And the rest of the familiar words from Star Trek:
“These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Its five-year mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before.”
Let me translate that into the language of writers. Space is a blank page: Your opportunity to boldly go where you’ve never gone before and write what you don’t know with confidence!
When I visited Seekerville this summer, I still lived in Texas. I think I mentioned moving to Louisiana. Well, now I’m here. There’s a swamp right behind my house and I’m getting pressured to try alligator. Not alligator hunting, but alligator on a stick! Sort of like Teriyaki chicken, I think. I’ll leave the hunting to someone else.
You gotta love these Louisiana folks. I never realized how different the culture could be just three hours away from my home in Texas. But different, it is.
Just three hours away from East Texas, the food is different, and the people are Deep South warm and friendly. I thought I lived in the south in Texas, but I learned that to these purist Deep South folk, Texas is considered part of the West.
There’s a point to all this. One of the first story ideas I developed into a novel was set on a sugar plantation near a Louisiana bayou. Could I really be authentic with my story if I’ve never lived in Louisiana?
My post back in June, The Well-Trained Author: Supercharge Your Brain to Generate Great Ideas gave you a few tips on how to keep your idea generator stoked. If any of those techniques helped, and you came up with an idea list that was several pages long, you might have started to wonder about whether or not you are qualified to write those stories.
Something might be a great idea, but you don’t have a clue about the topic. After all, haven’t you heard repeatedly that you should write what you know?
Write what you know.
Write what you know.
Writing gurus and publishing authorities will give you this advice. But I beg to differ.
Think about some of the most prolific best-selling authors you know. The ones you see on display at the grocery store check-out line. One author I can think of is so prolific, she writes under two names. She can’t possibly have experienced everything she writes about, can she?
No how. No way.
Still, the publishing authorities are correct to a degree. For instance, I wouldn’t want to write a legal thriller or a medical thriller without some background. But there’s another side to that. I’ve read a few books written by people who are “experts” or have experience in a particular field and that doesn’t necessarily mean they know how to write a great novel. I’ve been disappointed by novelists with experience in their field plenty of times.
One of the reasons I enjoy writing to begin with is that I can live vicariously through my characters—characters that have awesome adventures that I would never be able to experience in real life.
As writers, the most important thing we can do is give the reader the experience of being there, and especially if that reader is someone who lives in the setting, or who has already experienced what you’re writing about. There’s nothing better than hearing that you’ve portrayed something accurately.
If you can visit the setting in person and spend time there as part of your research, then all the better. But let me add that you can grow up in a town and still hear complaints that you got the town wrong. Think about it. Five different witnesses to an accident will remember it differently. We’re all different people, so our experiences and memories and, most importantly, perspectives are different.
I have an author friend who created a fictional town and heard from a reader who complained that she’d grown up in that town and the author got everything wrong.
Still, I’m not advocating sloppy research. I simply want to encourage you that you CAN write about something you don’t know.
How?
You do enough research that you can almost call yourself an expert when you’re done. You know your stuff by the time you turn that manuscript in. Or at least you have long, intelligent conversations with experts on the topic. They read the manuscript or the scene to approve things, or add their input, all with an understanding of your particular audience.
Since I write romantic suspense which primarily targets women, I don’t need to put too much technical lingo into the story.
In my latest release, TREACHEROUS SKIES, I didn’t have a clue about flying a Learjet when I came up with my initial premise: A test pilot turned Learjet recovery man retrieves a jet only to find the kidnapped daughter of a Colombian drug lord concealed inside.
I didn’t know if my pilots could do what I needed them to do in the story. But I found a couple of experienced pilots who agreed to work with me. By work with me, I mean they cooperated in the following ways:
1) Answered questions
2) Helped me make what I wanted or needed to happen work within the context of the story. Made sure things could actually work or,
3) Offered other scenarios where I could accomplish my goals.
4) Gave details about what happens and specifics on how things happen.
5) Read through scenes to make sure they are right. Offer suggestions and corrections.
Often, before I even posed the question to my experts, I spent hours researching on my own.
I’m sure if you’ve been bold enough to go where you’ve never been before, you’ve probably discovered some of the following tips on your own. (Honestly, I don’t know how people wrote before the internet.)
