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Help finding a writer, I have the idea but I'm no writer!

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fledgling_kipling

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Hi,

I think the title says it all. I have what I believe is a great idea for a fictional work and have many ideas for how the story progresses and ultimately completes but I'm just not a writer.

Does anyone have any tips for finding a writer who can take my idea and run with it? Is it a common practise?

Any words of wisdom greatly appreciate.

Thanks,
FK
 

dpaterso

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Welcome to the board.

Some may argue that the best person to execute your idea is you. There are dozens, possibly hundreds of "How to Write a Novel" books, and loads of advice online, e.g. take a peek at the "Learn Writing with Uncle Jim" threads in Novels forum. And of course you've read numerous novels yourself, so you know how they work. :)

However, if that just doesn't suit you, we have a forum called Beta Readers, Mentors, and Writing Partners where folks can post a "wanted ad" -- I'm thinking that's the best place for this thread, so I'll move it there now. Good luck.

PS - right at the top of the forums list on our main page you'll see Newbie Forum. Feel free to introduce yourself there! Folks are more likely to respond to posts if they have an idea of who you are.

-Derek
 

Fantasy_trader

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It's easy to sit there thinking up great ideas. The discipline it takes to write it all down is by far more difficult, but if you can find someone who prefers writing someone else's ideas down for them then go for it.
 

Ruv Draba

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Welcome, Fledge.

Experienced writers aren't short of strong ideas; much harder is to execute well and catch the imagination. But if you're clear on what you want then you can write a rough draft (or better still, an outline) and get an experienced writer to polish it up -- or they can tell you what's wrong with it conceptually or structually.

That's what I suggest you do.
 

Cyia

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I think the title says it all. I have what I believe is a great idea for a fictional work and have many ideas for how the story progresses and ultimately completes but I'm just not a writer.

You sure you're not a writer?

From the sound of it, you have a beginning, a middle, and an end.

Try writing it out as a bullet list or outline, then add more detail, and more, and more. You'll have a story sooner than you think.
 

Feathers

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Hey Fledge! Welcome to AW.

I have to agree with the others. Your best bet is to write this yourself. Most writers (myself included) are generally very wary of writing someone else's idea. Believe it or not, we get asked this quite often.

What are you looking for in this deal? To have a published novel? Most people who've ever asked me to write an idea for them said it was because they thought the idea was very marketable and would sell well. However, if you read around, you'll see how difficult it is to become published.

Most of us writers keep writing one book after the other, trying to improve over time. And maybe our tenth or sixth or fourth book manages to hook the interest of an agent. People do get their first books published, sometimes. It certainly happens. It's just not the norm. So unless you're in this for the long haul, it can be a waste of a writer's time to make this book for you.

But maybe you're justing looking for your story to be out there, to be written down? The problem with that is, it's hard to write a novel. You feel the drive for this story--but no one else does. It's your story. You're asking us to spend months, potentially years, on an idea we don't have a particular passion for. It would be better for you to write it yourself, because you are the only person who has the drive to make it happen.

I'm not trying to be discouraging. I'm just trying to explain why most people are probably going to say no, they don't want to write your novel for you. You could have an amazing idea but it's just very risky, and awkward, for us to do the work for you.

With all that said...there are a few options. You could have someone ghostwrite this for you. Basically you pay someone, a ghostwriter, to write the book for you. If it gets published, your name goes on the cover. You can claim the book as your own. However, it's expensive to pay a ghostwriter, and again, there's no guarantee of becoming published afterwards.

The second option is collaboration. This is when you find another writer to write the story WITH you---often, you'll each pick a character and write their side of the story, or you'll alternate chapters, one person writing a chapter and then the second person writing the second chapter. This works best if you find someone who writes with the same style as you and is also excited about your story. Also, writers are more willing to do this, because you both have equal rights to the story. If it's published, both names are on the cover. You would be giving up complete rights to your story.

So you have some options beside writing it yourself. Many of them are good options. If I were you, I would take a step back and think about your motivations for a second. Writing is definitely about the long haul--are you willing to commit the long haul to this story? Or is it simply a thing you'd like to see done, to have accomplished?

I know that can be intimidating to think about. There's really a lot involved in what you're asking, and I think it would help you to have a good understanding of what you want, so you can learn where to take this.

Truly the best of luck :)
 

Summonere

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Hi,

I think the title says it all. I have what I believe is a great idea for a fictional work and have many ideas for how the story progresses and ultimately completes but I'm just not a writer.

Does anyone have any tips for finding a writer who can take my idea and run with it? Is it a common practise?

Any words of wisdom greatly appreciate.

Thanks,
FK

Nobody's a writer till they sit down and write something. You could give that a try, and in fact, probably should. Here's why. You might have fun. You might defy your doubts, exceed your expectations, and discover that you have talent, dedication, drive, and that you can produce something wholly worth publishing. You could discover the satisfaction of seeing a project through from mere flitter of an idea to completed work that sells.

Of course you might also discover that writing, good and publishable writing, is hard work.

Then you may discover the trick for finding a writer who can take your idea and run with it.

That trick would be to offer them money. Lots and lots of money. :)
 

CACTUSWENDY

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Welcome to AW. Hope you enjoy your stay with us.
How do you like your popcorn? What the others have said holds true.

If you go to the bottom of the page to the ‘forum jump’ you can scroll down and find all the areas of this place. Most of the SYW areas require the password of ….vista. Good luck.
 

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I encourage you to give it a shot first. Who told you you're not a writer? For real, who? No one? That's what I thought.

I write my novels by writing down the scenes as I think of them. Once I get about 20K words or so, I outline the story and figure which scene goes where. I then find ways to connect them.

It sounds like you've got an outline, and I'm willing to bet you have scenes envisioned for various parts. Write them down, plug them into your outline, and then see if there is a way to connect them. Voila, you've become and writer and you didn't even know it.
 

kaigal

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Welcome,

I also agree with what the others are saying about at least trying to put your ideas to paper. Once you've done that, just start at the beginning and keep going, even if you know that some of the things you're writing doesn't sound right to you. But that's the beauty of editing. I find, and I know this isn't the best method for others but it does work for me, when I write that I have the concept and at least the story itself is down. Don't fret over the nitygrity until you go through and edit it all. Also, I know my friends don't consider themselves writers as they have other skills they've honed over the years so they generally bounce things off of me. Find someone you feel comfortable with bouncing things off of, explaining what it is you were attempting to accomplish and seeing if that fresh set of eyes and brain can help you get there. Hope everything works out for you!
 

fledgling_kipling

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Thankyou guys

Wow, i'm taken aback by the amount of feedback. As an IT guy I tend to use technical forums and they are rarely this positive or responsive.

It seems the consensus is I should give writing another try and who am I to argue. I'll certainly give it a go.

Thanks all for your responses.

FK
 

lachlan

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fledgling kipling's not kidding -- I'm also an IT guy, and a question like this would get them eviscerated on a tech board. But here, it's all about 'hmm, here's why this might not work, and here's how to get to the place you want'. I love Absolute Write!
 
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