Finding Good Story Ideas Within Yourself:

Finding good story ideas within yourself:

I came across some typed up notes from a previous session of life universe and everything panel. Here are the notes on writing about Finding good story ideas within yourself.

To get ideas out you must first put ideas in. The more things you’ve done, the more things you’ve read, the more ideas you have access to. Until it’s in your head you can’t pull it out.
Often times, the characters tell you where the story is going to go. They give you access to the hidden knowledge within yourself.
If something is alive to you, your passions will breathe life into your story ideas.
Pay attention to what’s going on around you. You have to be living to get ideas that will work.
Genius of story ideas:
Lois Pohjola: doing dishes, listen to music. A particular piece of music suddenly bridgde several ideas. Given the idea for her novel weather man. Some of those things have been in her head for years. It took the music to connect them.
Judith Moffett: historical accounts of cross over children raised by different cultures or even by different species. The child’s reclamation by her culture. On reading the story again years later, Judith realize of the woman in the story was actually her.
Shane Bell: physical activity help spur his thinking. Drawing directly from experiences in his life that was simply vignettes, without set up or resolution. He simply extrapolated to fill in.
Do science-fiction characters live at the tops of their voices. To break this go back and write an episode of your life, trying for exact recreation. You have to write the story you’re terrified to write. Comment by David Gerald.
If things keep reoccurring in your writing, it may be time to concentrate on that as a major theme in a work, essentially getting it out of your system. Because things are sometimes indicative of some aspect in your life that you perhaps haven’t dealt with. Self-censorship usually causes you to shoot yourself in the foot. The unconscious knows more than you do.
Personal material will always intrude on your stories. Le Guin’s left hand of darkness.
If you’re writing doesn’t move you, you can’t expect it to move your reader (not necessarily during the first draft, but certainly as your editing.” (Lois Bujold)
If the words are right, and if they move you, then you got it right. If you think they are dumb or inane, then you haven’t got the words right yet. (Shane Bell).
Character development can rise out of a plot concept, a character conflict, a situation.
Writers’ block usually occurs because you’re trying to do something wrong. It’s your subconscious trying to warn you off. Sooner or later the right ideas will occur. (Lois Bujold)