines, etc. But in the end the only way I'm happy doing it is starting from an original thought and moving in a forward, one word at a time motion.

mistri · Apr 5, 2005

When I have several ideas I do a couple of things to pick between them.

1) If they're quite basic ideas, I do a bit of brainstorming on each to see if there's actually enough idea there to make a full novel. I go with the one that I think works out best.

2) If both (or more) ideas seem equally viable, I go with the one that I'm most excited about - the one I'm thinking about while I'm walking somewhere, or ironing, or trying to go to sleep.

oswann · Apr 5, 2005

I write all my ideas in something entitled - The Vomit Ideas Book. From here they putrify slowly until I rescue them and give them little friends to play with in another something entitled - The Vomit Outlines Book.

Sadly, I'm serious. :crazy:

A man much more learned than I would probably say that - Ideas are a dime a dozen, it's what you do with them that counts.

Os.

Daughter of Faulkner · Apr 5, 2005

My novels choose me

My novels choose me.
My characters, their voices, places, and everything about them come to me. And once I get them down on paper only then do they leave me alone. :Sun:

All good wishes to you!

maestrowork · Apr 5, 2005

I usually have two to six ideas going on at the same time, and all of them have potentials. The thing is that they don't come to me at the same time. When I have an idea that I really think is going to make a good novel, I'll go for it. The trouble is when the new ideas come, I can't wait to work on them as well. But I am determined to finish the project I started already. Once I'm done with my current WIP (unlike others, I don't like to work on multiple WIPs at the same time), I will choose from the remaining ideas for my next book (I already have a pretty good idea which one I want to write next).

It comes down to which idea interests and excites me the most, and have the best potential, meaning: Are the readers going to enjoy it? Would I have enough material to make it a full novel? Are the characters going to be good? I don't even think about series or sequels at this point, but chances are, if my story is strong and my characters are great, there will be at least a sequel somewhere.

James D. Macdonald · Apr 5, 2005

Which one is most likely to have the strongest climax?

victoriastrauss · Apr 5, 2005

I usually have several ideas floating around, which I think about on and off. Those that seem bookworthy (and "bookworthy" is a combination of factors, including originality, complexity, the difficulty of the research, commerciality [there are ideas I'd love to follow, but it's obvious to me that only three people would buy the resulting book], and just plain imaginative appeal) I write down. I add to each idea as things come to me. At a certain point it becomes apparent to me that one idea has taken hold of my imagination more than the others, or else that one idea is spawning more new ideas/possibilities/characters than the others. That's the one I pick.

It's an odd process, really, and hard to quantify. A lot of it is unconscious: sometimes things just pop into my head. On the other hand, if I waited for inspiration I'd have no ideas at all, so I also have to work at it--reading, thinking, and most of all, being alert to the possibility of ideas. Sometimes the germ of a really great idea is so small and fleeting that if you aren't watching for it, it'll pass out of your mind and vanish forever.

- Victoria

Jamesaritchie · Apr 5, 2005

Novel idea

WriteWay said:
Hello,
I'm finally embarking on the journey to write my novel. I have a couple of stories in mind, and all feel equally good to me; however, I'm hesitant to run off with any one of them due to the monumental amounts of time and effort needed to get it finished.
I'm curious to know how the rest of you here have decided which story to pursue for your novels.

Thanks,
Brian

I suspect no two writers go about this exactly teh same way. The only thing I know going in is what genre I'm going to write, and odd as it may sound, I don't look for a story or a plot, I just look for a title. Whether I'm writing a short story or a novel, I need a title before I have any idea what I'm going to write. Once I do have the title, it determines what I write.

Ray Bradbury does this for short stories. He keeps a list of nouns, and just runs through them until something catches his eye. I keep a list of nouns and verbs, and I do the same. When a title clicks in my mind, I type it out, drop down a couple of lines and start writing.

