The July IWSG question of the month: Where do you get your ideas?
While this is the most common question posed to writers, it's also the most difficult to nail down. I don't think my ideas come from one place. They blossom from anywhere and everywhere. An idea can germinate from anything I see, hear, smell, feel. It's probably why, during the pandemic, I had so few ideas to play with, because I was holed up with little-to-no creative input.
Ideas need seeds from which to grow. The seeds are our life experiences.
The snippet of a half-heard conversation. A stranger's unusual gait. The way the city smells after rain. A dream. A movie. A book. A single sentence spoken in whispers. A new technology.
Nothing is safe from a writer.
So, if you're struggling to come up with new ideas, stop stressing and start living. Take the time to pay attention to this wonderful world around us. Read more. Take in a slow breath, and start wondering what if...
Where do you get your ideas?
