Weirdest Place

[Renee Stevens]

So, I got to thinking, what is the weirdest place that a story idea has ever come to you? And I don't mean just an idea, but an idea that not only includes a basic plot, but details. Such as:

 

• character names
• how the main characters meet
• the different supporting characters you need to pull off the storyline
• different hookup's that will happen throughout the story
• the conclusion of the story down to the detail

It may seem like a weird question, but I'm curious. What got me wondering you ask? Honestly, it's because I just got a complete story idea and what was I doing? I was washing my hair. Seemed kind of an odd time for a story to pop into my head! So what about you?

[Nephylim]

Walking to work. Isaw a mannequin in a shop window and it sparked off an ida which, by the time I got to work it was pretty much complete and had nothing to do with a mannequin

[Renee Stevens]

Walking to work. Isaw a mannequin in a shop window and it sparked off an ida which, by the time I got to work it was pretty much complete and had nothing to do with a mannequin

 

LOL.. yeah, that would be a bit odd... you would think that the story would have something to do with what sparked it! In a way I wanted to smack my muse when it flooded my mind with the story idea, but nope, here I sit, writing out the majority of the details!

 

So, did you actually write the story? Or is it on the backburner? Or the idea was jotted down but never reached fruition.

[Nephylim]

It's completely finished. It was one of the stories that I sat down and just wrote to 100k words

[Renee Stevens]

It's completely finished. It was one of the stories that I sat down and just wrote to 100k words

 

Woohoo! I love it when that happens with stories!

[Dark]

Actually, I've been told by a published author that the best ideas tend to come when your body is engaged but your mind is off -- something that you do so often that you don't really have to think about it, allowing your mind to wander, like taking a shower, washing dishes, mowing the lawn, etc. I tend to come up with a lot of ideas in those minutes when I'm settling in to sleep. For as long as I can remember, I've told myself stories (in my head) to lull myself to sleep.

 

But, like Nephy, I came up with the idea for The One I Want while walking to work. I had a 25 minute walk one-way and over the course of 2-3 days almost completely wrote in my head the story that became the first chapter.

[Renee Stevens]

Actually, I've been told by a published author that the best ideas tend to come when your body is engaged but your mind is off -- something that you do so often that you don't really have to think about it, allowing your mind to wander, like taking a shower, washing dishes, mowing the lawn, etc. I tend to come up with a lot of ideas in those minutes when I'm settling in to sleep. For as long as I can remember, I've told myself stories (in my head) to lull myself to sleep.

 

But, like Nephy, I came up with the idea for The One I Want while walking to work. I had a 25 minute walk one-way and over the course of 2-3 days almost completely wrote in my head the story that became the first chapter.

 

I wish I could tell myself stories to lull myself to sleep, lol. Unfortunately for me, if I get an idea when I'm trying to sleep, it won't leave me alone until I get up and write it out. Many of them don't go beyond that idea, but some of them do.

 

Obviously it worked for The One I Want I absolutely loved that story! It's on my list to go back and re-read slower this time and give lots of reviews on

[Tiger]

On the toilet and taking a dump. Yeah, I really do think about stories when I'm there. It's kind of weird. I know.

Edited February 21, 2011 by Tiger

[Dark]

On the toilet and taking a dump. Yeah, I really do think about stories when I'm there. It's kind of weird. I know.

 

I suppose that depends on how long you sit on the toilet ...

[Renee Stevens]

On the toilet and taking a dump. Yeah, I really do think about stories when I'm there. It's kind of weird. I know.

 

LOL... now that is definitely not an answer I thought I would get, lol....

[Dark]

Obviously it worked for The One I Want I absolutely loved that story! It's on my list to go back and re-read slower this time and give lots of reviews on

 

I look forward to it!!

[Marzipan]

At my yoga class while instructing. Try and focus there then...

[Renee Stevens]

At my yoga class while instructing. Try and focus there then...

 

Yeah, lol, that could definitely be awkward!!!

[Tiger]

On 2/21/2011 at 5:51 PM, Renee Stevens said:

 

LOL... now that is definitely not an answer I thought I would get, lol....

And I didn't think I'd get a reaction 7 years later.

[Pmsingtiger]

I was at work putting on my stuffed sloth backpack and I thought “oooooh Larry needs a story” and then I thought he’d meet a wolf and then I needed a name for the main character and a boy named Walker came in that day and I love that name so - Check. Then I went home and wrote it down 😃😃

Edited July 30, 2018 by Pmsingtiger

[Brayon]

On 2/21/2011 at 4:28 PM, Tiger said:

On the toilet and taking a dump. Yeah, I really do think about stories when I'm there. It's kind of weird. I know.

Same... and in the shower, and out for a walk.

[AusGlitterati]

Literally any time I'm in the bathroom for whatever reason. Ideas just happen there!
And naturally, RIGHT when I'm about to fall asleep. 

[Comicality]

 

When I was still in Chicago...the train! Riding the train back and forth to work, 45 minutes each way, was always an awesome opportunity to pull out my pocket notebook and start jotting down ideas. People I saw getting on and off the train, the scenery, the music in my headphones? Always a huge inspiration to me. No reason, it just was.

 

The weirdest? That would be "Gone From Daylight". That actually started as a really weird fever dream! I was in bed at the time (I got the chicken pox when I was 19 years old. Chicken pox are almost DEADLY at that age!), and I had a few vivid dreams about vampires at a dance club, feeding on their patrons from above on a balcony. Long story. But that was something that I couldn't let go of. I originally called it "Midnight's Child", and it would through a bunch of different versions and changes over time...but it was me being extremely sick, delusional, and stuck in bed, that led to that story.  