The genre influences the title, the title will suggest a kind of story, and the kind of story suggests a character, and the character suggests an opening, and the opening is the novel. It's very linear. For me, most of the work is in the opening. The first three pages are the most important, and the rest of the first chapter a very close second.

If I get the opening written the way it shoudl be written, the rest of the novel really isn't a problem. It's all there, and I just have to write it. It's getting the opening right that takes most of the time and work.

Take the Ray Bradbury title "Something Wicked This Way Comes." This isn't the kind of title he usually generates from his list, but it's exactly the kind I look for. If I couldn't write a good story based on that title, I'd quit.

The title I find may or may not remain the title once the book is finished, but it usually does.

Maryn · Apr 5, 2005

James D. Macdonald said:
Which one is most likely to have the strongest climax?

Clearly I'm spending way too much thought on erotica today!

Maryn, grabbing her bootstraps to haul herself out of the gutter... Ooh, the boots are tall, black and shiny, and have a very high spike heel!

black winged fighter · Apr 5, 2005

Usually, I sit down at the computer and just let the thoughts fall onto the page. Sometimes, this doesn't work out so well, other times it does.

I also outline very roughly, with thoughts scribbled out of order and connected by boxes and arrows. If I feel the tale has merit, I'll straighten the mess out into a time line, with a few notes about foreshadowing to my self. Aside from that, I try to keep my ideas feeling fresh and loose - excessive outlining has always hampered my writing.

WriteWay · Apr 6, 2005

Thanks everyone for sharing your thoughts. It's all very helpful.

I'm just fearful that I'll invest months into my novel just to realize that I should have chosen another idea instead. But heck, I guess there's no reason why I can't work on a couple WIPs at the same time.

Brian

WriteWay · Apr 6, 2005

Note On said:
I just start writing. If I waited for an idea, I'd never be published.

As for how to pick between things, mostly I just sit down and start writing, and see which thing I pick.

Thanks Note On. You're right. I've got to defeat my perfectionist tendencies and start writing.

Brian

WriteWay · Apr 6, 2005

victoriastrauss said:
I usually have several ideas floating around, which I think about on and off. Those that seem bookworthy (and "bookworthy" is a combination of factors, including originality, complexity, the difficulty of the research, commerciality [there are ideas I'd love to follow, but it's obvious to me that only three people would buy the resulting book], and just plain imaginative appeal) I write down. I add to each idea as things come to me. At a certain point it becomes apparent to me that one idea has taken hold of my imagination more than the others, or else that one idea is spawning more new ideas/possibilities/characters than the others. That's the one I pick.

It's an odd process, really, and hard to quantify. A lot of it is unconscious: sometimes things just pop into my head. On the other hand, if I waited for inspiration I'd have no ideas at all, so I also have to work at it--reading, thinking, and most of all, being alert to the possibility of ideas. Sometimes the germ of a really great idea is so small and fleeting that if you aren't watching for it, it'll pass out of your mind and vanish forever.

- Victoria

Thanks Victoria. The commerciality of the story, I guess that's the central point to my question. The word smacks of marketing, something that I'm not so great at yet.

Brian

WriteWay · Apr 6, 2005

black winged fighter said:
Usually, I sit down at the computer and just let the thoughts fall onto the page. Sometimes, this doesn't work out so well, other times it does.

I also outline very roughly, with thoughts scribbled out of order and connected by boxes and arrows. If I feel the tale has merit, I'll straighten the mess out into a time line, with a few notes about foreshadowing to my self. Aside from that, I try to keep my ideas feeling fresh and loose - excessive outlining has always hampered my writing.

I feel the same as you with outlines. I try remain very rough and broad with outlines, but I find that I do need them. Same here, my best writing comes from being unfettered and unrestricted.

Brian

Note On · Apr 6, 2005

WriteWay said:
I've got to defeat my perfectionist tendencies and start writing.

I've never defeated mine. I just use them where they're most useful to me. Anything that prevents you from writing isn't useful.

