Last night I came up with an idea for a book that I am so excited about, I can't stand it. I was actively seeking ideas that spring from normal, every day occurrences. I wanted a normal action that when "what if" was added, the main character's world would explode, metaphorically speaking. And I found it. I don't want to do anything else but work on this idea. Flesh it out. Outline it. Write it.
If I could, I'd take my laptop to some seedy motel, lock myself in for days, and write "the downest and dirtiest" first draft in the history of first drafts. But, sigh, life gets in the way. I can't lock myself up and do nothing but write. I have to write in chunks.
So now what do I do? I've got work, family, volunteer commitments. I've got a WIP that is heading down the home stretch. But that darn idea, that hint of a story, that nugget of a book -- it won't get in line. It wants all my attention, right now!
What do you do when a new idea grabs you and won't let go? Do you make it go to the back of the line and finish your WIP? Do you put your WIP on hold and while you're hot on the topic, write like the wind ? Or do you try to work on both? Care to guess which approach I'll try?
Photo Credit: Bob Smith
Monday, May 24, 2010
OMG! I've Got a Great Idea!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I'm guessing if you're that excited, that you're not putting it on hold. I clicked over from the blue boards because the same thing happened to me. I'm in the home stretch of a wip when I got a great idea that came from a conversation I had with another mom. I didn't drop the other one, but I did take time to write a couple chapter and plot a little bit. So I've been working on both. Getting in my 1K on my older one and then spending time on the new one. My toughest decision is which one to pursue and query first. I don't know. Good luck with your new idea!
ReplyDeleteRun with it! Follow that muse, I say :)
ReplyDeleteWell, I'm envious.(read last post, lol) Kind of.
ReplyDeleteI'm a monogamous writer by nature, if I don't see a WIP through til the end, chances are, I won't see it through at all. And that's 90% of the battle for me.
On the other hand, I don't think it hurts to take an idea and run with it - get down what you need to and work on two simultaneously, at some point, one will take over.
Just as long as it's not an excuse to drop the other WIP (which I don't think it is!) then forge on. Who knows, maybe part of getting this out will help you with your other one. I recall reading that some writer named JK Rowling worked on stories simultaneously...so if it worked for her...
btw..Have your muse call my muse and tell him to get a fire under his butt. He must be off surfing again.
This is the story of my life. after I finished my first book, it's like the ideas kept FLOODING and I couldn't stop. I like to tell people that it's like running a marathon. Once you do it and you see it's not so bad, you can't help but do it again. So when you get that crazy idea that is just CALLING you to flush the book out, go with your gut and do it. listen to your instinct. I also find that when I'm done concentrating on my other WIP for a few days, when I go back, I'm fresh as a daisy and ready to get to work. I work on 3 manuscripts at a time. :) Good luck and keep us posted!!!
ReplyDeleteOh, that's SUCH a great feeling, isn't it? Even though I'm a serial monogamist, if my wip stalls and that shiny idea is calling to me I'll probably go with it. Although if my wip is going well, I'll put the shiny toy on a shelf until I'm finished playing with the one in my hand.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with it!
Nelsa
Oh my gosh, I would definitely put WIP on hold. When inspiration strikes, you have to run with it!!!
ReplyDeleteIsn't it thrilling when that great idea strikes? I'm a serial monogamist writer too, but last fall I did set a WIP aside in favor of a hot new idea. I'm staying with the new idea because the premise is much more "wow" than the one I was working on. I think that's my determining factor these days: which idea has the freshest, grabbiest premise.
ReplyDeleteHa-ha! I love this conversation!
ReplyDeleteAnd I think I'm right there with you all on how I'll approach this.
I can't abandon my WIP --after all, I was really excited about that when it was a germ of an idea, too. Sludging through to the end of the first draft is pure work. I know writing self well enough to know that for me, the thrill comes back in revision.
But that shiny new idea is beckoning with such intensity, I can't just throw it in my idea folder and make it wait.
So, I'm going to finish my WIP while I outline my shiny new idea. And write the first chapter. Because I won't be able to not write it.
Laundry, cooking, paperwork - um, that will have to wait!
Sounds as though you have a good solution. If the new idea is so hot, hot, hot, it might not take too long to bang out an experimental first chapter. And then perhaps your inspiration bug will be soothed, at least for a day or so?
ReplyDeleteI did that today! I have been working on an MG, but a PB idea popped into my head. I really, really want to finish this MG though. So I did write down a bunch of ideas for the PB this afternoon. But tonight I worked on my MG.
ReplyDeleteI haven't had time to write a word down for my new idea. But I'm thinking about it non-stop.
ReplyDeleteOh, and who's going to SCBWI next week? I want to finally meet some of you!!!
ReplyDeleteCorey, this is a big first for us -- I don't think any of us are going this year. I have a conflict with my kids -- why do their schedules always trump mine?
ReplyDeleteI tend to finish something up first and then move to the next project otherwise I have two projects under construction and it's crazy. BUT that said, you might have something brilliant that just has to come out. You could divide your day up in two. Like morning, write one novel, night write the other.
ReplyDeleteThis is how I feel/want to do about the new wip I concocted. But one thing at a time. I have to revise my current project--I have a deadline.
ReplyDeleteI just finished vacuuming my dusty apartment, doing the laundry, and fixing the support for the bed. And NOW I get to immerse myself, until the telephone rings.
ReplyDeleteBut I'm pretty lucky, I have until September off and if I'm wise, I'll write and read all day long. There was a time when I left my job to write, and did that for a year, ignoring all else. But I didn't have my wonderful husband around, or my grandchildren either. It's all a tradeoff.