I like to people-watch. I make up stories about their lives:
What's it like to be that guy? His watch is on the wrong arm. He's wearing a mohawk. Does he know it's the left-hander's arm, but right-handed. Is he doing it on purpose? No, I don't think he knows; the kid seems bereft of knowledge and discipline because of his speech.
(Here's where I start going
His mother probably didn't know to tell him. *picture hefty woman in curls and pink bathrobe smoking while she cooks* *the ancient third-hand exercise bike is buried under the "clean" clothes in a corner* *single-wide trailer with door that doesn't close right*
It just keeps going from there. All I have to do is watch him move around in my head. He will morph from reality into some sliver of a morality tale.
This is more of a short story thing. I can however string several characters together to get bigger ones.
Also, I try vignettes. I "paint" with words, trying to create a setting that evokes strong emotion in my readers. Kudzu is an invasive plant in the southeast US, and it's blooming. The scent is incredible, but I can't seem to describe it; it smells like bitter-sweet memories: old, a touch sad, but precious. The vines create dark "caves." The Georgia countryside is currently covered in green caves that reek of grown children and broken hearts.
Finally, with those two things in my mind, I like to lay half-awake in bed in the morning to take advantage of delta waves. It's hard to let the characters play free without falling asleep, though. I have to have a "germ" of an idea. In that time between awake and asleep, I "write." I see everything that I'd like to capture that day. I can "write" at other times, but the best ideas come on the delta waves. This last step tells me what the punk kid is doing in the kudzu cave.
You have two characters in mind, pit them against each other. Research their powers; how do you want their powers to work? Do they need another character to balance them? You just have to "watch" them until they do something interesting.
