Odd ways you write-Odd things that inspire
- Thread starter TwentyFour
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lucky you. my characters never talk to me, and I've never dreamt about them. maybe I'll take pain meds tonight 
I tend to have really vivid dreams and a number of my characters have been spawned from them as well as many of my story ideas, as corney as that sounds.
Other than that I'm inspired by the usual things: music, art, reality shows, etc.
Other than that I'm inspired by the usual things: music, art, reality shows, etc.
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ROFL! And here I was thinking Vicadin (sp?) or something. I love it!
I've never had a character "visit" like that. When I'm writing I kind of visualize what's going on like a movie and then write about it. It makes dialogue easy, but prose is pretty difficult for me. I'd prefer a different way if I had a choice. But nothing like a dream really. I will sometimes get a setting, or a monster from a nightmare, or a particular situation that I will build into my ms, but I haven't had a chance to interact or chat with my characters like that.
I'm kinda jealous.
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I love character dreams! Lately I've been having them about once a month. I've "known" my characters for a long, long time -- we're talking over half my life here -- so having one of them visit me in a dream is like hanging out with an old friend.
Something REALLY trippy happened this week, though. My husband had a dream about one of my characters -- the main character of my current novel, actually. I've been reading Husband my finished chapters just before he goes to bed, so I guess this shouldn't have come as too much of a surprise. In this dream they were going on a road trip or solving mysteries together or somethin' like that. He doesn't remember his dreams in obsessive detail the way I do.
Something REALLY trippy happened this week, though. My husband had a dream about one of my characters -- the main character of my current novel, actually. I've been reading Husband my finished chapters just before he goes to bed, so I guess this shouldn't have come as too much of a surprise. In this dream they were going on a road trip or solving mysteries together or somethin' like that. He doesn't remember his dreams in obsessive detail the way I do.
I often dream of scenes from my books. On two occasions I even dreamed whole short stories. I wrote them down immediately and they needed little editing. They have been accepted for an anthology to be out later this year. I wonder how much better if would have been if I'd taken pain killers...
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I rarely if ever dream about my characters. But in terms of odd things that inspire me, I get inspired by snow. It doesn't give me specific story ideas, but a snowstorm always make me want to write.
However, considering I now live in Southern California, this source of inspiration is pretty much gone, LOL.
However, considering I now live in Southern California, this source of inspiration is pretty much gone, LOL.
That's a little creepy...anyway, no, I have never gotten my ideas from any dream in particular (although I do have some interesting and detailed dreams from time to time). Usually, I'll be eating breakfast/taking a walk/playing the piano/etc and suddenly I'll get a wicked cool idea. So I'll berate myself for not thinking about it before, then go running upstairs to my computer to write it in before I forget.
Anyone else get ideas in a similar way?
One of my favorite characters made a guest appearance in my dreams last night, of course I was on pain meds for a bad tooth so that may be why.
I might use it, not sure at this moment but it isn't the first time a dream has inspired me.
I'm currently working on a novel that is actually based on some recurring dreams of mine. They don't always have the same characters (I'm usually there), but they still seem to follow a linear storyline.
I only dream about schoolwork! I dreamt about getting a paper back with a C on it (an actual paper that I actually haven't gotten back yet) and another night I dreamt about my high school Spanish class. Otherwise I don't remember dreams.
I get a lot of ideas while reading nonfiction history books. Wow. That sounded pretty nerdy. Oh well, that's sort of par for the course if you tend to write historical fiction!
I get a lot of ideas while reading nonfiction history books. Wow. That sounded pretty nerdy. Oh well, that's sort of par for the course if you tend to write historical fiction!
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One of my current wip was inspired by an odd conversation at work. Started as a silly idea now it's a wip.
Once I just had a random thought for no particular reason and something which I believed at the time had nothing to do with the book i was writing.
"the girl in the trunk is wearing purple". it was almost like a voice said it to me.
Then, writing along a week or so later, my character says it when he is having an panic attack. It turned into a very useful piece of the book. I didn't know what it meant when it came to me. I didn't know where it would go after I put it in. Now I can't imagine the story without it.
"the girl in the trunk is wearing purple". it was almost like a voice said it to me.
Then, writing along a week or so later, my character says it when he is having an panic attack. It turned into a very useful piece of the book. I didn't know what it meant when it came to me. I didn't know where it would go after I put it in. Now I can't imagine the story without it.
Although my characters occupy much of my waking thoughts, I have never dreamed about them, or any events in the books--which I find surprising, but not disappointing. It's enough to get ideas at odd times and rush to write them down before I forget.