[Brayon]

9 minutes ago, Comicality said:

(I got the chicken pox when I was 19 years old. Chicken pox are almost DEADLY at that age!)

A little off topic... I was 21, and the pox put me in the hospital for a week. I can understand.

[Comicality]

((Hugz)) Kindred spirits in that regard! Hehehe! Omigod, that sucked! Ugh! 

[Page Scrawler]

Once, a couple of years ago, I saw a teen guy at the beach, playing with his little brother. They built a sand castle, flew a kite, horsed around, and swam for a bit. The sweetest part, was when the older brother lay down on his towel, and the little bro just lay down on top of his chest.  It was so adorable, I just wanted to put them in a story right away. When I got home, I started writing a contemporary piece about two brothers who are best friends, but they start drifting apart, and then recover their friendship after one almost goes away. Then it somehow changed into a story where the older boy has to rescue his brother from cross-dimensional kidnappers.

Edited August 2, 2018 by Page Scrawler

[VampireMystic]

Well, let's see: 

Shower

Commute (Bus or walking)

Waiting at the laundromat ( $274 later my own machine works again, yay. And ouch)

Toilet (private or public)

Laying in bed headed for insomnia

At work

 

And now, this: 

 

I once had a dream that was Rome. Uh, I mean a story. I started writing it down and soon had the leads, supporting cast, world building, basic relationship mechanics, and a scene to aim the story toward. 

 

The strange thing is this was around 16 years ago and I still remember enough of the dream to know what was going on and pieces of what I wrote after. Weird especially because I have trouble remembering what I thought of at work by the time I get home.

 

Hmm. Can't find the file. But I remember someone telling me that one lead had an especially fitting name. Maybe I sent it to my editor at the  time.)

 

I think I'm going to start over. The challenge: Focus on the source scene rather than allowing my mind to start from the "beginning" that leads there. 

 

Oops, squirrel!

 

Basically I get ideas most often anywhere I can't start writing them down. 

 

Oh, GA forums too. Does that count?

[VampireMystic]

Forgot to mention:

 

Getting ideas in the middle of carrying out other ideas.

 

I only stopped by the club to get the URL of my ISO editor advert for a status. Which I thought to write on my way to smashing typos in my recently posted chapter. 

[MrM]

‘Christopher’ came to me one night while I was sleeping and brought back memories of when I’d walk around the Hillcrest area of San Diego when I was younger long before Grindr. I used to see thin/emaciated/high zombie-like ‘Rent Boys’ that would be hussling tricks on the sidewalk. They used to do that before they began using social media to solicit tricks. I was also reminded of a time I was in Ocean Beach and watched a father and mother cast their son onto the street into the arms of an older man that I think was his ‘Daddy’. Both homeless. Both obviously Gay.

 

‘Christopher’ said that they were ‘like him and others’ and that a story needed to be told. I also was given the impression that he was murdered years before by a serial killer of young male prostitutes in LA. The vision that followed was one of the worst nightmares I have ever had!

 

The nightmare was a waking one too as I felt possessed to write the short story called ‘Adagio’ after being ‘contacted’. I wrote like a madman and managed to produce a 22K word document in three days! I decided to submit it as part of the 2016 Fall Anthology with the theme ‘The Forgotten,’ which was going to be the original name of the story. Unfortunately, the piece was ultimately rejected for the Anthology so I decided to post it myself anyway as I knew from whence the story had come and that it needed publishing.

 

After its publishing I was inspired to do some research to see if my story and dream had any basis in any possible reality. What I found chilled me to the bone! To this day, it still does, though I have a warm place in my heart that ‘Christopher’ was satisfied by my work and was able to rest.

 

Robert Christopher Wiroste was a real boy. At 18, he was abducted by William George Bonin, LA’s ‘Freeway Killer’, active for about a year from 1979 to 1980. The story Christopher told me was not just his own, but the story of several of the 21-36+ young men and boys Bonin murdered with the help of accomplices. 

 

One of the boys was named Thomas Glen Lundgre. He was just 13 when Bonin picked him up hitchhiking and caused the boy to suffer the fate ‘Christopher’ in Adagio does. I found this all out after the writing of the story and after the nightmare. Look it up. I’m not pulling anyone’s leg.

 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Bonin

 

The story Adagio was a prayer and an insight into a terrible evil that plagued the world back in that time in our country’s history. These things probably still go on today, but with less frequency. The heated spat of serial murders against children during that time is given an explanation in Adagio. A truly eerie one. One I believe.

 

That darkness still works within our society today, but I believe it has taken on another form in school shooters. I’m waiting for it, but I have a sequel to Adagio coming, but I’m waiting for another ‘nightmare’ to fill in the blanks on that one for me.

 

’The Slayer Of The Innocent’ exists. We should all pray that it doesn’t gain anymore power and vote, be on guard, and prevent it from doing any more to harm to our children in this world. Love and faith are its enemy.

 

Edited September 13, 2018 by MrM

[Thirdly]

*opens her mouth to say something and closes it again*

 

1. In crazy-ass dreams.

2. While eating a chocolate chip cookie and other such miscellaneous food in random places.

3. In the forums while reading one of @Cia prompts.

Edited October 22, 2018 by Thirdly