An awesome research technique is to watch YouTube videos. I used YouTube while writing Freezing Point, watching videos on how to create ice sculptures. Many readers commented on how well I portrayed ice sculpting in that story. I also had my experts available to talk to. I have a twenty-year FBI veteran available to answer questions regarding my undercover agent.
I read blogs written by those who live in a particulate setting or work at a type of job that I’m writing about. It’s the next best thing to communicating with an expert, and can also be used as supplemental research material.
I started this post referencing the television series, Star Trek. Think about all the credits at the end of television shows and movies. Credit is given to the experts who helped make things authentic: makeup, hair, costumes, props, historians or other individuals with the required knowledge.
So assemble your crew and fearlessly explore strange and new worlds!
Treacherous Skies
After years of peace and quiet, Maya Carpenter thinks she's safe—that her drug-lord father's world will never catch up with her. Then she's abducted and secretly stashed on a plane. And once she and the test pilot who finds her land in the Keys, the real threat begins....
Daredevil pilot Connor Jacobson is no one's hero. And this time, he's in way over his head. Yet he can't leave Maya to face danger alone. Besides, he has a few tricks up his sleeve that might keep them safe...as long as he's willing to put everything at risk, including his heart.
Elizabeth Goddard is the award-winning author of more than a dozen novels, including the romantic mystery, The Camera Never Lies—a 2011 Carol Award winner. She lives in Central Louisiana with her husband and children.
Today Elizabeth is generously giving away two copies of Treacherous Skies to two commenters. Winners announced in the Weekend Edition.
This is my first time to visit Seekerville as a guest, and I’m so excited to be here.
I know it seems like such a “no-brainer” that you need an idea if you want to write a novel. That’s the basic building foundation, right? But I’m here to tell you that you need much more.
When I attended my first writer’s conference back in 2001 (American Christian Writers), I met DiAnn Mills, Lynette Sowell and Kathleen Y’Barbo. I think they were the only novelists at this particular conference. I asked them how they came up with their ideas. Looking back, it’s hard to imagine I would ever ask such a question because since then, I’ve trained my mind to do just that and now it’s a struggle to shut the idea machine off. But at the time, I didn’t have a clue.
So if you have an idea and you’re working on your novel, I have some news for you. Publishers don’t want a book.
They want an author.
Let me explain. Editors want someone who has more than one book idea and not just someone who has one book idea, but an author who has great ideas—lots of exceptional and unique ideas.
Maybe you’re there already or maybe you’re still learning how to find the ideas. But even with a well-trained mind, you probably need to refresh your process for honing those unique ideas that will catch an editor’s attention. I know I do.
Sure you need to find your voice, perfect you craft, and network—no one ever stops doing that, even someone at the top of their game. But I’ll venture to say that more than great writing, editors and agents are looking for that great story and lot of them to follow. They want a prolific author.
The good news here is that with unique and exceptional ideas communicated through great hooks and pitches, you’ll see less rejection. A great idea will open doors for you.
An agent I spoke with at length on this topic shared that at conferences, he listens to people pitch their books all day long. Example: Someone will pitch a book. It’s the story they’ve been working on for a year, two years, maybe five. But they only have one.
One is not enough. This particular agent wants to see that someone is a prolific writer.
Over the years as I’ve learned how to find ideas, my question has morphed from where to find them into how do I find enough time to turn them all into stories.
I translate that into: So many ideas, not enough time, or so many ideas, not enough brain.
But here’s the catch: Though ideas are everywhere, not all of them are blockbusters. Not all of them are something that will catch an editor’s or agent’s attention.
One way to develop an eye for not only what makes a great story idea that will catch attention, but compelling writing to showcase that idea, is to judge a contest. You’ll quickly begin to see how to open a story in the best way and what kind of story and writing stands out.
The point is that the more you practice, the more easily you’ll be able to come up with ideas to create a pipeline of potential novels. You’ll be able to prove that you’re an author. Not just someone who has written a book. And you won’t have to count yourself as one of the many who one day wants to write a novel. Anyone can do that, as self-publishing has shown us. But not anyone can write a great novel with a great idea, and do that repeatedly.
Of course story ideas start differently for everyone. For some people it starts with a character, for others a setting, or some other plot element. I write romantic suspense, or romance with a suspense element. Normally, I start with a setting or a situation..