Jamesaritchie · Apr 6, 2005

Idea

WriteWay said:
Thanks everyone for sharing your thoughts. It's all very helpful.

I'm just fearful that I'll invest months into my novel just to realize that I should have chosen another idea instead. But heck, I guess there's no reason why I can't work on a couple WIPs at the same time.

Brian

I'm not sure there is such a ting as a bad idea. It's all in what you do with the idea.

And look at it this way. Even if you pick the best idea, you will still probably spend many months writing a novel that won't sell, and that may be no good at all. Most first efforts aren't very good, no matter what the idea. Neither are many fourth or fifth efforts, for that matter.

Best, I think, to find an idea you like, that you'll enjoy writing, and forget about commercial aspects. I don't think many good novels are written with commercial aspects in mind. I don't even think many commercial novels are written with commercial aspects in mind.

I strongly suspect that the most commercial novels are written by those who are simply trying to tell a good story, and who aren't giving a second thought to whether or not the finished novel will be commercial.

Thekherham · Apr 6, 2005

I usually write about what I know... aliens, dragons, other worlds, stuff like that. Sometimes I feel like writing a mystery, or a spy novel, but then I think to myself (who else would I think to?) Hey, I've never read any of those type of books, and you don't know a damn thing about this stuff, so don't bother.

Although, I recently completed a novel that was set on a horse farm.

Note On · Apr 7, 2005

Jamesaritchie said:
I'm not sure there is such a ting as a bad idea. It's all in what you do with the idea.
...
Best, I think, to find an idea you like, that you'll enjoy writing, and forget about commercial aspects.

I agree, on both counts.

I know a bestselling author or two who do seem to think they know the difference between a commercial idea and a non-commercial idea. Their success would seem to lend credence to the claim; but I've never been entirely convinced.

In addition to "an idea you'll enjoy writing," I'll add this thought, which I first heard articulated by Gar Anthony Haywood:

There's the book you may want to write, and then there's the book that's really yours to write.

In his case, he was talking about the urge he felt to write a big spy novel, but he realized that book wasn't really his. What was his at the time was the first-person P.I. novel.

Kasey Mackenzie · Apr 8, 2005

Ideas float around in my brain constantly. Usually, I will ignore them for a bit. Those worth pursuing usually keep niggling at me until I can't ignore them anymore. I then start consciously thinking about these persistent story ideas, asking myself question after question until I am convinced that the idea offers the potential for lots of conflict. Then, and only then, do I sit down and start working the idea out on paper/computer screen. I brainstorm that particular idea, fleshing out the plot, subplots, and characters. Sometimes I can tell right away that the idea just isn't going to pan out. So I toss it. Usually, however, if the idea has made it to this point, however, I am able to come up with plenty to then sit down and start writing the book itself.

Hummingbird · Apr 8, 2005

I've got my own shoebox of ideas to sort through. I like a lot of them, but a few I need to work on alot or ditch them. Anyway, I chose the idea I'm working on now because I really like it out of my ideas, but it's not my favorite. My favorites I'm going to save until I'm more experienced. I have to research some things for my current idea, but not a whole lot, so that's something else fun I can do while working it.

Choosing the right idea for a Novel

WriteWay

HConn

Whore for genre

Phantom8706

zornhau

Swordsman

Note On

KTC

Stand in the Place Where You Live

mistri

Sneezy Member

oswann

Grumpy

Daughter of Faulkner

Always a writer

maestrowork

Fear the Death Ray

James D. Macdonald

Your Genial Uncle

victoriastrauss

Writer Beware Goddess

Jamesaritchie

Maryn

I Tried

black winged fighter

AW Addict

WriteWay

WriteWay

WriteWay

WriteWay

Note On

Jamesaritchie

Thekherham

The Alien Writer

Note On

Kasey Mackenzie

One Hit Wonder?

Hummingbird

Pen, Paper, Prepared. ...Write!