writing help... read the details?

Question

I'm writing a book and i can't think of a good storyline. all i know is that i want it to be in the like 17-1800 and i just need a really good idea then i can work from there. or just how can i think of a good storyline and how do i get inspiration. thank you so much!!!

Answer 1

draw from real life experiences. write about a girl trying to write a book so she relies on Yahoo answers for ideas. It's sure to be best seller.

Answer 2

Umm....let's think about this for a minute.
If you're writing the book, YOU have to come up with the story line. All it IS is an idea, an approach.
If WE give you the story line, we should also write the book.
You need inspiration, so here it is, and tell you what, this is the best advice you'll ever get.
Use your imagination, contemplate, meditate, think about life during THAT specific time period, and all of the problems the people had at that time, and you shall be writing your story in no time.
Here's a REAL hint: use your imagination and try talking to the PEOPLE from back then ---in your mind.
Let THEM tell YOU the story, you write it down. Your "MUSE" and your writing skills will keep you going IF you are a fiction writer.

If, after a few weeks, you still have NO story line, try writing poetry instead?

Answer 3

There is a great book that might be just what you are looking for. It is called No Plot, No problem by Chris Baty. It has a lot of inspiration in the book and pretty much helps you write a novel with little to know idea or story to go off of. It is more an exercises of finding your writing rhythm, and then going for it. Nobody writes a perfect first draft - especially for a novel. So the pressure's off. :)

He is the founder of NaNoWriMo - in English...that's short for National Novel Writing Month (which happens in November by the way).

There is a website and even a forum - but I'm not sure if the forum's up for new accounts (though you should be able to skim through other people with their own writing questions/problems).

Mail me later if you wish. Hopefully these links will help spark your creativity.

Answer 4

Hi harry potter!....Read Professor STEPHEN HAWKING's Life-story! He is an Engish Science Professor at Kings College,Cambridge,England. He was told when very young that he had only 2-years to live. Now in his 60s he is still lecturing successfully at Cambridge. He is confined to an Electronically controlled-wheelchair;his body is ABSOLUTELY USELESS but his eyes are very much 'alive', indicating a Very active brain;he has to use an electronic voice thru' a computer. HE IS ABSOULUTELY MARVELLOUS!! He epitomises what my dear Father once said:"No matter whatever happens to your body,.......
keep studying, keep exercising your Mind....You'll live longer!"
(He was 92 when he died.....while sat STILL studying..in his chair.) He was seen RUNNING TO CATCH A 'BUS AT THE AGE OF 90!!!!

I believe this implicitely!! My body is 'giving-up' on ME,but I keep my mind occupied as much as possible, and I too have lived longer than expected!

So there. There's your inspiration for a story..Don't you think?
You could give the character a different name, of course, and set it In the century of your choice...OK?

Hope my answer helps in some way, however 'small'!

Cheers! and good luck... "tottie-for-lol"

Answer 5

Start by going to a historical place in your area. Make sure it dates back to at least the 1700's. Then picture yourself in that era. What did you wear? Maybe your best friend lived next door? Better yet, say it was a Bo, and you we like so in-love as a child like an American Wuthering Heights? Picture your surroundings(how they use to be.) Talk to some older residents in the area, ask them what they remember as far back as they can go. Have children, a midwife who delivered 20 children or more. Superstitions of the people in that fork of the woods. On & on...

Answer 6

So, you mean you’re looking for a good plot?

First, if you’re interested in eventually selling your book, I suggest you check out the market: What are publishers buying now?

Check out PUBLISHERS MARKET PLACE:

http://www.PublishersMarketplace.com/

They list the books/titles/fiction/nonfiction that just got sold to publishers and for how much.

You’ll get an idea what’s hot/what’s selling and what kind of money they’re paying.

Then, check out books:

Building Better Plots (Paperback)
by Robert Kernen

Structuring Your Novel by Robert C. Meredith

Plot & Structure: (Techniques and Exercises for Crafting a Plot That Grips REaders From Start to finish) (Write Great Fiction) by James Scott Bell

Beginnings, Middles & Ends (Elements of Fiction Writing) by Nancy Kress

And my favorite, the one that’s been most helpful to me:

Scene and Structure (Elements of Fiction Writing) (Paperback)
by Jack M. Bickham

Just check them out at Amazon…

As for the rest of the book, here’s a great booklist for writers:

http://shalladeguzman.com/shallabooklist.php

Best,

Shalla

Answer 7

Don't do it!

Instead write a few short stories, or poems, or even op -eds. Get them published in magazines and such. By all means you should work on your story. Develop characters, plot out locations, etc. You would be surprised at how much detail your protagonist's house can have if you think of it in terms of your home.

Good luck to you

Answer 8

Have you considered taking journalism classes just to get started? These could be of help to you not only in writing but also when you are ready to publish. Good luck!

Answer 9

I'm not sure you're going to be the next J K Rowling, dear.
But good luck.

Answer 10

You could write a book about Napolean's sexual proclivities.