“Where do you get your ideas?” It’s a question I’m often asked when talking about my books, and I’m never entirely sure how to answer. For me, inspiration is all around. I spin stories while walking in the woods, drinking a cup of coffee, or looking at lovely flowers from a friend (thanks, Kate!).
One way to explore story ideas is through free writing, like I do on my Freely Written podcast. It’s a way to sit down with a prompt and let your imagination flow with no plan and no worry about where it will lead.
For me, free writing is a great creative exercise, but it isn’t the best way for me to turn inspiration into a novel. I’m a planner, so I let my imagination run with an idea as I fill out outlines and note cards.
Inspirations for My Novels
Looking back, it’s strange to remember the inspirations behind my novels. The finished stories took different turns, leading down unexpected paths as I pieced the plots together. Even with a detailed outline, there were often big shifts in story as I got to know the characters and listened to the choices they would make.
The Insistence of Memory
My first novel, The Insistence of Memory, is about a young widow who discovers that her husband created a machine that can record memories and play them back in someone else’s mind. Originally, Joanne was not a widow or even part of the story. My inspiration came from the exploding popularity of reality TV. I had the annoyed thought: What’s next? Watching each other’s memories?
I toyed with many futuristic versions of the story, including some with a trial where testimony was submitted by pulling memories from witnesses minds. Yet, as I thought about how the machine was made, I wanted to bring it closer to our reality. I also wanted to explore how memories are malleable and potentially dangerous if misused. That eventually led to Joanne’s dark secrets and her fear of them coming out.
To the Left of Death
My second novel, To the Left of Death, came from a passing thought that kept tugging at the back of my mind. The thought came while I was sitting in my car, waiting for my annual state inspection. Some drama was playing out between a couple walking through the parking lot. While I tried to mind my business, it was impossible to ignore the argument happening a few feet from my car. I wasn’t part of it, but I was an unwilling witness.
I began thinking about how we’re all background players in other people’s stories but could be pulled in as extras during a tragic moment. That led to imagining the trauma of being present at someone’s murder without understanding the context around it. The novel evolved from there, bringing in a rediscovered love of art as a form of therapy.
The Psychic Traveler Society
When I started The Psychic Traveler Society series, I pulled together a couple of ideas that had been on my writing back burners. One inspiration came from my own recurring dreams. I often dream about being in a house with many doors. It’s not always the same house, and it often has strange elements, like incomplete staircases or mysterious trapdoors. The other idea was from a short story I’d written about a fantasy world where trees would spiral toward the sun during the day and curl back toward the ground at night.
I was going to write a fantasy novel about a young girl living in that world, but I prefer contemporary fiction to straight fantasy, and I’ve always loved Alice in Wonderland. The world with the spiraling trees could have been my version of Wonderland. Instead, as I looked for the right portal to transverse worlds, I thought of my dream houses and imagined doors opening to many worlds. That, of course, let to psychic travel and a girl trying to find her place in many worlds, including our own.
Inspiration Notes and Sketches
Notebooks travel with me, and the notes app in my phone catches inspirations if I don’t have a notebook on hand. I jot down story ideas, bits of dialogue, and interesting phrases. Unfinished stories and writing sketches fill my laptop. Some of them may be steps on the way to future novels.
Inspiration comes from anywhere. Catch it when you can and follow where it leads.