I’ve listed a few things to get you started on filling an idea file. Again, this list might seem like a no-brainer if you’re a seasoned author, but it always helps to refresh and remind ourselves.
1) Curiosity—stir up your curiosity to learn more about things that interest you.
2) Teach yourself to be interested in more things. Broaden your horizon by reading widely from magazines and watching the news, discovery channel, etc., to find stories. TIP: I don’t read looking for stories, I simply read. When something snags my attention, then I know to look more closely.
Make a list of the magazines or other reading where you could elicit ideas. One of my favorite magazines to generate ideas is Wired Magazine—I love this one because the articles are completely random. You never know what will be included. Because I enjoy adventure and travel stories, I also take National Geographic and National Geographic’s Adventure Magazine. I even read through my local electric company co-op magazine.
3) Talk to people and observe them. They’re a wealth of story ideas and also inspiration for characters.
4) Real life (goes hand in hand with talking to people)
Example: In my story The Camera Never Lies, I knew I was going to be short on word count and needed to add another chapter or so. Friends shared a story about the husband taking Ambien and they discovered that he was buying Jesus, Mary and Joseph dolls from an infomercial while sleeping. That inspired me to write about my main character’s mother sleeping walking and added another layer to the mystery—had her mother committed murder in her sleep. Of course, I also added the purchase of the Jesus, Mary and Joseph dolls.
5) Explore things that you’re passionate about. Example: Growing up in Texas I was always fascinated with the redwood trees that I’d learned about in school. I dreamed of seeing them one day. I never imagined I’d end up living close enough to drive to one of the state parks for an afternoon hike—it’s one of my favorite places in the world. I’m so excited that I now get to write those three stories set in the redwoods.
6) Constantly ask, “what if.” This one IS a “no-brainer.”
7) Make a list of all your favorite novels and movies and try to figure out why you enjoyed them. Is there a related theme that interests you? Or look for existing movies or plots and twist them around changing them up until they no longer resemble the original. Remember, there are only a few basic plots. Stars War, Harry Potter, and Eragon all share the same basic plot.
8) Most importantly, train yourself to recognize the right idea—that one that will stand out.
At this point, you might think you have a lot of ideas, but the next step is to determine if the idea is unique, memorable and marketable.
If something catches your attention as unique, unusual, or memorable, chances are it will catch the editor’s attention as well, and more importantly, the readers’ attention.
Tip: Be careful about where you get your ideas. We all filter similar things like a TV show, a country music song, an emailed urban legend, and the like that sparks an idea for developing a novel. Editors will see that same idea repeatedly. Avoid that.
This is KEY: Dig deeper into that idea and look for the not-so-obvious.
9) Last but certainly not least is a technique that I frequently use, though I don’t think it’s that popular. Be random.
This is one of my favorite ways to generate a story. I come up with a random blurb and then it’s like a game or a puzzle to turn that into a compelling plot with complex characters and high stakes. You’d be amazed at how successful this can be.
I hope you got something for this article, and now that I’ve written it, I’m itching to find something new and unique that I can use to write my next proposal!
Elizabeth Goddard is a 7th generation Texan who lives in East Texas with her husband and four children. She and her family recently spent five years in Oregon, which serves as the setting for several of her novels, but in 2010 they returned to Texas to live near family again. She writes for Barbour, Heartsong Presents and Love Inspired Suspense.
You can find her on at www.bethgoddard.com or on Twitter and Facebook.
Oregon Outback - a four-in-one novella collection - Coming July 2012 from Barbour Publishing.
The harsh, yet peaceful Oregon Outback molds the lives of four rugged brothers who stumble into love.
FBI agent Jonas Love has brought trouble back home, endangering his life and that of an old flame. Cattle rancher Carver Love finds himself falling for the sheriff in the midst of chasing down modern-day rustlers. Thrill-seeker Lucas Love fears nothing—until he meets a beautiful bookkeeper. Justin Love is trailing a fugitive who’s heading too close to home—and one particular lodge keeper.
How will God protect these men as they risk their lives to defend the ones they love?
Today Beth is giving away one copy of Oregon Outback to one of our visitors. Winner announced in the Weekend Edition! Thanks, Beth!