My WIP started as a blurb in a science magazine. I thought what if...and went from there. Usually, I don't get so lucky. And my characters never visit me in dreams, damn it.
I've only had one dream about a character, which was very distressing. It was in first person POV and he was being gang raped by the baddies. For all that it was very vivid, it didn't go into the book and I'm very glad I've never dreamed of any character again, thanks.
My story inspirations spring out of nowhere, basing out of all the nonfiction, mythology and historical stuff I've read my entire life.
Mostly my inspirations are small and connected to the MIP at hand--how this ties into that, and such--and will come from anywhere. The license plate of a car I'm passing. Something on TV. A song or joke over the radio. Odd thing that I happen to overhear. Soaking my head in the shower. There's no telling what will suddenly light the bulb and give me an "a-ha!" moment.
My story inspirations spring out of nowhere, basing out of all the nonfiction, mythology and historical stuff I've read my entire life.
Mostly my inspirations are small and connected to the MIP at hand--how this ties into that, and such--and will come from anywhere. The license plate of a car I'm passing. Something on TV. A song or joke over the radio. Odd thing that I happen to overhear. Soaking my head in the shower. There's no telling what will suddenly light the bulb and give me an "a-ha!" moment.
I've been stuck at a particular spot in my current WIP for ages. Like, months-- to the point where I stopped writing it for awhile. About a week ago I dreamt a monumental revision, and it worked (though it'll take almost a complete rewrite, which kind of sucks, but if it makes it better...). Gotta love lucid dreaming.
Character dreams are hilarious, but I usually get them when I'm dozing. I once dreamed (if you can call it that) two characters' entire backstory, only to wake up and forget nearly everything. I scrambled to write down what I remembered, but they are just fragments.
I've also had dreams of two of my characters engaging in... intimate activities. Being the obnoxious fan girl of my own characters, I was in the dream too, watching from behind a rock or bush. Great, even my subconscious knows how perverted I am!
I've also had dreams of two of my characters engaging in... intimate activities. Being the obnoxious fan girl of my own characters, I was in the dream too, watching from behind a rock or bush. Great, even my subconscious knows how perverted I am!
Man. That sounds like that book where the MC keeps chewing the writer out for all the crap that happens. *shudders*
When I get inspired from a dream, it's usually one of those late-morning dreams that you want to know what happens next, but some idiot woke you up. *cough*my dog*cough* I tend to lie in bed after waking up, sort of dozing, replaying the story in my head and imagining what would happen next. I also tend to cut out the parts I didn't like
I think most of my best stories came from one type of dream idea or another.
-Feathers
I had a weird, very short dream the other night, that boiled down to a title: "The Case of the Purring Spider." It sounded like Sherlock Holmes. I couldn't get it out of my head, so I sat on my patio and wrote something not at all Holmesian, a kind of light SF thing that probably has no future, but it was fun, entirely dialog, no description. Yesterday I put myself to sleep with Huckleberry Finn and keeping to the Twain style rewrote the whole last part of the book. I wish I could do that well when awake. How does one control one's brain?
Lately, I've been writing about some seriously screwed up characters.
I hope they stay firmly out of my dreams...
I hope they stay firmly out of my dreams...
Dreams usually give ideas: like have a wierd tree trap the bad guy, or a 9' goddess clothed in snakes who grants wishes :}
Is this thread about Weird way you get ideas.
Or about dreams?
Because I've never really dreamt a scene and put it on paper. Or had characters visit me (I wish! It would be quite interesting.).
But anyway, something Odd that inspires me, is actually writing on my mother language.
There are details that come out just because it flows better, being my mother language.
And then I translate it back to english.
I think that's teh oddest thing that makes me write.
the rest is the typical, watching a film, reading, looking at people on the streets and so on.
Another thing that 'inspires' me is just writing about what is annoying me about the story I'm writing.
If I lack confidence in a scene like that I just type and type and type all my thoughts on it. I end up with 2, 3 pages that often give just one little tiny pearl of insight that makes me a bit more confident to work on those scenes.
Or about dreams?
Because I've never really dreamt a scene and put it on paper. Or had characters visit me (I wish! It would be quite interesting.).
But anyway, something Odd that inspires me, is actually writing on my mother language.
There are details that come out just because it flows better, being my mother language.
And then I translate it back to english.
I think that's teh oddest thing that makes me write.
the rest is the typical, watching a film, reading, looking at people on the streets and so on.
Another thing that 'inspires' me is just writing about what is annoying me about the story I'm writing.
If I lack confidence in a scene like that I just type and type and type all my thoughts on it. I end up with 2, 3 pages that often give just one little tiny pearl of insight that makes me a bit more confident to work on those scenes.
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